The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Old Waverly Collegiate Championship
Thornberry Wins Second-Straight Tournament Title
4/5/2016 | Men's Golf
WEST POINT, Miss.- Freshman Braden Thornberry captured his second-straight tournament title after a final round 69 Tuesday to earn medalist honors at the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship and help Ole Miss clinch a second-place team finish.
After earning co-medalist honors at the FAU Slomin Autism Invite last week, Thornberry notched his second individual title of his career after firing a 3-under 69 on a very windy day at the 7,088-yard Old Waverly Golf Club. The Southaven, Mississippi native did not post a bogey for 26 consecutive holes through round two and three.
"It makes it a little easier to know that you can win, and you don't have to do anything special," said Thornberry. "I was trying to go out there and play my game. I figured with the tough conditions, it would be tough. I've been keeping it in front of me and trying to avoid bogies. When I do get into a bad spot, I am handling it well. You have take advantage of the birdie putts when you can, and it has been going pretty smoothly."
Thornberry has the most tournament titles in a season since former Ole Miss golfer and current Web.com tour player Jonathan Randolph did it in the 2009-10 season. The Rebels also posted consecutive top-three team finishes for the first time since September 2012. Ole Miss turned in a third round score of 11-over par 299 in the final round to bring their team total to 8-over 872. Their tournament was highlighted by a second round score of 5-under par 283.
"I was proud that we put ourselves in contention to win for the second week in a row," said Ole Miss head coach Chris Malloy. "Unfortunately, we didn't take care of business today. We had too many self-inflicted wounds today early on in the round. We dug ourselves too deep of a hole to get out of. What I did like is that we fought until the end. We had it going in the wrong direction, but finished on a high note."
Junior Noah West posted an even-par 72 in the final round to earn his first top-five finish of his career. The Tupelo, Mississippi native fired three birdies in a row on the back nine and another one the 18th to finish tied for fourth place.
"Noah is the case of how we didn't have it going in the right direction for a while, but he makes three birdies in a row and puts himself back in contention," Malloy said. "That is what you want to see as a coach. None of these guys have any give-up in them, but that just reaffirms that. He has played well for two weeks in a row, and he is getting closer to holding up a trophy for the individual championship himself."
Seniors Forrest Gamble and Connor Davis posted scores of 7-over 79 in the final round. Gamble finished the tournament tied for 26th with a final score of 223, while Davis finished a stroke higher and tied for 28th. Junior Ben Wolcott finished with an overall score of 234 and finished tied for 67th.
The men's golf team heads to Sea Island, Georgia for the SEC Championships April 15-17. Fans can follow live stats at OleMissSports.com or GolfStat.com. For all Ole Miss Men's golf news and information, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMGolf, on Instagram at OleMissMGolf and on Facebook facebook.com/OleMissMGolf. Fans can also follow head coach Chris Malloy on Twitter @CoachMalloy12.
1. Braden Thornberry- 71-69-69-209
T4. Noah West- 73-71-72-216
T26. Forrest Gamble- 72-72-79-223
T28. Connor Davis- 74-71-79-224
T67. Ben Wolcott- 81-73-80--234
Team Standings
1. McNeese State- 289-283-294--866
2. Ole Miss- 290-283-299--872
3. Lipscomb- 292-285-298--875
4. Georgia State- 296-290-294--880
5. Kansas State- 287-299-297-883
6. Southeastern Louisiana- 293-302-294-889
7. Mississippi State- 297-297-297-891
8. Louisiana Tech- 302-294-298--894
9. Louisiana-Lafayette- 301-293-302--896
10. Cincinnati- 301-396-301--898
11. South Alabama- 297-294-312--903
12. Southern Miss- 293-310-302--905
13. Chattanooga- 303-296-308--907
14. West Virginia- 295-303-314--912
T15. Louisiana-Monroe- 297-297-319--913
T15. UT Arlington- 298-304-311-913
Players Mentioned
