ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Continuing his impressive 2020-21 season, Jackson Suber etched his name in the Ole Miss golf record books once again Friday (April 23). The Tampa, Florida, native fired a final round 65 (-5), the first Rebel golfer to shoot 65-or-better twice at the SEC Championship, to lead Ole Miss on the final day of stroke play at Sea Island Golf Club.

With Suber leading the way, the Rebels shot the best round of the day with a 3-under 277 alongside No. 10 Georgia and No. 11 Texas A&M. Ole Miss played better than rival Mississippi State for the second straight day, leapfrogging the Bulldogs and also surpassing Missouri to finish 54 holes of stroke play in 12th place (299-298-277—874). Struggles from the first two days kept the Rebels out of the top eight that qualified for match play, but the Rebels can use their final round as momentum heading into postseason play.

“To have the low team round of the day after a tough opening two rounds says a lot about the character of this team,” said head coach Chris Malloy. “We certainly didn’t have our best stuff, but we didn’t quit and wanted to make a point of that today. We have a lot of work to do between now and when we leave for the NCAA Tournament, so we need to flip the page and be ready to make a run there.”

Suber birdied his first hole of the day, the par 4 10th, but a bogey on No. 12 kept him at even par after five holes. Taking advantage of a par 5, he rolled in a 20-footer for eagle at the 15th before adding a birdie on No. 16. Following a par at the 192-yard 17th, Suber found himself in prime position for his approach at No. 18. From 160 yards out, the Rebel standout used a nine iron to find the bottom of the cup for a deuce. The hole-out was Suber’s second eagle in a four-hole span, completing his opening nine with a 30 (-5). Making the turn, Suber could not find any birdies to go lower, but he did not make any mistakes. Recording a par on every hole throughout the front nine, Suber completed his solid round and matched his personal best at the SEC Championship. He also fired a 65 in the second round of the 2019 SEC Championship.

Ending the tournament strong, Suber cracked the top 20 at 4-over (78-71-65—214). He was the only golfer in the 70-man field to record two eagles throughout the week. Suber also ranked second in par 5 scoring, playing the long holes 4-under.

Jack Gnam and Veeti Mahonen followed Suber with their best rounds of the tournament as well, shooting even-par 70s. Gnam began his day with a birdie before adding two more at the 16th and 17th. Despite a double bogey on No. 18, he still made the turn at 1-under on his round. Gnam grinded out eight pars over his final nine holes, only making one bogey to complete his level-par day.

Mahonen started out his round on fire with four birdies over his first five holes. He made five straight threes during the stretch, playing four par 4s and one par 3 to get to 4-under early. The hot start ended with a bogey on the par 5 15th, and a triple bogey at 18 ruined an under-par opening nine. However, the sophomore steadied the ship with seven pars down the stretch. A birdie at the seventh, his team-high fifth of the day, pushed Mahonen back to even par.

Sarut Vongchaisit added a 72 (+2) that included four birdies throughout the round. Starting his round 1-over through three, he proceeded to birdie three of the next six holes to go out in 33 (-2). The junior posted the second-best 54-hole total among the Rebels (72-75-72—219), ending in a tie for 44th.

Arkansas’ Segundo Pinto captured medalist honors with a  6-under 204 (64-72-68), a two-shot victory. No. 10 Georgia (+2), Alabama (+10), No. 19 Tennessee (+10), No. 23 LSU (+10), No. 22 Arkansas (+12), No. 15 Vanderbilt (+13), South Carolina (+15) and No. 11 Texas A&M (+16) advanced to the match play portion of the tournament.

Now, the Rebels will await to hear where they will be heading for the NCAA Championships. Ole Miss will look to play at one of six regional sites across the country, May 16-19.

For updates on the Ole Miss men’s golf team, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMGolf. Additional updates and information on the team can be found on Instagram at OleMissMGolf , on Facebook at Ole Miss Men’s Golf and on OleMissSports.com.

THE REBELS
T20. Suber: 78-71-65—214 (+4)
T44. Vongchaisit: 72-75-72—219 (+9)
T61. Mahonen: 76-79-70—225 (+15)
64. Schell: 73-75-80—228 (+18)
T66. Gnam: 84-77-70—231 (+21)

TEAM LEADERBOARD (Rankings: Golfstat)
1. #10 Georgia: 275-290-277—842 (+2)
T2. Alabama: 284-277-289—850 (+10)
T2. #19 Tennessee: 277-292-281—850 (+10)
T2: #23 LSU: 281-284-285—850 (+10)
5. #22 Arkansas: 278-286-288—852 (+12)
6. #15 Vanderbilt: 281-288-284—853 (+13)
7. South Carolina: 285-286-284—855 (+15)
8. #11 Texas A&M: 286-293-277—856 (+16)
T9. #14 Auburn: 282-285-293—860 (+20)
T9. #17 Florida: 286-289-285—860 (+20)
11. Kentucky: 288-287-291—866 (+26)
12. Ole Miss: 299-298-277—874 (+34)
13. Missouri: 286-291-300—877 (+37)
14. Mississippi State: 291-304-284—879 (+39)