The Clemson men’s golf program traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia, for the team’s final regular season tournament, finishing eighth in the Lewis Chitengwa Memorial at the University of Virginia’s Birdwood Golf Course.
The men played two rounds on Monday and one on Tuesday at the par-71 course. Clemson finished +12 for the weekend, in part due to a rough second round. Each Tiger went at least two over for the second Monday round, including top player Jonathan Nielsen, who shot 76 (+5) despite a 69 (-2) for round one.
The team had a 21-stroke improvement between Monday and Tuesday. Nielsen made a comeback, scoring under par with a 68 (-3) to finish the tournament tied for 15th on an even score.
Calahan Keever was a dominant force on the greens for Clemson. Finishing 27th overall, Keever held 11 birdies for the three rounds and went 68-77-71. The tournament marked his best finish since October when he placed 21st at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational.
“It was really good to be back in the lineup,” Keever said in an interview with The Tiger. “This is the hardest I have ever practiced. I just wanted to try my best and commit to every single shot.”
“I’m blessed to have the ability to play golf. After I made a bogey, I just reminded myself that it was way better than sitting in a classroom. Now I’m getting ready for the next tournament.”
Now, the team must gear up to play in the ACC Championship, the premier event of an extremely competitive conference. In Charlottesville, Clemson faced Florida State, Virginia and Virginia Tech for a preview of next weekend’s tournament. Florida State finished 15 under as a team to take second overall, with Virginia falling in at sixth place and five over. Virginia Tech tied for 13th after going 24 over.
Senior Alberto Dominguez is feeling optimistic about the turnaround in Charlottesville as the conference championship approaches.
“After the second round, we came back and had the second-best round of the day on Tuesday,” Dominguez said to The Tiger. “We can keep having outings like that. We have a lot of talent on our team and believe in our chances to win the ACC.”
The Tigers will compete in the ACC Championship on April 19-22 in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the Charlotte Country Club. NCAA regional bids will go out based on individual player and team performances in the conference championship.
