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Friday, March 29, 2024
The Observer

Irish finish 14th at Georgia State Maui Jim Intercollegiate

In its second invitational of the season away from home, Notre Dame finished 14th out of 16 teams at the Georgia State Maui Jim Intercollegiate tournament, which took place from Friday to Sunday at the Mirabel Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.

By the end of the 54-hole weekend, the Irish compiled scores of 288, 291 and 298 Friday, Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Notre Dame’s best performer, sophomore Ben Albin, shot a team best even-par 71 Sunday to earn the top tournament score of 3-over-par 216 for the Irish. Senior Blake Barens, who scored a career best 2-under-par 69 score Friday, and freshman Hunter Ostrom finished tied for second on the team with a 7-over-par 220. Freshman John Felitto and senior Matt Rushton finished with scores of 11-over-par 224 and 14-over-par 227, respectively. Freshman Davis Lamb, who competed as an individual, tied for 23rd in the field with an 1-under-par 212.

Irish freshman Hunter Ostrom follows his shot during the Notre Kickoff Challenge on Sept. 3 at Warren Golf Course
Irish freshman Hunter Ostrom follows his shot during the Notre Kickoff Challenge on Sept. 3 at Warren Golf Course
Irish freshman Hunter Ostrom follows his shot during the Notre Kickoff Challenge on Sept. 3 at Warren Golf Course.


Ostrom said despite the low placing at the invitational, there wasn’t anything in particular that made the Mirabel Golf Club more difficult than any of the other courses the team has played on this season.

“This past weekend in Arizona was no different than any other tournament that we played this year, but we just had a very weak showing,” Ostrom said. “This may have been onset because a whole bunch of different reasons, but the fact was we just didn’t play well. We’re not always going to play great but we should have been able to hold onto it a little better than we did.”

Ostrom said that before the team began competition, the Irish were hoping to compete among the best teams in the field. LSU won the invitational with a score of 41-under-par 811 as three of its players finished in the top 10 of all competitors. Baylor finished second with a 36-under-par 816, and Kent State placed third with a score of 24-under-par 828.

“The mood after the round yesterday from both coach and my teammates was more of a disappointment feel,” Ostrom said. “We were upset with the way we all played but we can hopefully use and build upon it heading into our next couple events. It’s going to be very nice to have our next event at home, allowing us to feel a little more comfortable on the course, and allow to get some good finishes under our belts.”

The Irish didn’t have a strong overall finish, but there were several notable highlights for Notre Dame. On Friday, Barens took the 571-yard par-5 second hole and converted it into an eagle. On Saturday, Lamb birdied the final two holes of the day to finish with a score of 3-under-par 68 and pull into a tie for 27th place among all individuals.

Ostrom, who is one of the team’s three freshmen, finished 7-over-par on the weekend, but is confident that his preparation for the Fighting Irish Golf Classic will place him among the top individuals.

“The only thing I would really like to improve in between now and the tournament in two weeks would be my mindset toward the event itself,” Ostrom said. “I’ve placed way too much pressure on myself these last two events, and it has been really hurting my game. I’m going to work on this the next couple of weeks and see where it puts me.”

Notre Dame will follow up their recent 14th place finish with the Fighting Irish Golf Classic on Oct. 9.