For the first time in history, a Division One men’s collegiate golf tournament took place on Canadian soil this week. At the Öviinbyrd Golf Club, 10 teams gathered to compete in the two-day, 54-hole Canadian Collegiate Invitational between Monday and Tuesday. The event came down to the final day, as the Notre Dame men’s team surged past Missouri down the stretch to claim the team title.
Round one finished with Missouri (7 under par) and Kent State (6 under par) leading the pack. Notre Dame followed on third at 3 under par, just ahead of Michigan’s 2-under par score. Sophomore Jacob Modleski paced the Irish on day one, shooting a 2-under-par 70. Modleski thrived in par-five scoring, finishing 4 under par on such holes with an eagle on the 516-yard 13th. Freshman Mike Qiu used a strong start, playing at 5 under par through 10 holes, to slot in just behind Modleski at 1 under par overall. Sophomores Rocco Salvitti and Chris Bagnall each concluded at even par to wrap up team scoring, with Bagnall notching an eagle on the par-five ninth hole.
Missouri really pulled away on day two with a team score of 15 under par to reach 22 under par overall. Notre Dame (-8) and Michigan (-9) also put forth quality rounds to remain somewhat close to the Tigers at 11 under par overall. Nate Stevens, who did not factor into team scoring during the first round, led the Irish with a 5-under par round. The junior birdied three consecutive holes on the front nine and played bogey-free golf from the eighth hole on. Modleski followed him at 2 under par, posting an eagle on the 13th hole yet again. Notre Dame once more did not have a team-scoring golfer shoot over par, with Bagnall and Qiu combining to go 1 under par.
Entering day three a hefty 11 strokes behind Missouri on the leaderboard, the Irish needed some help to overtake first place. They received plenty of it. The Tigers carded four double bogeys and one triple bogey, opening the door for Notre Dame with an ugly round of 10-over par golf.
The Irish took full advantage by remaining consistent. They once again did not score an over-par golfer, shooting a round of 6-under to displace Missouri and claim first place at 17 under par. Stevens, who eagled the ninth hole, and Salvitti each posted a 33 on the front nine en route to 2-under par rounds. Modleski eagled yet another hole (the ninth) to finish at 1 under with Qiu, who recovered masterfully from a rough start to play his final 16 holes at 4 under par.
In terms of overall scoring, Michigan’s Hunter Thomson topped the individual leaderboard with a 14-under-par score of 202. Stevens paced the Irish in eighth place (-6), Modleski trailed closely behind in 11th (-5), Qiu took 14th (-2), Salvitti finished in 19th (-1) and Bagnall claimed 23rd (+1).
After their international victory, the Irish will take a week off before returning to play at the Windon Memorial Classic, hosted by Northwestern on Sept. 29-30.
