OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – The No. 12-ranked University of Illinois men's golf team opened play at the 15th annual OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational on Friday at Olympia Fields. The Orange and Blue got off to a slow start, posting a Round 1 team score of 292 (+12) to sit in 11th place with 36 holes remaining.
"You never want to start a tournament like that where you have to play catch-up, but it's early in the season and we're trying to establish some correct mindsets and purpose while we play," head coach Mike Small said.
"We had very few birdies today, which I track back to not driving the ball in the fairway. These greens are firm, and the pins are very strongly tucked, and if you don't have the ball in the fairway you can't approach many pins. I thought we were putting ourselves in tough spots off of the tees. And the way we closed the round, we weren't very efficient with our scoring shots and our up-and-down save opportunities at the end; that's something we're going to have to work on if we're going to have better rounds."
The Illini were led by senior Adrien Dumont de Chassart, who carded a 2-over 72 to sit in a tie for 22nd in the 15-team, 81-player field that includes 12 program ranked or receiving votes in the latest Bushnell/Golfweek Coaches' Poll released earlier today.
Dumont de Chassart appeared poised to finish under par for the round, but he struggled down the stretch and closed with three-consecutive bogeys to fall four strokes off the pace of the individual lead shared by Indiana's Drew Salyers and North Carolina's David Ford, who each carded a 2-under 68.
Juniors Jerry Ji and Nico Lang are one stroke behind Dumont de Chassart in a tie for 32nd. Senior Tommy Kuhl rounded out the scoring for the Illini with a 4-over 74, while the fifth member of the Illini lineup, sophomore Piercen Hunt, finished at 6-over on the day.
Freshman Jackson Buchanan, making his collegiate debut, leads four Illini competing as individuals with a 4-over 74. Classmates Dylan Keating (76) and TJ Barger (79), also making their Illini debuts, are tied for 61st and 79th, respectively. Senior Luke Armbrust, also competing as an indy, is one stroke ahead of Barger in a tie for 75th.
No. 1-ranked Oklahoma State sits atop the team standings, with a Round 1 tally of 281 (+1). No. 6 North Carolina and Big Ten rival Indiana are tied for second, two strokes behind the Cowboys. No. 5 Arizona State (285) sits in fourth, three strokes ahead of (RV) Purdue, No. 4 Texas, and No. 20 Florida in a three-way tie for fifth. Alabama (289), No. 16 Florida State (291) and No. 19 Stanford (291) round out the top-10 just ahead of the Illini.
Round 2 is slated to tee off Saturday morning beginning at 8 a.m. The Illini, paired with the Cardinal and the No. 3-ranked Pepperdine Waves, start on No. 10 at 8:15 a.m. Live scoring will be available via GolfStat.
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