Jason Ben Nathan/Sun File Photo

Cornell rebounded at Binghamton, a positive step in anticipation of the team's final event at the Columbia Autumn Invitational.

October 8, 2021

Golf Rebounds With 3rd-Place Finish at Binghamton, Sets Program Record

Print More

Cornell golf set a program record for its lowest single-round score at the Matthews Auto Collegiate Invitational on Monday.

The Red turned heads with an impressive 10-under par 278 second-round finish Monday afternoon, catapulting the team from sixth place to a third-place finish with a 573 total over 36 holes. 

Mount St. Mary’s University led the entire tournament, finishing with a combined score of 562, 14 strokes under par. Colgate took second place with a 570, six-under par. Cornell also fielded a second team in the tournament, which finished 12th. 

For the first time in the program’s history, all four starting golfers finished even or under par.

Juniors Josh Lundmark and Samuel King — both having career seasons — put up collegiate-best numbers at the tournament. King tied the program record for lowest tournament round score with a 66, tying for fourth place along with fellow teammate senior Gus Lascola, who competed as an individual.

Lundmark continues to beat his own collegiate records, having most recently set a career-low at the Cornell Invitational last month with a 143. Lundmark finished Monday with a 140, yet another collegiate best.

The two have led the way for the golf team, while also banking on the consistency and stability of Ben Choe, who scored a 71 and 72, respectively — tying for 14th at 143. The Red had five Cornellians finish in the top 15.

“The final round this week was a glimpse of what this team is capable of,” King said.

Taking third place was a much-needed turnaround coming off of a last-place finish at the Macdonald Cup. 

“I wouldn’t say [the loss] helped, but it was a bit of a wake-up call for the team to have such a bad performance, and obviously, you can only get better after finishing in last,” King said.

Playing locally played to the team’s advantage. King explained that many of the players were able to get an extra round of practice because of the course’s close proximity to Binghamton, which is only an hour away from Ithaca. 

“That was a huge help, for me at least,” King said. “I think every round you play, you learn more about each course.”

Playing a few practice rounds the week before the tournament helped the team get more familiar with the track, according to Choe. 

The team was able to quickly recover the confidence that seemed missing from last week’s last-place finish.

“We didn’t get the win, but we proved to ourselves the level of golf we should be playing in the future,” Choe said.

The golf team still has its sights set on a win before the season’s end. 

“Breaking a few records is awesome and the guys really stepped up, but what we’re really looking for is a win,” King said.

The Red has one last opportunity to see that goal through, as it travels to the Big Apple for the Columbia Autumn Invitational on Oct. 9 for its final event of the season.