LORTON, Va. – Led once again by Keaton Jones with a 1-under 70 in the final round, the FGCU men's golf team concluded play at George Mason University's Patriot Intercollegiate Monday in a tie for 7th place with a three-round 882 total.
 
For the second time in as many weeks to open the 2016-17 season, Jones (Kitchener, Ontario/St. Mary's HS) finished as FGCU's low man as he posted a career-best tie for 3rd showing at -3 – three shots behind the medalist – with rounds of 69, 71 and 70 at the par-71 Laurel Hill Golf Club layout.
 
The Eagles finished just five shots out of 4th place with consistent rounds of 294, 293 and 295 as FGCU has opened its season with six-straight rounds below 300. Last year, it took the Green and Blue 11 rounds to begin the season before they recorded a sub-300 round. Dating back to the spring season of the 2015-16 campaign, FGCU has shot below 300 in 15 of its last 16 rounds.
 
Old Dominion won the 19-team tournament with an 849 total, two shots better than Eastern Kentucky. The Monarchs (-3) and Colonials (-1) were the only teams in the field under par, and host George Mason finished in 3rd place with an 870 total (+18).
 
"Keaton played really well again today, and it's especially nice to see him put three very consistent rounds together," commented head coach Eric Booker. "Overall we're starting to progress slowly, but the guys are having difficulty closing out rounds. That sometimes can take some time to learn, but hopefully that starts to occur over our final three fall tournaments."
 
Jones began his round on the par-3 4th and made a bogey, but settled in from there to record three birdies and just one bogey the rest of the day for his second sub-par round of the tournament. The senior entered this year with no collegiate rounds below par, but now has three already through the first two tournaments of the season. Prior to the last two weekends, Jones had a career-low round of 71, and all but one of his six rounds this year have been 71 or lower.
 
Following rounds of 72 and 73 during Sunday's opening 36 holes, Andrew Potter (Naples, Fla./Community School of Naples) finished with a 79 on Monday for a 224 total, 14 shots behind the pace set by Jones. The sophomore birdied his opening hole of the day – the par-5 5th – and played pretty steady the rest of the day, but a pair of triple bogeys and a double bogey prevented him from posting an even-par round.
 
Two shots behind Potter was Casper Howells (London, England/Bradford College) as he rebounded with a quality 1-over 72 in the final round – the second-best performance of the day for the Green and Blue – and a 226 total. The senior began his round on the 7th hole and was -4 making the turn and heading to the 1st hole, but played the last six holes in 5-over par.
 
Making his collegiate debut, Brent Fredericksen (Staten Island, N.Y./Saint Peter's Boys HS) signed for a final-round 79 and a 228 total. The freshman posted rounds of 76-73-79 to finish one shot ahead of junior transfer Grant Renegar (McComb, Miss./Meridian CC/Parklane Academy), who was also making his FGCU debut. Renegar closed his tournament with a 74, including a pair of birdies on the back-9 par-3s.
 
Jones tied for the best par-3 performance in the field with an even-par showing over the course of the tournament. He also made a huge push up the leaderboard by taking advantage of the par 5s as he collectively played those holes in 7-under par – the 2nd-best in the field of 112. Jones finished the tournament with 13 birdies, just one behind the leaders in that category.
 
FGCU will now head to FAU's match-play event this weekend, Oct. 1-2. The non-traditional college format will pit golfers head-to-head over the course of two days. The final round of the NCAA Championship is now a match-play format after traditional stroke play the first three rounds.
 
FGCU Lineup
T3) Keaton Jones: 69-71-70: 210 (-3)
T44) Andrew Potter: 72-73-79: 224 (+11)
T53) Casper Howells: 78-76-72: 226 (+13)
T71) Brent Fredericksen: 76-73-79: 228 (+15)
T78) Grant Renegar: 77-78-74: 229 (+16)
 
Patriot Intercollegiate Participants (Golfstat Ranking)
1) 132 Old Dominion: 287-281-281: 849 (-3)
2) 195 Eastern Kentucky: 285-278-288: 851 (-1)
3) 228 George Mason: 295-293-282: 870 (+18)
4) 178 Towson: 292-293-292: 877 (+25)
5) 231 Longwood: 295-288-296: 879 (+27)
6) 189 Drexel: 295-298-287: 880 (+28)
T7) 139 FGCU: 294-293-295: 882 (+30)
T7) 276 Fairleigh Dickinson: 297-289-296: 882 (+30)
9) 268 St. Bonaventure: 301-291-292: 884 (+32)
10) 264 High Point: 296-298-294: 888 (+36)
11) 204 Bethune-Cookman: 294-298-297: 889 (+37)
T12) 251 Villanova: 299-295-298: 892 (+40)
T12) 179 Appalachian State: 294-299-299: 892 (+40)
14) 256 Saint Joseph's: 296-300-299: 895 (+43)
15) 265 Lafayette: 305-308-287: 900 (+48)
T16) 241 Binghamton: 307-293-302: 902 (+50)
T16) 239 La Salle: 303-300-299: 902 (+50)
T16) 253 Bucknell: 307-291-304: 902 (+50)
19) 273 Monmouth: 306-305-309: 920 (+68)
* Final results PDF shows Columbia and George Washington in the team standings, but both teams had players competing just as individuals.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For schedule updates, news and information, visit FGCUAthletics.com. For the latest news and behind-the-scenes access to information, photos and videos, follow @FGCU_MGolf on Twitter and @FGCU_MGolf on Instagram.
 
COACH BOOKER
FGCU is led by 3rd-year coach Eric Booker, a member of the PGA Tour and Web.com Tour (formerly the Nationwide Series) for portions of 17 years from 1990-2007. Booker finished in the top 5 three times in tournaments on the PGA Tour and also played in the U.S. Open and PGA Championship. He played in 62 career events on the PGA Tour, with his best finish being a tie for 3rd at the 1999 Honda Classic.
 
HELP THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.