Alabama in Third after Opening Round of the Watersound Invitational

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. – The No. 17-ranked Alabama men’s golf team is in third place at the Watersound Invitational following Sunday’s opening round team score of 6-under par 282. Both Thomas Ponder (T3rd) and Nick Dunlap (T9th) rank among the top-10 individuals to lead the Crimson Tide on day one of the three day, 54-hole event.

Ponder led the way with a 5-under par 67, collecting six birdies before a bogey on No. 17 resulted in his first-round total. Meanwhile, Dunlap also performed well with five birdies and a pair of bogeys for finish with a 3-under 69. Canon Claycomb gave the Crimson Tide three golfers at even par or better following his opening round score of even par 72.

Monday’s second round on the par 72, 7,246-yard Sharks Tooth Golf Club course will tee off at 9 a.m. CT (10 a.m. ET) and play alongside Vanderbilt and NC State

Round One Highlights

• Thomas Ponder collected five birdies over a span of seven across hole Nos. 8 through 14 on his way to shooting in the 60s for the first time this season and the 24^th time in his career
• Ponder enters the second round two shots back of individual leader Michael LaSasso of NC State (-7)
• Nick Dunlap earned his team-leading eighth round in the 60s with Sunday’s 3-under par total, while Canon Claycomb collected his team-best 12^th round of par or better
• Jonathan Griz and JP Cave round out the Tide’s starting five tied for 36^th after carding matching rounds of 2-over par 74
• Jones Free (+1) and Jack Goldasich (+7), both playing as individuals, ended the day in 33^rd and 61^st place, respectively

The Field

• Top-ranked Vanderbilt and No. 12 Georgia Tech are tied for the clubhouse lead at 9-under par, three shots ahead of the Crimson Tide
• No. 11 Florida (-4) is in fourth while NC State (-2) rounds out the top five teams
• The 11-team field features nine teams ranked in Golfstat’s top-40 national rankings
• Live stats throughout the tournament can be found on Golfstat.com

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