BULLARD, TEXAS – The UT Tyler men's golf team advanced to Tuesday's championship match in the team match play portion of the event and posted rounds of 295-288 to sit in second place in the stroke play competition on Monday at the King-Alfred Spring Invitational.
The King-Alfred Spring Invitational uses a hybrid format of medal match play and stroke play, taking place simultaneously at Eagles Bluff Country Club. All eight teams were seeded for the bracketed match play portion of the event based off of their current GolfStat national rankings.
No. 6 seeded UT Tyler won both of their matches of the medal match play bracket on Monday with wins over no. 3 seeded St. Mary's and no. 2 seeded Midwestern State to advance to the championship match for the event with no. 1 seeded Oklahoma Christian. Sophomores
Garrett Honeycutt and
Carter Lewis both posted totals of 145 on Monday to sit in a tie for fifth place on the individual leaderboard.
The Patriots sit three strokes clear of no. 8 nationally-ranked Oklahoma Christian with their 583 (295-288) total through the first two rounds of stroke play competition, and are five strokes back of no. 16 Midwestern State, who holds the overnight lead with a 578 (288-290) total.
Honeycutt totaled rounds of 74-71 and Lewis rounds of 73-72 to pace an outstanding day of golf for the Patriots. Freshman
Jackson Naeger sits just outside the top-10 of the individual leaderboard after his rounds of 72-74 for a 146 total.
Sophomore
Jackson Powers matched Honeycutt's even-par round of 71 in the second round to help pace UT Tyler to their 288 in the afternoon, and sits in a tie for 25
th with a 151 (80-71) total. Sophomore
Alex Kopenhaver rounded out the scoring team for UT Tyler with rounds of 76-77 to sit in a tie for 30
th at 153.
UT Tyler will face off against Oklahoma Christian in tomorrow morning's championship match slated for an 8:30 a.m. shotgun start, and will be looking to maintain their positioning ahead of the Eagles on the stroke play leaderboard and potentially catch Midwestern State for the stroke play portion of the event as well.
Trent Pollard,
Ryan Willis and
Francesco Abba all competed as individuals in the event as well for UT Tyler as Pollard (77-78) and Willis (79-76) both posted day one totals of 155 to sit in a tie for 34rd place. Abba shot rounds of 85-84 to sit in 43
rd place with a 169.
