MONTICELLO, Minn. – Senior
James Berger (Los Altos Hills, Calif./Gunn) took home medalist honors as the Carleton College men's golf team wrapped up its 2022-23 season by finishing third out of 18 teams at the SJU Spring Invitational.
The Knights were tied for eighth after posting a team total of 306 in Saturday's opening round at the Lynx National Golf Course, but the squad followed that up with an impressive 302 at the Monticello Country Club despite windy conditions that included gusts as high as 40 miles per hour. Sunday's team score was tied for lowest in the field.
Tournament host and No. 13-ranked Saint John's won the team title with a 36-hole score of 593. UW-Eau Claire was next at 605 followed by Carleton at 608 (306-302, +36).
Berger got his tournament started off on the right foot with a birdie on his first hole on Saturday, one of his seven birdies on the weekend to tie for most in the tournament. He was sixth after an even-par (72) opening round but jumped to the top of the leaderboard with a 73 (+2) on Sunday. With a two-day total of 145, Berger posted a one-stroke victory, his third career tournament triumph and first since winning the Wartburg Spring Invitation on April 1, 2022.
Ryan Choi (So./Cockeysville. Md./Dulaney) also carded a 72 on Saturday, with a round that included two birdies and an eagle on the par-5 No. 4 at Lynx National. He tied for 14th in the 100-player field with an overall score of 150 (72-78, +7). The Knights played so well on Sunday that his 78 in the final round did not factor in the team score for the day.
Eldon Spencer (Sr./Miami, Fla./Ransom Everglades) was fifth in the lineup but finished third on the Knights with a two-day total of 155 (80-75, +12), tying for 25th place. His final round 75 on Sunday was second-lowest on the roster, a performance he capped with a birdie on his last hole.
Gordon Walker (Fy./St. Louis, Mo./MICDS) factored into Carleton's team score for both rounds, following up an opening round 82 with a 77 on Sunday. He tied for 51st place at 159, +16).
Anderson Murphy (Sr./Coral Gables, Fla./Ransom Everglades) shook off an 84 on Saturday by carding a 77 thanks to three birdies. He wrapped up the tournament in 63rd place at 161 (+18).
Jackson Stinebaugh (Sr./New York, N.Y./Horace Mann) and
Bob Zhu (Jr./Palo Alto, Calif./Palo Alto) both played the tournament as individual entrants. The former totaled four birdies and posted a 36-hole score of 170 (86-84), while the latter had two birdies on Sunday and finished at 175 (92-83).
Carleton's 20 birdies were tied for third-most in the field.
The 2022-23 season included the Knights smashing the program's previous MIAC Championships 54-hole record as well as tournament victories for both Anderson and Berger.
