EDMOND, Okla. – Behind a resilient final-round charge and a tournament-high birdie count, the No. 30 Harding men's golf team climbed the leaderboard Tuesday to claim a third-place finish at the weather-shortened Oak Tree Invitational.
In a field featuring six nationally ranked programs, the Bisons carded a 13-over 293 in the final round—an eight-stroke improvement over Monday's opener. Harding finished the 36-hole event at 34-over 594, jumping three spots on the final day to finish ahead of No. 24 UT Permian Basin and No. 50 Cameron.
No. 19 West Texas A&M maintained its lead to win the title at 28-over par, while Lubbock Christian took second at 32-over.
Aggressive Play Pays Off
While the par-70 East Course at Oak Tree Country Club continued to punish the field with an average score of 78.7 in the final round, Harding found success through aggressive play. The Bisons led the 18-team tournament with 27 total birdies, including a field-best nine birdies from senior Jose Manuel Peralta.
Peralta's final-round performance was among the best of the day. He carded a 1-over 71 to jump 10 spots into a tie for 20th place individually with a two-day total of 147.
Individual Leaderboard
Freshman William Pulley turned in the most consistent tournament for the Bisons, carding a 3-over 73 on Tuesday to finish in a tie for 12th place at 8-over 148.
Other Harding finishers included:
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Jose Arzu: Tied for 16th at 9-over 149 (6-over 76 in the final round).
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Dennis Staykov: Tied for 24th at 10-over 150 (3-over 73 in the final round).
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Austin Bibb: Tied for 60th at 17-over 157.
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Conner Geist (Ind.): Tied for 60th at 17-over 157.
Up Next
The third-place finish provides the Bisons with significant momentum as they prepare for the postseason push. Harding will return to action on March 23-24 at the Arkansas Collegiate in El Dorado, Arkansas, hosted by Southern Arkansas.
