Rhode Island finished in a tie for sixth place at the Palmas Del Mar Collegiate golf tournament, which concluded Tuesday in Humacao, Puerto Rico. The Rams matched Kennesaw State with a total score of 859, or five under par.
Wake Forest, ranked No. 25 nationally, secured the team title by six strokes ahead of TCU. Southern Illinois placed third, followed by UNC Greensboro and Rutgers.
The Rams were led on the final day by Tyler Bruneau, Luke Stennett, and Aidan O’Donovan. Together, they shot seven under par over their last 15 holes to help Rhode Island’s position. However, the team struggled from holes 12 through 15—shooting a combined 11 over par during that stretch—which caused them to drop three spots in the standings in the final round. The 14th hole proved especially difficult as Rhode Island golfers collectively scored five over par there.
Head coach Gregg Burke commented on the team’s performance: “I am taking complete responsibility for what happened today,” Burke said. “I took my foot off the gas and changed the itinerary after the round yesterday. That will not happen again. I did not put the team in the best position to win the golf tournament.
“We have a lot of work to do going forward.”
Three Rhode Island players—Stennett, O’Donovan and Tong—finished tied for 33rd among a field of 87 competitors at one over par across three rounds. Stennett climbed 35 places over two days by shooting five under during his last two rounds.
Bruneau recorded Rhode Island’s best individual final round with a three-under-par scorecard and was bogey-free on his front nine while collecting three birdies.
Rhode Island will next compete at the Sam Ryder Invitational hosted by Stetson University starting March 2 at LPGA International Golf Club in Daytona Beach, Florida.
