Baylor MGOLF tied for 12th Place After a Solid First Day at La Costa

[Roberts, Matt]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS- May 24, 2024

Baylor MGOLF tied for 12th Place After a Solid First Day at La Costa
BU’s Keefer cards 2-under 70 to set the pace for the Bears
For more information, contact Matt Roberts, 254-227-2280, WM_Roberts at Baylor.edu<mailto:WM_Roberts at Baylor.edu>

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Baylor men’s golf used a 9-over 297 to settle into a tie for 12th on Friday during the opening round of the NCAA Championship at La Costa.

Johnny Keefer led the way for the Bears in the first round with a 2-under 70 good enough to tie for fifth, just three shots back of the individual leader, Hiroshi Tai of Georgia Tech.

Tied for the third-best round of the morning wave, the Bears are in the mix to claim one of the 15 spots ahead of Sunday’s 54-hole cut as just six shots separate positions 7-20. Virginia and Arizona share the overnight lead after posting a pair of 2-over 290s.

THE RUNDOWN
Starting on the more difficult back nine, Keefer opened with six-straight pars before closing his outward half with birdies at Nos. 16 and 18. The senior reached 3-under with a birdie at No. 1, and he would stay there until a bogey at No. 8 dropped him back to 2-under for the day.

Davis Ovard showed no signs of nerves in his first NCAA Championship round, carding a 1-over 73 to tie for 25th. After five pars to start his round, the freshman broke into red figures with a birdie at No. 15 to make the turn with a 1-under 35. He stayed steady on the second nine with five more pars until back-to-back bogeys dropped him back over par, where he would finish the day.

Tyler Isenhart shot a 4-over 76 to finish round one in a tie for 81st. The senior played his first eight holes at 7-over after bogeys at Nos. 12, 14, 15 and 17 around a triple-bogey at No. 13. A birdie at No. 18 seemed to kick-start his round as he made an eagle at No. 4. After a final bogey at No. 8, he made the first birdie of the day at No. 9.

Zach Heffernan tied for 112th with a 6-over 78. After a couple of bogeys at Nos. 13 and 15, the junior closed his outward nine with a birdie at No. 18 to turn with a 1-over 37. He played the first five holes of the inward half at 5-over par but settled in with four-straight pars to close the day.

Jonas Appel shot a 14-over 86 in his NCAA Championship debut, tying him for 151st. Appel shot a 5-over 41 on his first nine with a bogey at No. 13 and double bogeys at Nos. 14 and 17. He finished with a second-nine 45 to card an 86 on Friday.

HIGHLIGHTS

  *   Baylor’s opening-round 297 was its best opening round at the NCAA Championship since a 297 at the opening round of the 2018 NCAA Championship at Karsten Creek.
  *   Keefer’s 2-under 70 was his second under-par round at the NCAA Championship.
  *   Keefer was one of 15 players to shoot under par on Friday.
  *   Davis Ovard’s 73 was the lowest round by a BU freshman in an NCAA tournament debut since Cooper Dossey shot a 72 in the opening round of the 2017 NCAA Championship.

QUOTABLE
Head Coach Mike McGraw on the first round — “I think we left shots out there, there's no doubt about that. But the good news is, we haven't blown ourselves out of the tournament, so we’ll sleep on it and get some good rest and energy back. I think a good round tomorrow afternoon will put us right where we need to be. I'm not happy with the round, but I'm not disappointed either. I think the guys all know they left a few out there, and that's okay. We'll be back ready to go tomorrow.”

WHAT’S NEXT
The Bears will play alongside Notre Dame and Ohio State once again in round two, beginning at 2:55 p.m. CT. Live scoring and stats for each round can be found at Golfstat.com.<https://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=29187> For more information on Baylor Men’s Golf, follow @BaylorMGolf on X, Instagram and Facebook.


—BaylorBears.com—




Matt Roberts | Associate Director of Athletic Communications (MBB/MGOLF/ WGOLF)
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 254-227-2280
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