No. 18 Bulldogs Begin Spring At Watersound Invitational

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. - No. 18 Mississippi State will begin spring team play at the Watersound Invitational on Feb. 17-19 in Panama City Beach, Florida. The 7,246-yard, par-72 Shark's Tooth Golf Course will play host to 12 teams.

The Bulldogs are one of six ranked teams in the field – No. 11 Vanderbilt, No. 12 UCLA, No. 14 Georgia Tech, No. 24 Alabama and No. 25 Notre Dame.

"We are looking forward to this week's event at Shark's Tooth," Head Coach Dusty Smith said. "It's always a great test of golf against a great field. I really like how we've progressed over the offseason. The guys are hungry to get back out and compete. Our focus will be on our preparation and trusting our process. I know if we play within ourselves and have a high tolerance for the adversity that will be thrown our way throughout the week, then we will be successful."

The Bulldogs look to build upon a successful fall campaign that saw them finish in the top 10 of all four events, including a runner-up finish at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30-Oct. 2, 2024). MSU placed ninth at last spring's Watersound Invitational, bookending the event with scores of 5-under 283 and 2-under 286.

State will start a lineup that saw great success in the fall season. Garrett Endicott will lead off in the No. 1 spot, alongside Josep Serra (No. 2), Ugo Malcor (No. 3), Dain Richie (No. 4), and Drew Wilson (No. 5). Harrison Davis will compete as an individual.

Endicott enters the spring after a fall campaign that saw him put together three top-20 finishes, tying for third at the Visit Knoxville Collegiate in September. He leads the team in scoring average (71.95), and his round of 67 in Knoxville tied for the team's lowest round of the fall.

Serra led the Bulldogs at the 2024 Watersound Invitational, tying for 14th. His 6-under 66 in the final round was the field's best, vaulting him up 26 spots to close the event. The Spaniard put together a great fall season of his own with three top-20 finishes and a ninth-place showing in his last start at the Fallen Oak Collegiate (Oct. 19-21, 2024). He leads the team with six rounds of par or better.

Malcor's first fall in the Maroon and White included a seventh-place finish at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational, in which he fired the second-best final round in the field with a 1-under 71. His 67 in Knoxville is tied for the team's lowest round of the fall, and he is tied for second on the team with five par or better rounds.

Richie is coming off his best showing at MSU, tying for 17th at the Fallen Oak Collegiate. The Southern Illinois transfer carded five birdies in the final round at the Fallen Oak, one of his five par or better rounds of the fall.

Wilson's fall included a sixth-place showing at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational. He was the tournament leader after the first round and compiled 11 birdies with an eagle over the event's three days.

Davis competed as an individual earlier this year at the Thomas Sharkey Individual Collegiate (Feb. 1-2). He put together his best finish since 2023, opening the tournament with rounds of 2-under 70 and 3-under 69. He led the field at the Sharkey with a score of 10-under on the par-5s.

Davis will lead the Bulldogs off the No. 1 tee at 9 a.m. CT, followed by Wilson starting the team lineup off at 9:10 a.m. The remaining Bulldogs will follow in 10-minute increments. Live results will be available on Golfstat.

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No. 18 Bulldogs Begin Spring At Watersound Invitational

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Players Mentioned

Harrison Davis

Garrett Endicott

Ugo Malcor

Dain Richie

Josep Serra

Drew Wilson

Mississippi State University Athletics