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NORMAN, Okla. — The University of Colorado men’s golf team opened strong and led for several holes before a bit of a rough finish placed the Buffaloes in fifth place after the first round here Monday of the NCAA Central/Norman Regional.
No. 5 and top seed Texas Tech opened with a 10-under 278 to take a one stroke lead over host and No. 9 Oklahoma (9-under 279). No. 17 Alabama is currently third, three back at 7-under 281, the top three seeds held their positions after 18 holes. No. 32 Duke (283) and No. 52 Colorado (284) round out the top five, with No. 44 North Florida the only other team under par (3-under 285).
The top five teams will advance to the NCAA Championship Finals in two weeks in Scottdale, Ariz., along with the highest finishing individual not on one of those schools.
Oklahoma took the early lead, but the Buffaloes were never far behind. When Dylan McDermott birdied the par-5 8th hole, CU tied the Sooners for the lead at 8-under. Texas Tech joined the pair shortly, but the Buffs surged ahead when players on both OU and TTU bogeyed. CU would either hold or be in the lead for the next hour; Tech got hot with seven birdies down the stretch to take over the top spot, while the Buff slipped a bit, playing the last four at 4-over.
Still, only seven strokes separate the top six teams; history shows the battle for the last qualifying spot to advance to the finals in regionals CU has been involved has been one stroke 12 times, after seven others involved ties and a subsequent playoff.
Colorado was a bit lacking in birdies Monday (13), but made up for it with a lack of holes worse than par; the four players who scored for the team had just nine bogeys; that was one fewer than Alabama and matched Texas Tech. Oklahoma’s quartet also had nine but had a double bogeys, while Duke’s had the fewest bogeys with five, but had to count two doubles.
Freshman Hunter Swanson carded a 3-under 69 to lead the Buffaloes on the 7,452-yard, par-72 Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club course layout. That tied the second-best score by a CU freshman in an NCAA regional; he is tied for sixth. He recorded his first eagle of his collegiate career on the 331-yard, par-4 3rd hole, as he drove it off the tee to about 45 yards out from the pin; his chip shot took one hop and the ball spun slowly into the hole. He otherwise had three birdies, 12 pars and just two bogeys in his first postseason round.
His 69 was the best first round by a Buff…
No. 5 and top seed Texas Tech opened with a 10-under 278 to take a one stroke lead over host and No. 9 Oklahoma (9-under 279). No. 17 Alabama is currently third, three back at 7-under 281, the top three seeds held their positions after 18 holes. No. 32 Duke (283) and No. 52 Colorado (284) round out the top five, with No. 44 North Florida the only other team under par (3-under 285).
The top five teams will advance to the NCAA Championship Finals in two weeks in Scottdale, Ariz., along with the highest finishing individual not on one of those schools.
Oklahoma took the early lead, but the Buffaloes were never far behind. When Dylan McDermott birdied the par-5 8th hole, CU tied the Sooners for the lead at 8-under. Texas Tech joined the pair shortly, but the Buffs surged ahead when players on both OU and TTU bogeyed. CU would either hold or be in the lead for the next hour; Tech got hot with seven birdies down the stretch to take over the top spot, while the Buff slipped a bit, playing the last four at 4-over.
Still, only seven strokes separate the top six teams; history shows the battle for the last qualifying spot to advance to the finals in regionals CU has been involved has been one stroke 12 times, after seven others involved ties and a subsequent playoff.
Colorado was a bit lacking in birdies Monday (13), but made up for it with a lack of holes worse than par; the four players who scored for the team had just nine bogeys; that was one fewer than Alabama and matched Texas Tech. Oklahoma’s quartet also had nine but had a double bogeys, while Duke’s had the fewest bogeys with five, but had to count two doubles.
Freshman Hunter Swanson carded a 3-under 69 to lead the Buffaloes on the 7,452-yard, par-72 Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club course layout. That tied the second-best score by a CU freshman in an NCAA regional; he is tied for sixth. He recorded his first eagle of his collegiate career on the 331-yard, par-4 3rd hole, as he drove it off the tee to about 45 yards out from the pin; his chip shot took one hop and the ball spun slowly into the hole. He otherwise had three birdies, 12 pars and just two bogeys in his first postseason round.
His 69 was the best first round by a Buff…
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