Alabama in Ninth After 36 Holes of the John Hayt Invitational

PONTE VEDRA, Fla. – The No. 17 Alabama men’s golf team is in ninth place after two rounds of the John Hayt Invitational Monday on the par 72, 6,966-yard Sawgrass Country Club course. The Crimson Tide opened with a 6-over par 294 in round one and followed that with a 5-over 293 to end the day at 11-over par 587.

Second-ranked Vanderbilt (-19) holds and eight-stroke lead on the 14-team field that features four teams ranked in Golfstat’s top 45. Tournament hosts No. 42 North Florida (-11) is second, followed by Louisiana Tech (+1), UCF (+4) and Florida Gulf Coast (+5) to round out the top five.

Team and Individual Highlights

• Canon Claycomb leads the Crimson Tide in a tie for 14^th overall at 1-under par 143 (72-71)
• Claycomb did most of his damage on par 5s, finishing the day a combined 6-under par to average 4.25 strokes per par 5 hole, which is tied for tops among all individuals
• Thomas Ponder finished at 3-over par 147 (74-73) and is in a tie for 31^st, one shot better than Nick Dunlap’s 148 (73-75) to place him in a tie for 37^th overall
• Jonathan Griz (77-74/151) and Jones Free (75-77/152) rounds out the UA golfers in 61^st and 64^th position, respectfully  
• Jack Goldasich, who is competing as an individual, finished the day in 67^th overall with a 153 (74-79)
• Alabama leads the field with 115 total pars but is second-to-last in total birdies with 24
• Dunlap led the way with 28 pars in his 36 holes played which tied for the most among all individuals

Round One Highlights

• As a team, Alabama finished at 6-over par 294 to finish the round in a tie for fifth overall
• Despite opening with a combined total of 11-over par, the five Crimson Tide golfers shot even par on the back nine
• Thomas Ponder had a triple bogey on the first hole and four bogeys in a five hole stretch on the back nine, however, he led the way with five birdies including three consecutive to end the day at 2-over par
• The Tide finished with only six birdies on the front nine but combined for 12 after making the turn

Round Two Highlights

• Canon Claycomb began the second round with three birdies across his opening eight holes on his way to a 1-under 71
• Thomas Ponder also began hot…