WINDERMERE, Fla. – The No. 9-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf team closed out its fall schedule on Tuesday with a third-place finish at the Isleworth Collegiate at Isleworth Golf & Country Club.
The Illini closed with a team score of 278 (-10), matching the second-lowest score recorded during the 15-team, three-day event. The effort helped Illinois continue its climb up the leaderboard; after opening in 10th place on Sunday with a score of 294 (+6), the Orange and Blue jumped up into a tie for fifth with a Round 2 tally of 285 (-3) before Sunday's 10-under pushed them past Purdue and LSU for the team's fourth consecutive top-3 finish to start the season.
All five Illini in the lineup also moved up the individual leaderboard on Tuesday, with the team's trio of fifth-year seniors – Adrien Dumont de Chassart (T11), Tommy Kuhl (T15), and Matthis Besard (T15) – finishing inside the top-15.
However, it was sophomore Jackson Buchanan that led the way for the Illini in Round 3. The Dacula, Ga., native bounced back from rounds 80 and 76 to record a season-best score of 67 (-5), including six birdies over his final 12 holes. Buchanan keyed the Illini surge and moved himself 31 spots up the leaderboard into a tie for 37th. His 67 also tied for the second-lowest individual round of the event, one stroke off the pace of Day 1 leader Alex Vogelsong of Auburn.
In addition to Buchanan's 5-under, Kuhl and Besard each shot 2-under on the day to finish with 36-hole totals of 214 (-2), one shot behind Dumont de Chassart who closed with a 71 (-1). Junior Piercen Hunt tied for 34th and finished one shot ahead of Buchanan (223) with a three-round total of 222 (+6).
No. 3 Auburn pulled away for the team title with a score of 837 (-27), followed by No. 11 Florida at 849 (-15). No. 42 Purdue (862) finished five strokes behind the Illini, while No. 28 LSU and No. 31 North Florida round out the top five tied at 869 (+5). Â
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The Illini are scheduled to return to the course on Jan. 28 in the annual Tinervin Cup at Coral Creek Golf Club in Placida, Fla.
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