ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The No. 16-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf team showed flashes of solid play during Monday's opening two rounds of The Johnnie-O at Sea Island. However, inconsistent stretches plagued the team as they slipped late in Round 2 at the Plantation Course where they enter Tuesday's finale in sixth place in the team race.
"It was a very inconsistent day; we had some good streaks, and quite a few bad streaks," head coach Mike Small said. "It was disappointing to see how we closed out the second round because that is usually a time when we shine after being on the course all day and closing out a round. Tomorrow we have got to come out and establish our mindset and our grind early."
Fifth-year Tyler Goeke leads the way for the Illini in seventh place with a 36-hole score of 139 (-5). Goecke was +2 after nine holes in Round 1, after a double-bogey on No. 4, but carded eight birdies and just one bogey over his final 27 holes to pace the Orange and Blue. His Round 2 tally of 68 (-4) was the sixth-lowest single round of the day and marked his third straight event to open the Illini's spring schedule with at least one round in the 60s.
Junior Jackson Buchanan opened with a 67 (-5) in Round 1, and sat alone in second place after 18 holes. He moved to 6-under with nine holes to play following an Eagle on No. 8, his seventh hole of Round 2, before shooting plus-4 over his final 10 holes to slip into a tie for 15th at 142 (-2) overall.
Freshman Max Herendeen and Sophomore Ryan Voois each posted 36-hole scores of 145 (+1) where they sit in a tie for 29th. The underclassmen duo contributed to the Illini's team total in both rounds, posting matching 72s in Round 1 and a pair of 73s in Round 2. Fifth-year Timmy Crawford is tied for 63rd with 18 holes to play after carding scores of 75 and 74 in Rounds 1 and 2, respectively.
As a team the Illini are 6-under with a 36-hole score of 570, 13 strokes off the lead held by Notre Dame (-19). Cincinnati (-14) is second, followed by Michigan State and Texas in a tie for third at 13-under. UNC Greensboro rounds out the top five, three strokes ahead of the Illini.
Three Illini individuals were also in action for Rounds 1 and 2 of The Johnnie-O Individual at the nearby Sea Palms Course. Senior Piercen Hunt is 1-under in fourth place, four strokes off the lead after following his opening 74 with a 67 in Round 2. Freshman Ethan Wilson is two shots behind Hunt in fifth place at 143 (+1), and one stroke ahead of fifth-year senior Jerry Ji, who is tied for sixth at 144 (+2).
Round 3 of the team competition begins with tee times starting at 8:30 a.m. ET/7:30 a.m. CT on Tuesday. Illinois will be paired with UNCG and UT, beginning at 8:50 a.m. ET/7:50 a.m. CT off Hole 1. The Illini's indy trio will begin their final round with tee times starting at 8 a.m. ET/7 a.m. CT.
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