WVU Golf to Cap Fall at Quail Valley

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (October 25, 2015) – The West Virginia University golf team will head to Florida to cap its first fall season in more than 30 years as the Mountaineers compete in the Quail Valley Intercollegiate, hosted by McNeese State at Quail Valley Golf Club in Vero Beach on Monday and Tuesday.

Teams will tee off in a shotgun start at 8:45 a.m. on Monday for 36 continuous holes before returning to the course on Tuesday for the final round. Golfers will tee off at tee times starting at 8:45 on the final day of action. Quail Valley Golf Club is a par-72, 7,350-yard course that features several unique aspects, including an island hole at No. 10. The team previously played this course on a spring break trip last season.

Ten of the teams in the 15-team field are ranked in Golfstat’s top 100, headlined by No. 36 Memphis and No. 37 N.C. State and host No. 72 McNeese State. Familiar foes No. 78 UConn, who was the runner-up at last week’s Mountaineer Intercollegiate, and No. 87 Mississippi State, who also competed in WVU’s home tournament, will be in attendance, as well No. 70 Jacksonville, No. 62 Michigan State, No. 44 North Florida, No. 88 North Texas, No. 92 South Dakota State, Indiana and Rice. The No. 139/160 Mountaineers will be paired with Stephen F. Austin and Louisiana Tech.

West Virginia will send a new lineup to the event as Mason Short and Cole Hand will participate in their first official tournament after previously competing as individuals. Easton Renwick, Max Sear and Chris Williams will round out the group.

Renwick and Sear are both coming off top-10 finishes at the Mountaineer Intercollegiate. Sear finished the first round tied for eighth with a 73 before shooting a 75 on day two to tie for 10th at four over par. Renwick bounced back from a challenging first round to card a 69 on the second day of play and tie with Sear for 10th at four over. The two have combined to post four top-10 finishes for West Virginia.

“Max and Easton have combined for six Top 20 individual finishes in six events. They have certainly played at a high level this year so far,” said coach Sean Covich. “We have a new lineup yet again and I’m excited to see what Mason and Cole can bring to this event. Chris, Easton and Mason all played this golf course back in March so hopefully that familiarity with the course will help. We will be challenged once again as this will be a strong field on a great golf course.”

Williams will compete in his fifth tournament for the Mountaineers this season. He led the team with at the Shoal Creek Invitational hosted by Graeme McDowell in Birmingham, Alabama, finishing seven over par.

Competing as an individual at the Mountaineer Intercollegiate, Short finished the first round tied for eighth place before taking 31st with a score of 152 for eight over. Making his collegiate debut, Hand shaved four strokes off his first round score to jump 15 spots in the rankings and tie Short with 31st at eight over.

Following the tournament, the Mountaineers will take a hiatus before returning to the course for spring season in January.