AUGUSTA, Ga. – The No. 24-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf team closed out action at the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational on Sunday, making a strong final push in Round 3 to claim a third-place finish in a field that featured eight teams ranked among the top 50 in the nation.

The Illini entered the day in fourth, and appeared to be locked out of the top-three after shooting 2-over as a team on the front nine Sunday morning. However, the team rallied to fire a combined 7-under after the turn, and finished with a 54-hole team total of 848 (-16), vaulting past No 13-ranked Notre Dame (849) to third place behind No. 12 Texas (814) and No. 2 Oklahoma State (840).

"It was a solid tournament," head coach Mike Small said. "To have that push to finish off the last round was something that we talked about; we wanted to get in the mindset of closing tournaments, and I thought the guys persevered through some challenges today." 

Senior Tommy Kuhl recorded his eighth-career top-10 finish, shooting 9-under to pace the Orange and Blue and finish with a share of sixth. Kuhl carded sub-par scores in each of the three rounds for the first time this season - highlighted by a career-low 65 in Round 2. His 54-hole total of 207 also marked his personal best as an Illini.

"Tommy really played this week," Small said. "I'm really excited for him, and his development. He's been working hard, and I think he's got some good golf ahead of him."

Classmate Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Golfstat's seventh-ranked collegiate player entering the weekend, continued his climb up the leaderboard during Sunday's final round, closing with a team-low 69 to finish at a 2-under 214. Dumont de Chassart opened plus-6 over his first five holes of the event, but regained focus and shot 8-under over his final 49 holes to secure a share of 16th place. It marks the 16th top-20 finish of his collegiate career.      

"Adrien is just a competitor," Small added. "To be six over after five holes to start the tournament, and then shoot eight under after that shows he's a competitor, and that he has pride. He competes until the end."

Jackson Buchanan also continued to impress in just his fifth tournament in the Illini's scoring lineup. The freshman from nearby Damacula, Ga., recorded his second-consecutive top-25 finish, closing two strokes behind Dumont de Chassart in a tie for 25^th with a 1-over 217 for the weekend.

Sophomore Piercen Hunt finished his weekend one shot ahead of Buchanan in a tie for 23^rd at even par. Hunt did not factor into the scoring for the Illini in Round 3, following up his back-to-back 70s from Saturday with a 6-over 76 on Sunday. Junior Jerry Ji rounded out the scoring with an even-par 72 and claimed a tie for 29^th with a 3-over 219 for the event.

UP NEXT
The Illini return to the course next weekend, making the short trek from Champaign to West Lafayette, Ind., to compete in the Boilermaker Invitational, hosted at Purdue's Ackerman-Allen Course, Saturday and Sunday (April 9-10).

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