Jiang Ties for Fifth at Badger Invitational

Tuesday, September 11

Madison, WI

Rutgers University

Badger Invitational

Photo by: (Ben Solomon/Rutgers Athletics)

Sep 11 | Men's Golf

Final Results Round One Results Round Two Results

Junior finishes at five under in Madison

MADISON, Wis. – Junior Tony Jiang tied for fifth to lead Rutgers men's golf Tuesday afternoon at the Badger Invitational in Madison, Wisconsin. Jiang finished at five-under-par (67-72-72) after he carded an even scorecard during the final round of play.

Jiang impressed in his first collegiate tournament since an injury sidelined him for most of the 2018 spring campaign. Jiang led after the first round with a five-under-par 67 on Sunday, using five birdies and an eagle to move to the top of the leaderboard. Jiang then registered back-to-back 72's in the second and third rounds to close out the tournament. In total, Jiang carded 11 birdies and two eagles during his 54 holes of play.

Tony Jiang finishes T5 at -5 after his even scorecard in the final round of the Badger Invitational.

Nice showing for the junior.#GoRU pic.twitter.com/sR9bv2J0gP
— RU Mens Golf (@RUMensGolf) September 11, 2018

"It was great to have Tony back in the lineup for this tournament after he missed some time due to injury last spring," head coach Rob Shutte said. "Tony really impressed out here shooting five under in the opening round, and he really showed off his potential as a consistent presence in our lineup."

Nevada's Joey Vrzich captured the individual title with a 13-under-par 203 (70-68-65), while Illinois secured the team title with a nine-under-par 855 (287-285-283). As a team, the Scarlet Knights finished ninth at 24-over-par (301-290-297).

Sophomore Oliver Whatley tied for 38th (76-69-80) while classmate Christopher Gotterup tied for 46th (79-71-76). Rookie Shayler Dance improved his 18-hole score in each of his three outings, as he produced a one-over-par 73 in the final round courtesy of three birdies and 12 pars. The Dallas, Texas native tied for 50th (81-78-73), with junior Adam Gray rounding out the team scorecard tied for 67th (79-82-76). Competing as an individual, senior Matthew Mourin tied for 74th (77-78-89).

"We dealt with some tough situations, including having just two practice days, leading up to this tournament, and that showed at points during play," Shutte said. "But our guys fought and it was great to see Shayler improve his scores each day as a rookie in his first tournament. If we are able to solidify the backend of our lineup, we have the potential to be a dangerous team."

In its next time out, Rutgers will compete in the first of three new tournaments for the fall when it heads to the OTC Collegiate Invitational – hosted by Wake Forest – from Sept. 24-25 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The two-day tournament will be played at the Old Town Club, a par 70, 7,038-yard course.

The program will also host its second-annual Hackberry Invitational on Sept. 21 at the Rutgers University Golf Course. More information on the event can be found here.

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