University of Illinois
LSU Invitational
Ji, Illini Lead After Day 1 of LSU Invitational
February 26, 2021 | Men's Golf
BATON ROUGE, La. – The Fighting Illini men's golf team used a strong start – behind the play of tournament leader Jerry Ji's opening 69 – to overcome changing conditions and a challenging course and sit atop the team standings after Round 1 at the LSU Invitational at the University Club.
"I was proud of the guys," head coach Mike Small said. "We were ready to play off the first tee. The conditions got tough as the day went on, and we struggled a bit on the back nine just as the other teams did, but the good start was enough for us to stay competitive for the day. Leading into tomorrow, when the wind comes up and the conditions change, on some of these hard golf holes we're going to have to square up, face-to-face, and play them better. The harder holes beat us today."
Ji finished at 3-under after opening his round with birdies on two of his first three holes. He added two more on Holes 6 and 7 to sit at 4-under at the turn, and notched a fifth birdie on the 17th hole, offsetting a pair of bogeys on the back nine, to maintain a one-stroke lead over host LSU's Drew Doyle. Ji and Doyle were two of only six golfers in the 90-player field to finish under par in Round 1.
"Jerry was solid as a rock all day," Small added. "He had a good look and hit it really well. He didn't suffer the big numbers that this course can give you and that's why he is leading. Jerry's been working hard, and he had a good look to him all day. He kept the golf ball in position, and he got the good start. Now he also realizes that there are two days left, and we've got to regroup and get after it again tomorrow."
Ji's five birdies were second only to teammate Tommy Kuhl who led the tournament with six on Day 1. Kuhl opened with birdies on three of his first four holes, added another on the Par-4 ninth, and closed with back-to-back birdies on 17 and 18 to card a 74 (+2) and move into a tie for 16th.
Michael Feagles and Giovanni Tadiotto rounded out the scoring for the Illini on Friday, finishing one stroke behind Kuhl in a tie 10-way tie for 27th with opening rounds of 75 (+3). Adrien Dumont de Chassart is 37th with a Round 1 score of 76 (+4), matching the score of Brendan O'Reilly who is competing as an Individual this weekend.
As a team, the Illini shot a 293 (+5) and are one stroke ahead of Georgia and Tennessee who are tied for second. Vanderbilt and Arkansas State are 7-over in a tie for fourth to round out the top five of the team standings.
Round 2 is slated to begin with tee times starting at 8:30 a.m. CT on Saturday. The Illini begin at 10:10 a.m., paired with the Bulldogs and the Volunteers. Live scoring is available at Golfstat.com.
| Place | Player | RD1 | RD2 | RD3 | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Illinois | 293 | - | - | 293 (+5) |
| 1 | Jerry Ji | 69 | - | - | 69 (-3) |
| T16 | Tommy Kuhl | 74 | - | - | 74 (+2) |
| T27 | Michael Feagles | 75 | - | - | 75 (+3) |
| T27 | Giovanni Tadiotto | 75 | - | - | 75 (+3) |
| T37 | Adrien Dumont de Chassart | 76 | - | - | 76 (+4) |
| T37 | Brendan O'Reilly (Ind.) | 76 | - | - | 76 (+4) |
