WCU Men’s Golf Finishes 15th at Badger Invitational

Fifth-year senior Magnus Pedersen matched his opening round score with a final-round, 1-under par 71 to move into a tie for 19th to pace Western Carolina to a 15th-place team finish as play concluded at the 2023 Badger Invitational at the University Ridge Golf Course.

Pedersen finished the 54-hole tournament with a 1-under par 215 to lead the Catamounts. The Moss, Norway, product countered five bogeys with six birdies on Tuesday, advancing eight positions from a tie for 27th entering the final day.

Redshirt senior Pablo Hernandez and sophomore transfer Ivan Ninkovic finished tied for 61st and 69th, respectively, with scores of 223 and 225. Hernandez shot 78 over the final 18 holes while Ninkovic fired a 3-over par 75 Tuesday.

Freshman Dalton Payne matched Pedersen’s team-low round with his best of the tournament at 1-under 71, coming home in a tie for 84th overall at 235. Payne carded four birdies to counter a bogey and a double-bogey. Rounding out WCU’s scoring five was freshman Andrew Korytoski in a tie for 79th with a three-round score of 230, shooting 76 over the final 18 holes on Tuesday.

Florida Gulf Coast held on for the team championship by a stroke over a two-way tie between Illinois State and Middle Tennessee State, 851-to-852. Long Beach State and VCU posted matching scores of 854 to finish in a tie for fourth to round out the top five teams in the tournament field.

Joshua Hill from South Alabama rallied over the final 18 holes with his tournament-best, 5-under par 67 for a final score of 208. Hill claimed medalist honors by a stroke over Austin Cherichella of Florida Gulf Coast and MTSU’s Owen Stamper at 209.

Western Carolina continues its fall schedule Oct. 16-17 at the Phoenix Invitational hosted by Elon at the Alamance Country Club. WCU returns to the event for the first time since 2017 when student-athlete alum Dylan MacQueen blistered the course for a school-record 54-hole score of 200.

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15th – Western Carolina – 299 – 294 – 293 = 886

T19 – Magnus Pedersen – 71 – 73 – 71 = 215 (-1)

T61 – Pablo Hernandez – 72 – 73 – 78 = 223 (+7)

T69 – Ivan Ninkovic – 77 – 73 – 75 = 225 (+9)

T78 – Andrew Korytoski – 79 – 75 – 76 = 230 (+14)

T84 – Dalton Payne – 81 – 84 – 71 = 235 (+19)