GREENWICH, Conn. — The Columbia men's golf team shot a final-round 7-over-par 295 to earn a second-place finish at the 2023 Ivy League Championship, held over the weekend at The Stanwich Club.
"I'm incredibly proud of the way our team played and competed," Director of Golf Rich Mueller said. "We got beat today. We didn't lose. We did our job, putting ourselves in the mix with a solid score. Princeton just played great and hats off to them."
Columbia (+34) came into the day 13 shots behind the Tigers and posted their best round of the weekend. It just wasn't good enough, as Princeton (+18) countered with a 2-over-par 290 to win the title by 18 strokes.
The battle for second place came down to the final hole between the Lions and Dartmouth. Playing in the final group, senior Pat Healy flew the 18th green on his approach shot but pulled off an incredible up-and-down to save par. His flop shot from behind the green stopped within nine feet of the cup. The senior drained the putt for a memorable end to his collegiate career.
"He just made a really confident read and stroke to save that par," Mueller would say. "It went in the hole and was a really memorable moment for him. I thought it was just a really fitting way for him to go out. I'm proud of his performance this weekend and his journey with us these last four years."
The putt polished off a final-round 1-under-par 71 for Healy, who bounced back from a Friday 78 to play the final 36 holes under par and tie for sixth at 5-over. Healy was named Second Team All-Ivy League for his performance.
Nathan Han posted a 2-under 70 for Columbia's best round of the day. The junior did what he could to rally from an 81 and 76 Friday and Saturday, carding four birdies through the final round. Even-par through 15, he dropped back-to-back birdies at 16 and 17 before a closing par at 18 to finish off the tournament. Han climbed from a tie for 29th after Friday all the way into a tie for 13th.
"The golf course played really hard for everybody," Mueller added. "We were really proud of Darren and Wyatt in that first round. DJ and Pat rallied yesterday afternoon and put up good rounds. Nathan came back today and put up a great round. I'm incredibly proud of the way our team played and competed."
The Lions will look ahead to the NCAA Men's Golf Selection Show next Wednesday, May 3, to see if Nathan Han gets selected to represent the Lions as an individual.
"We're hopeful Nathan will be representing us," Mueller said. "He's had such a fantastic season and deserves this opportunity. We'll be tuning it to see."
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