Eagles in Solid Position After Opening Day at Gator Invitational
2/14/2010 2:02:00 AM | Men's Golf
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Battling strong, cold winds all day, Georgia Southern jumped three spots on the team standings after two rounds of day one at the SunTrust Gator Invitational. Senior Spence Fulford leads the Eagles owning a 6-over par 146, five strokes out of the lead on the par 70, 6,701 yard Mark Bostick Golf Course.
As a team, Georgia Southern moved up three spots from the opening round and stands solely in 10th place with a two-round total, 592 after rounds of 301 and 291 – in solid position for a 'Top 5' finish. Florida holds first at 562 (+2), while Chattanooga is nine strokes out of the lead in second, 571 (+11). Florida State and North Florida currently own third and fourth at 574 and 587, respectively. Three teams share a portion of fifth place between Central Florida, Duke and Mississippi with 588s.
“Everyone seemed to get off to a rocky start in the first round, but we hung in there to the end,” said Eagle head coach Larry Mays. “We tightened up a little bit in the second round and if we can shave some strokes off what we did today, we will be in good position for a solid finish tomorrow.”
Tyson Alexander of Florida, John Darby of UAB and Julian Suri of Duke stand in a three-way tie for individualist honors entering the final round on Sunday. Each shot identical opening rounds of 1-over 71 and second rounds of 70 for a 1-over par 141 opening day total.
The five Eagles representing Georgia Southern all stand within two strokes of each other after two rounds. Senior Fulford (Rocky Mount, N.C.) leads the way for Georgia Southern firing consecutive rounds of 3-over par to compile a two-round total 146. Fulford launched five birdies over the course of 36 holes including two on the 196-yard 15th hole to finish with a share of 22nd.
Two of Georgia Southern's players are tied for 34th in Matt Deal (Statesboro, Ga.) and Joe Monte (Chantilly, Va.). Deal shaved two strokes off his opening round 75 for a second round 73 to finish with a 148, while Monte was the most improved Eagle from the first to second round. The junior rebounded in the second round from a rough start of 7-over par 77 for a second round 71, a six stroke improvement. Monte, starting on hole 8, erased a bogey on nine with a birdie on 12 and took the turn at 1-under. He finished the second 18 bogeying seven for a 1-over par 71 second round and 148 (+8) total.
Leading the team from fall competition, senior Ryan Zabroske (Alpharetta, Ga.) is one of four individuals standing in 44th-place at 10-over 150. The Eagle improved on his first round by two strokes collecting three birdies, two on hole 17. Rounding out the Eagles' five-man lineup, Florian Sander (Bregenz, Austria) finished day one with a 152 (+12). Sander began both rounds in identical manners, bogeying hole six and launching birdies on nine right before the turn.
“We were disappointed in our start, but we are looking forward to tomorrow's final round,” stated Mays. “We know we still have a good round within us and hopefully tomorrow we will perform better and come home with a good finish.”
The 14-team tournament will conclude on Sunday, February 14 with the final 18 holes. Georgia Southern opens on the back nine beginning at 8:30 a.m. with Zabroske. Fans can follow the action with live scoring on www.golfstat.com.
Team Standings
1. Florida (283-279=562) +2
2. Chattanooga (282-289=571) +11
3. Florida State (283-291=574) +14
4. North Florida (296-291=587) +27
T5. Central Florida (296-292=588) +28
T5. Duke (300-288=588) +28
T5. Mississippi (299-289=588 )+28
8. Lamar (295-294=589) +29
9. UAB (297-294=591) +31
10. Georgia Southern (301-291=592) +32
11. LSU (297-297=594) +34
T12. Coastal Carolina (300-304=604) +44
T12. Georgia State (300-304=604) +44
14. Mississippi State (302-303=605) +45
Georgia Southern Results
T22. Spence Fulford (73-73=146) +3
T34. Matt Deal (75-73=138) +8
T34. Joe Monte (77-71=138) +8
T44. Ryan Zabroske (76-74=150) +10
T53. Florian Sander (77-75=152) +12
As a team, Georgia Southern moved up three spots from the opening round and stands solely in 10th place with a two-round total, 592 after rounds of 301 and 291 – in solid position for a 'Top 5' finish. Florida holds first at 562 (+2), while Chattanooga is nine strokes out of the lead in second, 571 (+11). Florida State and North Florida currently own third and fourth at 574 and 587, respectively. Three teams share a portion of fifth place between Central Florida, Duke and Mississippi with 588s.
“Everyone seemed to get off to a rocky start in the first round, but we hung in there to the end,” said Eagle head coach Larry Mays. “We tightened up a little bit in the second round and if we can shave some strokes off what we did today, we will be in good position for a solid finish tomorrow.”
Tyson Alexander of Florida, John Darby of UAB and Julian Suri of Duke stand in a three-way tie for individualist honors entering the final round on Sunday. Each shot identical opening rounds of 1-over 71 and second rounds of 70 for a 1-over par 141 opening day total.
The five Eagles representing Georgia Southern all stand within two strokes of each other after two rounds. Senior Fulford (Rocky Mount, N.C.) leads the way for Georgia Southern firing consecutive rounds of 3-over par to compile a two-round total 146. Fulford launched five birdies over the course of 36 holes including two on the 196-yard 15th hole to finish with a share of 22nd.
Two of Georgia Southern's players are tied for 34th in Matt Deal (Statesboro, Ga.) and Joe Monte (Chantilly, Va.). Deal shaved two strokes off his opening round 75 for a second round 73 to finish with a 148, while Monte was the most improved Eagle from the first to second round. The junior rebounded in the second round from a rough start of 7-over par 77 for a second round 71, a six stroke improvement. Monte, starting on hole 8, erased a bogey on nine with a birdie on 12 and took the turn at 1-under. He finished the second 18 bogeying seven for a 1-over par 71 second round and 148 (+8) total.
Leading the team from fall competition, senior Ryan Zabroske (Alpharetta, Ga.) is one of four individuals standing in 44th-place at 10-over 150. The Eagle improved on his first round by two strokes collecting three birdies, two on hole 17. Rounding out the Eagles' five-man lineup, Florian Sander (Bregenz, Austria) finished day one with a 152 (+12). Sander began both rounds in identical manners, bogeying hole six and launching birdies on nine right before the turn.
“We were disappointed in our start, but we are looking forward to tomorrow's final round,” stated Mays. “We know we still have a good round within us and hopefully tomorrow we will perform better and come home with a good finish.”
The 14-team tournament will conclude on Sunday, February 14 with the final 18 holes. Georgia Southern opens on the back nine beginning at 8:30 a.m. with Zabroske. Fans can follow the action with live scoring on www.golfstat.com.
Team Standings
1. Florida (283-279=562) +2
2. Chattanooga (282-289=571) +11
3. Florida State (283-291=574) +14
4. North Florida (296-291=587) +27
T5. Central Florida (296-292=588) +28
T5. Duke (300-288=588) +28
T5. Mississippi (299-289=588 )+28
8. Lamar (295-294=589) +29
9. UAB (297-294=591) +31
10. Georgia Southern (301-291=592) +32
11. LSU (297-297=594) +34
T12. Coastal Carolina (300-304=604) +44
T12. Georgia State (300-304=604) +44
14. Mississippi State (302-303=605) +45
Georgia Southern Results
T22. Spence Fulford (73-73=146) +3
T34. Matt Deal (75-73=138) +8
T34. Joe Monte (77-71=138) +8
T44. Ryan Zabroske (76-74=150) +10
T53. Florian Sander (77-75=152) +12
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