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Friday, March 29, 2024
The Observer

Notre Dame surges to top of leaderboards after final round at Augusta Haskins Award Invitational

In the days leading up to the Masters, perhaps the most widely-recognized event in golf, the city of Augusta hosted another tournament featuring some of the top college golf programs in the country.

The Notre Dame men’s golf team traveled south over the weekend to compete in the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational. The invitational featured top programs such as No. 7 Texas, No. 8 Wake Forest, South Carolina, Arkansas and Illinois. Notre Dame, led by senior Miguel Delgado and his career-best round of -6 (66) on day 3, surged to a fifth-place finish in Augusta.

Delgado disappointed in the first round of play, laboring to an opening round score of +3 (75) in Augusta. The senior bounced back in his second round to post an even-round (72), and then he stormed back in a big way to post a final round of -6 (66).

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Irish senior Kevin Connors takes a swing during the Fighting Irish Classic on Oct. 8 at the Warren Golf Course. Connors finished tied for 57th overall in the competition.
Irish senior Kevin Connors takes a swing during the Fighting Irish Classic on Oct. 8 at the Warren Golf Course. Connors finished tied for 57th overall in the competition.


Five Notre Dame golfers combined for 852 strokes over three rounds of play at Forest Hills Golf Club. Delgado, the No. 1 seed for the Irish, posted a combined score of 213 over his three rounds, placing him tied for 16th place among all individuals. Taichi Kho and John Felitto, the No. 3 and No. 5 seeds respectively for the Irish entering the weekend, each recorded combined scores of 214 to tie for 24th place in Augusta.

Kho, a freshman from Hong Kong, surged out to a first round score of -4 (72), the best score for the Irish on day one. Felitto, a junior from Mountainside, New Jersey, posted a first round score of -2 (70), the second-best score for the Irish in the opening round.

Junior Davis Lamb and freshman Andrew O’Leary struggled out of the gates for the Irish. Lamb, the No. 2 seed for the Irish entering the weekend, posted a first round score of +6 (78). O’Leary had an equally underwhelming round on opening day, posting a score of +7 (70). Lamb and O’Leary rebounded nicely over the weekend. In round two, Lamb posted a -5 (67) as O’Leary scored a -1 (71). Lamb continued his inconsistent play in the final round, struggling to a +3 (75), but O’Leary continued to improve as he posted a -2 (70) in is final round of the weekend.

Entering the final round of play Sunday, the Irish owned a combined score of 574, two strokes behind sixth place Illinois and seven strokes behind fifth place Augusta. The five Notre Dame golfers combined to post a third round score of 279, while Illinois struggled to a third round score of 286 and Augusta recorded a third round score of 288.

The strong third round finish from the Irish lifted Notre Dame from fifth place to third place in Augusta. Wake Forest led the field with a combined score of 828. South Carolina, Texas, Arkansas and Notre Dame rounded out the top five over the weekend. Notre Dame fell eight strokes shy of Arkansas’ combined score of 845 for fourth place.

The Irish continue their season this weekend when they travel to West Lafayette, Indiana, to compete in the Purdue University’s Boilermaker Invitational. The tournament marks the end of the regular season for the Irish.