Couch places 4th, Patriots 11th at URI Tournament

NEWPORT, RI - Francis Marion University fired a final-round 303 team score on Tuesday (Sept. 22) to finish 11th at the 16th-annual Adams Cup of Newport Golf Tournament, hosted by the University of Rhode Island.  Senior Christopher Couch led the Patriots with a fourth-place showing.

The 54-hole event was contested under sunny skies at the Newport National Golf Club, and its par 72, 7,244-yard course.

Southern Methodist University rallied from third place over the final day to capture the team title, while Connecticut's Jeb Buchanan earned medalist honors with a 9-under-par 207 tally.

SMU shot a three-day total of 876, outlasting Georgia Southern University (882) and first-day leader University of New Mexico (884). Francis Marion, which carded identical team rounds of 305 on Monday, finished with a 913 total. The field included 17 teams.

Couch, a native of Summerville, shot a final-round, 1-over 73 to finish with a 54-hole total of 217, 10 strokes behind Buchanan.  Couch shot rounds of 73 and 71 on Monday.

Other Patriot golfers included freshman Sebastian Backlund in 31st place (73-75-79=227), sophomore Ciaran McKenna in 50th place (79-80-73=232), senior Matt Jackson in 73rd place (81-79-78=238), and freshman Travis Gantt in 88th position (80-83-87=250).

Francis Marion returns to action, Oct. 12-13, at the Davidson College Invitational in Charlotte, N.C.