Completed Event: Men's Golf at John A. Burns Intercollegiate on February 12, 2026 , , 13th of 19
M Golf
at John A. Burns Intercollegiate
13th of 19
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Monday, September 20
Fort Collins, Colo.
Grand Canyon
at
Ram Masters Invitational
Season starts with top-5 finish at Colorado event
9/20/2021 7:32:00 PM | Men's Golf
Cristoni takes 6th in his GCU debut at Ram Masters Invitational
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The Grand Canyon men's golf team completed its first fall tournament in the top five of 16 teams on Tuesday at Colorado State's Ram Masters Invitational.
GCU showed a lot of growth and improvement throughout the tournament, where it improved its score with each round to miss third place by one stroke.
"Overall, this tournament was a pretty good start for our team," Lopes head coach Mark Mueller said. "I was very pleased with our attitudes as the guys continued to stay positive and on top of it.
"We have some things to work on and get better on but I believe this group will continue to improve throughout the season. Matteo Cristoni was absolutely fantastic in his first tournament, and I am very proud of him."
Cristoni, who is from Italy, closed out his first college tournament with the Lopes in a sixth-place tie at 12 over par. In his final round at the Fort Collins Country Club, he was 4 over par with one birdie on the seventh hole. He finished just two strokes away from a tie for second place.
McPherson, Kansas, native Jacob Lackey turned his first GCU tournament around, as he finished in the top 25 after having his best round of the event on Tuesday. Lackey shot 2 over par to move into a tie for 22nd. Junior Matthew Braley also shot his best round of the tournament on Tuesday with a 75, tying him with Lackey in the rankings.
Graduate student Zac Owens also produced his best work in the third round, shooting 6 over par to land at 40th.
Cristoni is off to a great start in the 16-team event, where he held the individual lead after the first round with the day's only even-par score among 89 players. Cristoni, who is from Italy, started with back-to-back birdies and added two more in his opening round. After the second round, Cristoni moved into a four-way tie for second at 8 over par, four strokes behind leader Jack Castiglia of Northern Colorado.
Facing the 16 to 25 mph winds, Braley also started his round with a birdie and managed to be in the top 20 with a tie for 18th after a first-round 79. Braley impoved his score in the second round with a 7-over-par round and held his position.
Lackey, a McPherson, Kansas native, ended his first day as a Lope in the top 30. Lackey moved up 24 spots after his second round, when he shot a 76. Owens, another new transfer, also improved his placing after the second round, moving up 15 spots to crack the top 40. He shot a second-round 77 by finishing with an eagle on the 556-yard, par-5 seventh hole.
GCU is back in action on Monday, when they head back to Colorado for a two-day tournament in Boulder.
Final results
GCU showed a lot of growth and improvement throughout the tournament, where it improved its score with each round to miss third place by one stroke.
"Overall, this tournament was a pretty good start for our team," Lopes head coach Mark Mueller said. "I was very pleased with our attitudes as the guys continued to stay positive and on top of it.
"We have some things to work on and get better on but I believe this group will continue to improve throughout the season. Matteo Cristoni was absolutely fantastic in his first tournament, and I am very proud of him."
Cristoni, who is from Italy, closed out his first college tournament with the Lopes in a sixth-place tie at 12 over par. In his final round at the Fort Collins Country Club, he was 4 over par with one birdie on the seventh hole. He finished just two strokes away from a tie for second place.
McPherson, Kansas, native Jacob Lackey turned his first GCU tournament around, as he finished in the top 25 after having his best round of the event on Tuesday. Lackey shot 2 over par to move into a tie for 22nd. Junior Matthew Braley also shot his best round of the tournament on Tuesday with a 75, tying him with Lackey in the rankings.
Graduate student Zac Owens also produced his best work in the third round, shooting 6 over par to land at 40th.
Lopes play within 2 of lead on 1st day in Colorado
GCU opened its fall season at a windy Ram Masters Invitational on Monday but handled it well for a second-round bump that put the Lopes in third place and just two strokes behind leader Pacific.Cristoni is off to a great start in the 16-team event, where he held the individual lead after the first round with the day's only even-par score among 89 players. Cristoni, who is from Italy, started with back-to-back birdies and added two more in his opening round. After the second round, Cristoni moved into a four-way tie for second at 8 over par, four strokes behind leader Jack Castiglia of Northern Colorado.
Facing the 16 to 25 mph winds, Braley also started his round with a birdie and managed to be in the top 20 with a tie for 18th after a first-round 79. Braley impoved his score in the second round with a 7-over-par round and held his position.
Lackey, a McPherson, Kansas native, ended his first day as a Lope in the top 30. Lackey moved up 24 spots after his second round, when he shot a 76. Owens, another new transfer, also improved his placing after the second round, moving up 15 spots to crack the top 40. He shot a second-round 77 by finishing with an eagle on the 556-yard, par-5 seventh hole.
GCU is back in action on Monday, when they head back to Colorado for a two-day tournament in Boulder.
Final results
Players Mentioned
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