North Texas Daily

Day 3

Sliding down three slots from its second-day standing on Tuesday, the men’s golf team finished the Trinity Forest Invitational in eighth place after a final-round score of 294.

Head coach Brad Stracke said he was surprised by the team’s finish after it began the tournament contending with host Southern Methodist University for the lead.

“I feel like we had a solid game plan and the guys were ready to compete this week,” Stracke said. “We were in great shape after the first 25 holes only one [stroke] back from the lead and seemed to lose a little confidence at that point.”

The Mean Green came into the event ranked No. 18 nationally by Golfstat after placing sixth in their lone tournament of the fall. Competing in its first tournament of the spring at the Trinity Forest Invitational, North Texas fell to three other top 40 teams — SMU (No. 13), the University of Louisville (No. 37) and Texas Christian University (No. 38).

Three other Conference USA teams also competed in the tournament including Rice University, Florida Atlantic and Texas-San Antonio. North Texas topped Rice and FAU but fell to Texas-San Antonio, who finished second at 10-over par.

Leading the way for the Mean Green, junior Lenny Bergsson scored a 1-over-par 72 in the final round to finish the tournament at 5-over and tied for No. 17 individually.

Competing in his first collegiate tournament after enrolling in January, freshman Nikhil Gopal carded a final-round 75 to finish the event at 6-over-par and tied for No. 20.

Fellow freshman Vicente Marzilio also tied for No. 20 after a third-round 73 left him at +6. He was the North Texas’ top finisher in its lone tournament of the fall, the Maridoe Collegiate Invitational.

With a final-round 74, senior Viktor Forslund ended the tournament tied for No. 35 at 10-over-par.

Rounding out the team’s competitors, freshman Diego Prone carded a 5-over-76 to finish at +15 and tied for No. 58 individually.

“I was surprised that we didn’t finish stronger because I am confident in my team,” Stracke said. “I am excited that we will get after it again at the Louisiana Classic on Monday.”

Up Next: Men’s golf will get back in action next week with the Louisiana Classics on March 15-16, hosted by the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.

Day 2

Having finished Day 1 of the Trinity Forest Invitational in second place at 2-over-par, the men’s golf team posted a 15-over 299 on Monday and fell three slots to No. 5.

Even with the three-spot slide, North Texas is four strokes behind No. 2 University of Texas-San Antonio (+13). Southern Methodist University extended its lead in round two and sits 17 strokes ahead of Texas-San Antonio at 4-under-par.

North Texas started the round strong as four of its five golfers birdied their first hole and two of them were at 2-under-par through five holes. The team’s performance tailed off from there, however, as each golfer finished the round above par and four of the five finished at +3 or higher. This was in contrast to three golfers finishing at or below par and two finishing at +3 on Day 1.

“We had a great start today but lost some momentum on the backside,” Head coach Brad Stracke said. “I hope to regain that momentum tomorrow in some challenging high winds.”

Through two rounds of play, freshman Nikhil Gopal was the Mean Green’s top performer. Competing in his first collegiate tournament, Gopal carded a 3-over-74 in round two and finished the day tied for No. 13 individually.

Next up was fellow freshman Vicente Marzilio who posted the team’s best round of the day with a 72 and is tied for No. 18 at +4.

Following an even-par round on Day 1, junior Lenny Bergsson scored a +4 in round two and also ended the day tied for No. 18.

Both senior Viktor Forslund and freshman Diego Prone carded 7-over-par rounds on Day 2. Forslund is tied for No. 32 at +7 while Prone is tied for No. 51 at +10.

Men’s golf will play its final round at the Trinity Forest Invitational on Tuesday, teeing off with Texas Christian University and Sam Houston State University starting at 8:35 a.m. Stay tuned for a full recap after the final round’s conclusion.

Day 1

Sunday afternoon the North Texas men’s golf team began its opening tournament in Dallas at the Trinity Forest Invitational hosted by Southern Methodist.

The Mean Green, who entered the tournament ranked No. 18 in the nation, led by freshman Nikhil Gopal, made his collegiate debut at 1-under-par Sunday. He also tallied four birdies in his first collegiate round.

Senior Viktor Forslund and junior Lenny Bergsson both tied for fourth shooting at even-par. Freshmen Vicente Marzilio and Diego Prone tied for 32nd after shooting (+3).

“I was happy with how the guys came out and competed today,” Head coach Brad Stracke said. “[Forslund, Bergsson and Gopal] led the way with some impressive rounds under tough conditions. The course is playing firm and fast, and you really need to pay attention to your approach shots in order to play well.”

Featured Image: Freshman Diego Prone watches his shot during a practice on Feb. 5, 2021. Image by Zach Del Bello