Purdue Fort Wayne
Summit League Championship
Mastodons Struggle Early in Conference Tournament
4/27/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The IPFW men's golf team has completed its first round of play at the 2009 Summit League Championships in Kansas City, Missouri. Round two was halted due to darkness, but will finish up tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m. The Mastodons currently sit in 9th place.
The tournament got off to a slow start thanks to an appearance from Mother Nature, pushing the start of play back two hours. Once play began, IPFW stumbled on the first nine holes, but ended round one on a strong note with a 303, and an 8th place standing.
With the first round delay, tournament officials decided to play as many holes as possible in round two before darkness hit on Monday. The Mastodons almost finished their second rounds before play was called at 7:45 p.m., placing the team in 9th place at +32. Oral Roberts currently leads the event at even par.
Like in round one, IPFW started slowly in round two, despite the team carding seven birdies on the first three holes. Starting on the back nine in the second round, it was holes 13-16 that gave the team the most troubles. IPFW fired three double bogeys and two bogeys to only one birdie during this stretch, which dropped the squad a spot in the standings.
IPFW was led on the first day by senior Patrick Kelley. Kelley opened the tournament with two bogeys in his first three holes, only to recover on the back nine with an even par 36 to finish the round with a 74 (+2). Heading into round two, the senior sits tied individually for 10th place at +3.
Stepping in as a replacement for Hartley Mcleod III (injury), freshman Johnny McMillen put together a solid first round of 74 (+2). McMillen played steady with three birdies, leading to a pair of 37s on the separate nines. With three holes remaining in his second round, the freshman sits at +7, and tied for 28th place.
Other IPFW first day scores include Tyler Haire, who fired a 77 in round one and stands at +10 before play was called. Jon Balyeat and Ryan Olbin will look to rebound from shaky starts as both players ended the first day at +13, and tied for 42nd place.
Round two will resume tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m., followed by round three in the afternoon to conclude the conference tournament.
For the latest updates for rounds two and three, check out the GolfStat website.
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