Results
Newburgh, Ind. -Despite a frost delay that pushed the start of the 2015 Big Ten Men's Golf Championship back two hours, the Illini have put themselves in a good position heading into the second day of play. Illinois has a four stroke lead in the tournament, ahead of Iowa who tallied a 9-under par total for the day. Because of the morning delay, most teams were unable to complete the second round before dark. Players will resume their round tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. and the third round will follow.
The Illini shot 13-under par through the day, led by freshmen Nick Hardy and Dylan Meyer and junior Thomas Detry. Four Illini sit among the top-10 individuals, but the tournament is led by Iowa's Carson Schaake who carded a 9-under par score through 33 holes.
"The second round is not complete yet, but I saw a lot of solid golf," head coach Mike Small said. "We had a little hiccup at the end of the first round where we lost our focus and didn't finish. We came back this afternoon and rectified that very quickly on the front nine. We're playing okay. This is a very penal golf course. I think we can tidy up a few things, so hopefully we'll do that and get back after it tomorrow."
Hardy tallied a score 1-under par in the first round at Victoria National, using five birdies to help overcome bogeys on his first and last holes of the round. He started the second round strong, birdieing the first two holes. He carried that momentum through the front nine as he again posted back-to-back birdies on the eighth and ninth holes. The only Illini to finish his round, Hardy closed the back nine 1-over par for a 3-under second round total and tie for third overall.
"My putter was pretty hot at times today, that's what carried me," Hardy said of his performance. "I struggled in the first round, but I knew I could get those shots back on the front nine of the second round."
Playing in his hometown, Meyer shot even par through the first round, and currently sits 2-under par in the second round. Like Hardy, Meyer kicked off the second round with a birdie, and tallied three more on the front nine. Meyer will finish the 18th hole tomorrow morning.
Meyer and teammate Thomas Detry are tied for fifth overall in the tournament as both have current scores 2-under par. Detry will begin tomorrow on hole 16. The junior posted a 1-under par score in the first round of play and is currently 1-under par in the second round. He birdied both the 14th and 15th holes prior to the suspension of play.
After a 2-over par first round tally, junior Charlie Danielson went birdie, eagle, birdie on three consecutive holes to start off round two. He shot 5-under par on the front nine of his second round before a double bogey on the 11th hole. Danielson is tied for eighth individually, and will resume his round on the 17th hole.
Senior Brian Campbell played a solid first round of golf, notching three consecutive birdies to finish the front nine. He scored 2-under par in the first round and currently has a score 3-over par on the day. He will resume the second round on the 18th hole.
The 2015 Big Ten Men's Golf Championship is hosted by Victoria National Golf Club in Newburgh, Ind., which boasts a Par 72, 7,124-yard course. The championshp continues with 18-holes to be played on both Saturday, April 25 and Sunday April 26. Tee times begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. on Sunday.
Fans can follow live scoring for the tournament on GolfStat, or follow live updates on the team's Twitter page (@IlliniMGolf). Recaps will be posted on FightingIllini.com following each round.
