The men’s golf team started its season strong on Sept. 3 and 4 during Colgate’s Alex Lagowitz Memorial Invitational. The Bison placed sixth overall, with Peter Bradbeer ’20 and JP Raftery ’19 placing in the top 10 for individual standings. The first round of 36 holes ended with the team in eighth place, with rounds of 308-303. Raftery finished as the team’s lowest hitter of the day, scoring rounds of 74-72.

Connor O’Brien ’19 shot 78-75, D.J. Magee ’17 scored 77-78, Jubal Early ’19 shot 79-82, and John Edler ’17 finishing with 82-78. Bradbeer opened his college career with a 76 and 1 under 71, placing him in a tie for eighth in individual standings.

“I felt absolutely amazing after the first round, especially after the grueling 36 and playing so much better in the second 18,” Bradbeer said. “I was feeling very confident going into that final day as all my momentum was going forward.”

Sept. 4 saw a major jump in the standings for the Bison as they moved past Lehigh and Fairleigh Dickinson after shooting a 301 team total, landing them in a closing position of sixth place.

“Our gains on Sunday’s final round were not so much of a comeback as a tightening of our belts and a realization that we left a few strokes out on the course, and needed to get our games back to the level we know we can play at,” head coach Mike Binney said.

Raftery concluded the tournament with 4 over par, scoring 74 on the final day. His weekend earned him a place in a three-way tie for fifth place out of 72 players. Edler finished as the team’s lowest scorer of the day, completing the final 18 holes with 72 strokes. The other starting five members O’Brien, Magee, and Early shot 77, 85, and 78 respectively. Bradbeer’s final round of 74 led to him finishing tied for eighth in individuals, shooting a tournament total of 221.

“I think [the tournament] set us up nicely … it gave everyone a good thought about what they needed to do to improve their game,” Bradbeer said.

After seeing this year’s team compete, Binney is confident in this year’s roster. “We have a very young team with some very good talent; including sophomore standouts Connor O’Brien and JP Raftery as well as an outstanding freshman in Peter Bradbeer. When combined with some of our veteran players, we can be lethal on any given course, on any given day,” Binney said.

Looking forward, the Bucknell Invitational takes place Sept. 10 and 11 at Bucknell Golf Club.