Arkansas men’s golf team secured third place at the Bearcat Invitational, held at Coldstream Country Club in Cincinnati. The team finished with a 1-under-par score of 851 after a final-round team total of 282, moving up two spots on the leaderboard.
Senior John Daly II led Arkansas by finishing as runner-up individually. Daly carded a 2-under-par 69 in the last round, closing out the tournament with a total score of 207 over three rounds. This marked his second-best career total and his third top-five finish. Daly overcame early bogeys on holes six and seven before making birdies on holes eight and nine to return to even par. He played his final twelve holes without dropping a shot and added birdies on holes ten and eighteen. Over the tournament, Daly recorded thirteen birdies, which was fourth-highest among all competitors.
Niilo Maki-Petaja also shot a final-round 69, climbing sixteen places to tie for fortieth overall with an even-par score of 216 (75-72-69). His bogey-free round included sixteen pars and birdies on holes thirteen and sixteen. Maki-Petaja’s forty-two pars matched teammate Erich Fortlage for second-most in the field.
Erich Fortlage was Arkansas’ second-highest finisher, tying for thirty-third place with scores of 71-73-71 for a two-over-par total of 215.
Cam Smith contributed twelve birdies during the event and tied for forty-ninth (72-73-73=218). Freshman Willie Gordon made his collegiate debut and tied for fifty-fifth place (70-74-75=219).
Cincinnati won the event with a cumulative score of sixteen under par (834), followed by Little Rock in second (845) and Arkansas in third (851). Nebraska placed fourth (853), while Louisville rounded out the top five (854).
Arkansas will next compete as host at the sixth annual Blessings Collegiate Invitational from September 29 to October 1.
For more information on Arkansas Men’s Golf, visit their official X or Instagram accounts.
