Baylor MGOLF Blows Away the Field on Windy Day One at the Aggie Invite

Sat Apr 6 20:34:44 CDT 2024

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS- April 6, 2024

Baylor MGOLF Blows Away the Field on Windy Day One at the Aggie Invite
Three Bears finish in the top 10 to boost BU to a 12-shot lead through 36 holes
For more information, contact Matt Roberts, 254-227-2280, WM_Roberts at Baylor.edu<mailto:WM_Roberts at Baylor.edu>

BRYAN, Texas – On a difficult day at Traditions Golf Club on Saturday, Baylor men’s golf weathered the storm and rode a 6-over 582 to a 12-shot lead with just 18 holes to play.

With winds gusting to as high as 36 miles per hour, Zach Heffernan spent his day at the top of the leaderboard and finished day one with a 1-under 143 to hold the overnight lead. Three of his Baylor teammates joined him in the top 15 as Tyler Isenhart tied for second, Davis Ovard tied for ninth and Luke Dossey tied for 13th.

Host Texas A&M is BU’s closest pursuer in second place after an 18-over 594, With Louisiana Tech four shots back of the Aggies.

On the individual side for the Bears, Jonas Appel led the way for the Bears with a 4-over 148 and a tie for 13th, while Luke Morgan shot an 8-over 152 and tied for 27th.

THE RUNDOWN
Round One
Heffernan made back-to-back birdies at Nos. 3 and 4 and rode that to a 1-under 35 on the front side. A bogey at No. 11 dropped the junior back to even momentarily, but he responded with birdies on four of his next six holes to get to 4-under. A final bogey at No. 18 saw him finish with a 3-under 69.

Ovard had a strong showing in his first competitive round at the Aggie with a 1-over 73. The freshman recorded a birdie at No. 4 but made the turn at even after a bogey at No. 6. He bogeyed two of his first three holes on the second nine but bounced back to play his final six holes at 1-under after a birdie at No. 13.

Dossey started his day strong with a birdie at No. 1 before adding another at No. 5 to get to 2-under on the round. Bogeys at Nos. 7 and 9 around a birdie at No. 8 had him make the turn with a 1-under 35. After five straight pars to open the back nine, Dossey made three straight bogeys at Nos. 15-17 to drop back over par for the day with a 2-over 74.

Isenhart also finished the first round with a 2-over 74. The senior opened with a bogey at No. 1 but settled in and made a birdie at No. 5 to make the turn at even. A bogey at No. 11 was offset by birdies at Nos. 12 and 15, which pushed Isenhart into red numbers for the first time, but a bogey, double-bogey finish saw him sign for a 2-over 74.

Johnny Keefer shot a 6-over 78 in the first round, his first score this season that did not count towards the team total. The senior played his first five holes at 4-over but closed the front nine strong with birdies at Nos. 6 and 9. A second double-bogey of the round cost him at No. 13, followed by two more bogeys at Nos. 14 and 16.

Round Two
Heffernan kept his foot on the gas in the second round with a 2-over 74, while the field average hovered well above 76. He made a bogey at No. 1 but recovered to dive into red figures with a pair of birdies at Nos. 4 and 5. He closed the front nine with two more bogeys at Nos. 6 and 9 for a 1-over 37. The junior dropped to three over with a bogey at No. 11 but scratched out one more birdie at No. 14. A final bogey dropped him within a shot of second place while still holding the lead entering Sunday.

Just a shot behind Heffernan, Isenhart was one of five players to break par in the second round with a 2-under 70. He went out with an even-par 36 with birdies at Nos. 3 and 8 and bogeys at Nos. 4 and 9. The senior finished bogey-free on the back nine, tossing in back-to-back birdies at Nos. 12 and 13.

Ovard continued to shine in the second semester of his freshman season with a second-round 74. After playing his first four holes at 3-over, he rebounded nicely with a birdie at No. 6 before his final bogey of the day came at No. 9. The freshman played a squeaky-clean second nine, complete with eight pars and a birdie at No. 17.

Dossey put together another solid round with a 2-over 74 in the afternoon. After eight straight pars, he carded his first bogey of the round at No. 9 to turn with a 1-over 37. The senior scratched out his first birdie of the day at No. 13 before closing with two more bogeys at Nos. 15 and 18.

Keefer finished his day with a 2-over 74 and a tie for 27th. The senior recorded four bogeys and a birdie on the front nine to make the turn with a 3-over 39. On the back nine, he played bogey-free and added a birdie at No. 14.

HIGHLIGHTS

  *   Baylor’s 29 birdies led the field on Saturday.
  *   BU led the field in par-4 scoring average on Saturday (4.08).
  *   Heffernan owns the first 36-hole lead of his career.
  *   Heffernan was one of four players to break par in the first round and is the only player in the field under par after two rounds.
  *   Heffernan tied for the best par-4 scoring average on day one (4.90).
  *   Isenhart was one of five players to break par in the second round.
  *   Isenhart tied for the best par-5 scoring average on day one (4.63).
  *   Luke Morgan was one of five players to make an eagle on Saturday.

STAT OF THE DAY
12 — A 12-shot lead is Baylor’s largest 36-hole lead since it led by 17 after two rounds at the Border Olympics last season in Laredo.

WHAT’S NEXT
The Bears will compete alongside A&M and Louisiana Tech in the final round on Sunday morning. Tee times will begin for the Bears at 8:30 a.m. CT at No. 1 from Traditions Golf Club. Live stats and scoring are available at GolfStat.com<https://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=28946>.

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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