Navy senior golfer Nicholas Klock (Moraga, Calif.) shot a 9-under par 62 in Monday's final round of the Georgetown Intercollegiate to overcome a 7-stroke deficit and take medalist honors at the par-71 Four Streams Golf Course in Beallsville, Md. As a team, the Mids shot the lowest round of the day (281, -3) to push up from fifth to place second among the field of 12 with a 1-over par 853 (292-280-281).

Klock's 9-under par 62 is the second-lowest round in program history, just a stroke off Billy Hurley's mark of a 10-under par 61 at the Navy Fall Classic on Sept. 14, 2003. Meanwhile, it marked the first time Klock has earned individual medalist honors in his collegiate career, doing so just a handful of weeks after winning a playoff round to lead Navy to victory over Army in the annual Star Match.

Klock entered the final round of the Georgetown Intercollegiate in sixth place with a 4-under par 138 (69-69), trailing Loyola's Brandon Berry (-11), Howard's Everett Whiten Jr. (-7), Delaware's Roberto Nieves (-7), William & Mary's Logan Hunter (-6) and Loyola's Brett Inserra (-6). While Klock began to make a dent in the deficit over the first nine holes where he recorded four birdies, it was the back nine that saw his rally and eventual win come to fruition. Klock birdied four of the first five holes on the back nine, before closing out the day with a birdie on 18.

"He (Berry) was so far ahead, I didn't think there was any way that I would be able to catch him," said Klock following the competition. "After I made a few birdies in a row on the back nine, I checked the scores on my phone and saw how close we were. I checked again right before I teed off on the 18th, so I knew we were even after I birdied."

Meanwhile, the back nine spelled trouble for Loyola's Berry who bogeyed holes 12 and 14 and found himself all square with Klock at 13-under heading into the 16th. Klock, who had already finished the day, was left to wait the outcome of Berry's final three holes. The Loyola graduate student took the lead on the 16th following a birdie, but on the very next hole, he double bogeyed and fell behind Klock at 12-under. Berry was unable to pull even with Klock on the 18th, as he shot par to finish the day 1-under and in second place in the final standings.

"I honestly never thought I'd be in a position to win (a tournament)," said Klock. "I feel like my game has gotten a lot better over the years and in particular I made a lot of improvements over the summer. I played well against Army, but then we went to Massachusetts and I didn't putt very well. Everything just came together the last couple of days.

"It's really satisfying (to win). I've put a lot of hard work into getting to this point and there are a lot of people who have worked with me and supported me along the way. To see that hard work pay off is gratifying."

"Nick Klock raised the bar for our team this week with his incredible performance," said Navy head coach Pat Owen. "His 62 shattered the course record at Four Streams Golf Course by three strokes and his 13-under par was the lowest total in more than 35 years at the Georgetown Intercollegiate.

"The rest of our team chipped in in various way which contributed to the low final 36 holes and our collective second-place finish. We are happy with this week's performance, but we are still eager to improve each week."

Klock's teammate Keegan Shreves (Jr / Potomac, Md.) turned in a 3-under par 68 in the final round to finish tied for 15th with a 213 (E). Meanwhile team captain Chad Deegan (Sr / Newport Beach, Calif.) fell just a stroke outside of the top 20 with his 3-over par 216. Freshmen Andrew Wilkinson (Ashland, Va.) (76-70-78=224) and Benjamin Valdez (Stevenson Ranch, Calif.) (83-75-78=236) finished 42nd and 61st, respectively.

Loyola, who turned in the two lowest rounds of the tournament with a 275 in the first and 274 in the second, claimed the team title with its 18-under par 834. Navy, meanwhile, jumped past Howard, Campbell and William & Mary in the final round with Campbell maintaining its third-place finish with a 3-over par 855 (285-285-285). The host Georgetown Hoyas placed fourth with a 7-over par 859 (291-286-282), while Rhode Island rounded out the top five with its 8-over par 860 (287-291-282).

Navy Extras
• Nicholas Klock had the second-most birdies in the tournament with 16 behind Loyola's Brandon Berry who totaled 20.
• Chad Deegan made par on 41 of the 54 holes to pace the field, while Keegan Shreves had the fifth most with 39.
• Nicholas Klock had the best aggregate score in par 4s among the 65 golfers at -10.
• As a team, Navy led the way by making par on 179 holes with Saint Joseph's turning in the next most at 172.

Navy will play its fall finale on Oct. 24-25 at the Old Dominion Invitational at the Kilmarlic Golf Club in Powell's Point, N.C., however prior to that tournament Nicholas Klock will represent Navy at the Jackson T. Stephens Cup at Alotian Golf Club in Roland, Ark. on Oct. 18-19.


### Go Navy ###