USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – The Wofford men's golf team opened its 2023 fall slate in the Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, finishing 16^th in the 24-team field. The Terriers were paced by senior Matthew Larkin who tied for ninth individually with a 1-under 215 score. Freshman Davis Neal carded a 212 in the separate individual event to place in a tie for sixth in his rookie outing.
 
Wofford carded an 888 in the three-round event at the Eisenhower Golf Course, a par-72, 7,541-yard course. After shooting 299-301-288, the Terriers finished at 24-over par and tied for 16^th with Northern Colorado in the 24-team field. Colorado State was 13-under with an 851 to claim the team title.
 
Matthew Larkin was Wofford's top finisher, tying with seven other golfers for ninth place in the 120-player field. At 1-under par, Larkin carded 73-72-70 en route to 215 for his seventh-career top-10 result. Larkin recorded 39 total pars, tied for third most among the competitors.
 
Harry Jones (72-76-73) carded 221 to tie for 47^th. Freshmen Glover Amick and Charles Warren made their debuts, placing tied for 78^th and tied for 85^th, respectively. Amick (77-76-73) improved with each round to total 226. After shooting 79 and 77 in his first two rounds, Warren settled in to finish strong with a 72 in round three for a final score of 228. Max Cranford rounds out the Wofford lineup in a tie for 90^th with scores of 77-78-74 for a 229 total.
 
Colorado State's Christoph Bleier and Valparaiso's Caleb VanArragon tied for low medalist honors at 13-under, 203, leading to a playoff hole. VanArragon would win on the first playoff hole.
 
The event also featured a separate individual competition on the Silver Course, with five Terriers competing. Freshman Davis Neal debuted in style, tying for sixth in the event. After a 72 in his opening round, Neal carded a 65 in round two to finish the second day tied for first. The 65 is tied for the third-lowest round in program history. Though shooting 75 in the final round to fall from the lead, Neal still finished with a 212 and his first top 10.
 
The individual event finished with a three-way tie for first between UC Davis' Alejandro Nava, Cal Poly's Louis Pilod and Northern Colorado's TJ Shehee, all of whom posted a 206 score. This portion of the event needed two playoff holes, and Shehee won on the second.
 
Ben Jordan shot 71-71-72 for a 214 total to tie for 10^th, earning a top 10 of his own. Freshman Marshall Butler was not far behind in his debut, totaling 218 after carding 72-71-75 to finish in 14^th.
 
Jay Beach (77-78-75) totaled a 230, and freshman Major Lenning (79-75-80) carded 234 to round out the Wofford individuals.
 
The men's golf team will return to action closer to home in a couple weeks with the JT Poston Invitational hosted by SoCon foe Western Carolina. The three-round, two-day event in Sapphire, North Carolina, takes place on September 25 and 26.