BLUFFTON, S.C. – Notre Dame men’s golfer John Felitto will be leaving the Colleton River Collegiate on Tuesday as champion. Felitto fired off a final round 69 (-3) to card the tournament winning score of 210 (-6).
A senior leader both on and off the course, Felitto has steadily progressed under Notre Dame head coach John Handrigan’s tutelage. In fact, it marked Felitto’s first 54-hole tournament title win in his four-year career, besting 89 other individuals in South Carolina. It also marked his fourth career top-10 finish as well.
“Golf can be a very demoralizing game, especially when you don’t play to your expectations. It takes an elite player with extremely high character to manage your emotions and mindset when you are not getting the results. That is a perfect description of John Felitto,” Notre Dame head coach John Handrigan stated.
“Over the past few months John hasn’t performed to his high standards, but as a leader and captain of this team, he kept a great attitude and continued to believe in himself,” Handrigan added. “That’s why this win is so special. John overcame adversity and earned this impressive victory through hard work and a lot of self-belief. I couldn’t be more proud of him.”
As a team, the No. 12 ranked Fighting Irish both started and finished the day in third place. Notre Dame shot a 289 (+1) on Tuesday to total an 867 (+3) for the tournament. Iowa State (856, -8) and Georgia Southern (849, -15) claimed the top two spots.