Georgia State senior Joel Sjoholm's three-straight sub-par rounds (69-70-70--209, -7) earned him the individual championship at the John Hayt Collegiate Invitational by a margin of five strokes.  The Panthers men's golf team tied for ninth with a three-round team score of 894 (+30) in a 15-team field that featured 10 teams from the national top 30 in Ponte Vedra, Florida on Tuesday.

Sjoholm entered the event ranked 14th in the nation and showed remarkable consistency as he was the only player in the field to finish each round below par.  The 2007 Colonial Athletic Association Golfer of the Year posted six birdies in the final round to extend his lead and defeat 15 players ranked in the national top 50, including Alabama's Michael Thompson, the nation's top-ranked player.

The championship also marks Sjoholm's second career win, both coming in the last three team events, and marks his fifth top-10 performance in six team events this season.  His three-round score of 209 was the third best in tournament history.

“It was been an honor to play in this prestigious tournament, on this course and against some of the best teams in the country.  It was fun,” said Sjoholm.  “This course is very challenging and the wind has been very strong.  I had a bit of trouble out there in the middle of the round, but took a deep breath, believed in my ability and it's great to get a win.  I'm on a good streak right now and played some good golf today.”

Sjoholm's victory is the 20th individual victory in Georgia State men's golf history and the senior from Gothenburg, Sweden needs one more win to match the single-season record of three wins set by former Panther Mark Haastrup in the 2005-06 season. 

“[Joel Sjoholm] is an incredible player,” said Georgia State head coach Matt Clark.  “He played a great round of golf today.  He had a few problems on 10 and 11, but came back brilliantly.  Joel dominated the field on a tough course, while playing the best of the best.”

Sophomore Tom Sherreard finished second for the Panthers in a tie for 36th among the 81-player field after a final round of 79 (+7).  Fellow sophomore Maurice Jordan finished tied for 51st with a three-round score of 227 (+11), while freshman Alex Castro and junior Tim Freund finished in a tie for 69th (235, +19) and in 77th (240, +24) respectively.

As a team, the Panthers posted consecutive rounds of 296 before carding a 302 in the final round to finish tied for ninth with 28th-ranked Pepperdine and ahead of 14th-ranked South Carolina, 21st-ranked Indiana and 23rd-ranked UCF.

“I think this is the first time all year we have shown we can compete at the highest level against the top teams in the country,” added Clark.  “With about six holes left we were playing great.  We hit some stumbling blocks, but I am very encouraged by our play.  I'm proud of the attitude and character we showed, because if you quit on a course this tough, it can be bad.  We've got a few weeks to practice and we're going to cultivate this momentum and see what we can do the rest of the year.”

The Panthers return home to Atlanta before competing in the Linger Longer Invitational at Reynolds Landing in Greensboro beginning on March 14. 

Check GeorgiaStateSports.com for updates prior to the event.

Individual Results:
1st ? Joel Sjoholm ? 69-70-70--209, -7

T36th ? Tom Sherreard ? 75-73-77--225, +9
T51st? Maurice Jordan ? 72-76-79--227, +11

T69th ? Alex Castro ? 82-77-76--235, +19

77st ? Tim Freund ? 80-78-82--240, +24

Team Results: