By Roy J. Akers- www.skyviewsports.net
MSU men have had plenty of great seasons and great players under coach Casey Lubahn. The Spartans will play in a prestigious Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational. The Spartans are the only Big Ten team competing in Napa Valley as Central Michigan is the host team. We will have updates on the tournament and both teams. Casey Lubahn gives his thoughts on playing in the Golf Coaches Association event. “We played in the Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational last year and it was a great experience for our team and our program. It’s an honor to play in a field that is part of the PGA Tour’s Pathway to Progression and the Golf Coaches Association of America has been a great advocate for events like this in our sport. Getting a chance to play on the West Coast on a tremendous course and with teams not only from all over the country but from Japan, provides such a unique opportunity for our team.” Auburn is the number 1 team according to the latest poll. Collegiate Golf puts out a poll during the Men’s seasons that start in the fall and resume in late winter. Illinois is the only B1G men’s team to make the Top 20 and the Spartans would like to improve their NCAA resume with a top finish at the Bridgestone.
East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State’s men’s golf team will be one of 15 teams to tee off on Monday morning in the second annual Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational, being played at Silverado Country Club in Napa, Calif.
The two-day, 54-hole tournament is part of the PGA Tour’s Pathway to Progression in collaboration with the Golf Coaches Association of America and co-host, Central Michigan University.
The event features top-level NCAA Division I men’s golf programs and historically Black colleges and universities in addition to four high-ranking individual golfers from underrepresented communities.
BRIDGESTONE COLLEGIATE INVITATIONAL
Dates: Monday, March 24 – Tuesday, March 25
Course: Silverado Country Club, Napa, Calif.
Par/Yardage: 72 / 6,988
Format: Stroke play, 54 holes / Play five, count four
Live Stats: Clippd
Schedule – Monday – 36 holes of continuous play beginning with an 8:15 a.m. shotgun start
Tuesday – 18 holes with tee times beginning at 8 a.m.
MSU LINEUP
No. 1 – Caleb Bond
No. 2 – Lorenzo Pinili
No. 3 – Lucas Acevedo
No. 4 – Drew Miller
No. 5 – Julian Menser
THE FIELD
Brigham Young, Cal Poly, Central Michigan (host), Florida A&M, Howard, Michigan State, Nihon University (Japan), North Carolina Central, San Francisco, San Jose State, Santa Clara, Texas Southern, Tohoku Fukushi University (Japan) UC Davis
RESULTS
Live scoring for the event is available through Cippd.
LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State shot a 6-over par 566 over two rounds and finished in seventh place among 13 teams at The Johnnie-O at Sea Island last week … The tournament was shortened to two rounds because of inclement weather on the first day of play … Cincinnati topped the 13-team field, finishing as the lone under-par performer at 1-under 556 … The Spartans finished seventh at 6-over-par 566 (287-279) … Junior Caleb Bond led the way for the Spartans, shooting a 2-under par 138 (72-66), putting him in a tie for sixth … Bond’s second-round 4-under par 66 tied his career-best 18-hole score, having done so twice before, most recently at the Indianapolis Invitational in 2024. The sixth-place finish marks Bond’s second top-10 finish of the season (T-8 at the Colleton River Collegiate, March 2-3) … Sophomores Lucas Acevedo and Lorenzo Pinili finished tied for 13th among eight others at 1-over par 141 (70-71) … Acevedo’s first-round even-par 70 tied his career-best 18-hole score, last achieved twice at the Watersound Invitational in February … Pinili recorded his team-high sixth eagle of the season in his first round on hole eight, a 368-yard par 4 … For Acevedo, finishing 13th marks a career-best finish, as well as his third top-20 finish of the season … It was the second top-20 finish of his sophomore campaign for Pinili, including his victory at the Colleton River Collegiate in March … Freshman Drew Miller finished in a tie for 50th place after shooting a 6-over par 146 (75-71) … Miller tallied seven birdies over his two rounds, bringing his season total to 33 … Playing as an individual for the first time, freshman Julian Menser shot a 5-over par 145 (73-72) to finish tied for 45th place. Menser holds a 74.65 scoring average on the season.
Men’s Golf Begins Play in the Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational Monday
