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<b><span style="font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none">BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Sept. 6, 2024<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Baylor MGOLF Set to Open the Season at the Gopher Invitational</span></b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="page-break-after:avoid;layout-grid-mode:char"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">The two-time champs make first appearance in the event since 2022<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">For more information, contact
</span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Matt Roberts, 254-227-2280,
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="mailto:WM_Roberts@Baylor.edu"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#2F5496">WM_Roberts@Baylor.edu</span></a></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">INDEPENDENCE, Minn.
</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">– Baylor men's golf will kick off the 2024-25 season at the Gopher Invitational on Sunday morning at Windsong Farm Golf Club.</span><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;background:white;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Winners of the event in 2014 and 2019, BU tied for sixth in its last appearance at the Gopher. Losing five senior contributors
off last year's team, including recent PGA Tour Americas graduate Johnny Keefer, Baylor will have a different look this season, but head coach Mike McGraw is looking forward to watching this crew compete.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">“As is the case every year, both coaches and players alike are excited to get going,” he said. “We have had a great deal of
success in this event through the years, and the golf course will be tough, with firm and fast greens.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Junior Jonas Appel will take the No. 1 position in the opening tournament this season, a spot Keefer occupied for 36-straight
events prior to this season. Appel appeared in eight tournaments as a member of the lineup last season, and his best finish in those events was a tie for 38<sup>th</sup> at the Valero Texas Collegiate to open last season.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Davis Ovard will take the No. 2 spot after a strong start to the sophomore’s collegiate career. After leading the team with
38 rounds played last season, Ovard competed in the Elite Amateur Series this past summer, winning the prestigious North and South Amateur at Pinehurst in late June.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Zach Heffernan will play at No. 3 on the heels of his best season in green and gold. The senior notched a career-best with two
top-5 finishes and tied for 18<sup>th</sup> at the NCAA Chapel Hill Regional.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">At No. 4, Drew Wrightson makes his first appearance for the Bears since the NCAA Championship in 2023. On the heels of a redshirt
season, Wrightson looks to regain the form he had at the end of 2023, when he finished tied for 6<sup>th</sup> at the Big 12 Championship at Prairie Dunes.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Sam Dossey makes his debut in the lineup at the No. 5 spot this week. In his last competitive tournament, Dossey finished tied
for second at the Winstar Spring Individual on the strength of a final-round 68.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Additionally, six Bears will play in an individual event at nearby Pioneer Creek Golf Club beginning on Saturday. Patricio Gonzalez,
Aidan Gutierrez, Martin Kemp, Jackson Hymer, Corbin Null and Vincent Stjernfeldt will all tee it up for the Bears.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">Live scoring and stats for the Gopher Invitational can be found at
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="https://scoreboard.clippd.com/tournament-leaderboard/233131/scoring/participants"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:blue;background:white">SCOREBOARD.CLIPPD.com</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;background:white;mso-ligatures:none">,
while the individuals in the Minnesota Golf Classic can be tracked, <a href="https://scoreboard.clippd.com/tournament-leaderboard/234780/scoring/participants">
<span style="color:blue">here</span></a>. For more information on Baylor Men’s Golf, follow @BaylorMGolf on X, Instagram and Facebook.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="http://www.BaylorBears.com"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:blue">www.BaylorBears.com</span></a></span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none">
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Matt Roberts | Associate Director of Athletic Communications (MBB/MGOLF/ WGOLF) <br>
Department of Athletics | Baylor University<br>
C: 254-227-2280</span><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#212121;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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