Utah Golf Tied for First at Visit Stockton Pacific Invitational

STOCKTON, Calif. – The University of Utah men’s golf team carded its lowest score to this point in 2023-24 to own a share of first place and three Utes are inside the top 15 with one round of golf in the books at the Visit Stockton Pacific Invitational, which got underway on Monday at The Reserve at Spanos Park in Stockton, Calif.
 
“We got off to a hot start which was really nice,” said head coach Garrett Clegg. “On the back nine we weren’t as clean. We were 12-under on the front nine and then one-under on the back. Hopefully tomorrow, we can get off to another great start and keep it going for all 18 holes. Overall, it was a good start to our tournament and tomorrow will be an important day to set us up for the final round.”
 
Utah’s team score of 275 is seven shots better than their previous best during the current campaign, while their mark of 13-under is their best in relation to par since they were 15-under during the final round of the John Burns Intercollegiate in Feb. of 2023. The Utes were 12-under on par-5’s on Monday, the tournament’s best score on those holes and their three eagles were also more than any other squad. Those three eagles represent the most by a Utah team in a single round since they collected four at the Amer Ari Invitational in Feb. of 2019.
 
Javier Barcos was responsible for Utah’s lowest score of the day, shooting a 5-under 67 that garnered him a tie for sixth. Barcos was tallied one of those three eagles, posting it on the par-5 second, then adding two more birdies on the front nine and two on the back on his way to the lowest 18-hole score by a member of the Utah lineup this season. Only two shots separate Barcos from the top of the leaderboard.
 
Just a single stroke behind Barcos and sharing 11th is Sergio Jimenez, who didn’t put up a single score worse than par on Monday and matched his best round of golf as a Ute. After beginning the opening round with four consecutive pars, Jimenez rattled off three birdies in his last five holes before the turn and was steady the rest of the way to enter the clubhouse 4-under and three shots off the lead. Davis Johnson was also in fine form on the front nine,…