Howey-In-The-Hills, Fla. - The Berry Men's Golf team headed south to  Howey-In-The-Hills, Florida earlier this week to compete in the NCAA Division III Fall Preview. Located just 45 minutes north of Orlando, this 54 hole event took place at the historic Mission Inn Resort and Club. The tournament took place over three days and was played on both the Las Colinas and the El Campeon courses. The field was comprised of 122 players from 24 teams, with 22 ranked in the top 25.

Just hours before his tee time on Sunday morning, senior Jay Sanders fell ill and was out of the lineup for day one. The Vikings were left without one of their best and despite this tough news, they were up for the challenge. 

In the opening round the Vikings shot a team total of +23 over par. As a team, they played a steady first round, and despite a tough finish on their last hole, they had already set their sights on improving in round two. Rounds two and three were held on the historic and much tougher El Campeon course. The Vikings improved their team total by eight shots from round one and finished the day at +15. Through 36 holes, Berry was +38. The Vikings improved their team score once again in round three, as they shot +12. The Vikings finished in 22nd place with a three day total of +50. 

Junior transfer Zach Lim continues to make an impact in just his second ever outing with the Vikings. Lim was full of confidence following a solid debut last week in Greensboro, North Carolina and opened up round one with a +5, 76. In round two, Lim shot a -2, 70, which featured three birdies, and just one bogey. This was Lim's best competitive college round to date and was the low round of the week for the Vikings. Lim continued to shine in the third and final round. Lim posted a +2, 74 which was highlighted by an eagle chip in from the green side bunker on hole #14. Lim finished the week -5 on par 5's which put him in a tie for sixth out of a total of 122 participants in this stat. Following round three, Lim finished at +5 for the tournament which put him in a tie for 35th. 

Senior Landon Painter opened round one with a team best +2, 73 while recording four birdies. While battling the Florida heat in round two, Painter fired a +6, 77. He bounced back in round three after shooting a +2, 74. Painter's 73 in round one and 74 in round three were both below the average score for each day. He also led the team in pars with 33 for the event. In total, he finished the tournament at +9, which was good for 55th place. 

Back in his home state of Florida, Josh Lay opened up play with a +7, 78. In the second round, Lay played the par 5's in -2 and finished the day with a +5, 77. Lay closed the event with a +6, 78. He finished the tournament ranked third on the team and 103rd overall at +18. 

Junior Cam Baker opened play on Sunday morning with a +9, 80. In round two he improved his score by one stroke by shooting a +7, 79. Baker saved his best for last when he recorded a +5, 77 on the last day. In the final round, he had five birdies which brought his total up to 10 for the tournament. His birdie total of 10 was the most on the team for the tournament. 

On Monday, to the delight of his teammates and coaches, Jay Sanders made his return to the lineup. In his first round, Sanders shot an +8, 80. In round three, he improved his round two score by five shots by shooting a +3, 75. Sanders closed the event with an even par 35 on his inward nine. 

The Vikings next event will begin on October 13th and 14th in Pennsylvania.