Men’s Golf in Fifth Place After Continuing Strong Play in First Round of Furman Intercollegiate – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Sophomore Patrick Simard tied for third after firing 1-under 71
COLUMBUS, Ohio The Ohio State men’s golf team opened the three-day Furman Intercollegiate Friday with a team score of 6-over 294 to sit in fifth place after 18 holes of action in Greenville, S.C. The Buckeyes are only one shot out of third and four strokes from second place in the 24-team field. Tennessee-Chattanooga leads the event, played at the par 72, 6,825-yard Furman University Golf Course, after shooting the only round under par of the day at 278 (-1).
Sophomore Patrick Simard paced the Buckeyes with a 1-under 71. Simard, a native of Marbella, Spain, had four birdies, with three coming on par 5’s, and three bogeys. He is tied for third, just two shots back from leader Justin Hodge of Tennessee-Chattanooga. His four birdies are good for ninth-most in the field.
One stroke back was senior co-captain Kyle Coconis, who battled through a rocky round, but ended up finishing at even with a 72 to tie for 11th. Starting on the back nine, the Zanesville, Ohio, native had five bogeys on the day, including a stretch of four straight on Nos. 13-16. Coconis countered with nine pars, three birdies and an eagle on the par-5 second hole. He is even par on the par 4’s to place fourth in that category.
Bo Hoag, a freshman from Upper Arlington, Ohio, shot a 74 to tie for 31st. He shot a 37 on both nines, carding a birdie on a par 5 on each side.
Reigning Big Ten Player of the Week Brad Smith is in a tie for 71st after 18 holes. The rookie from Peru, Ind., shot a 77, but dominated the par 5’s for the second-consecutive week, playing them at 3-under-par and carding an eagle at the par-5 second hole.
Senior co-captain Zach Sebert shot a 79, but managed to get 4 birdies, which ranks ninth for the tournament. The Grove City, Ohio native’s struggles came in the form of three double-bogeys and one triple-bogey. Sebert was 2-under on the other 14 holes.
As a team, Ohio State ranks in the Top 5 in three statistical categories and in the Top 8 in three others. The Buckeyes are fourth in par 5 scoring (-10) and fifth in birdies (14) and eagles (2). Ohio State has 49 pars thru 18 holes to rank seventh. They are eighth in par 3 scoring and par 4 scoring at 6-over and 7-over, respectively.
The Furman Intercollegiate will continue Saturday with round two. Ohio State tees off at 9 a.m. (ET). Live scoring for the event is available on www.golfstat.com.
Furman Intercollegiate: Day One
Furman University Golf Course, Greenville, S.C.
Par 72, 6,825 yards
Team Standings Scores 1. Tenn.-Chattanooga 287 (-1) 2. South Carolina 290 (+2) 3. Clemson 292(+4) 4. Vanderbilt 293(+5) 5. Ohio State 294(+6) 6. Western Carolina 295(+7) 7. Samford 296 (+8) T-8.Furman 297 (+9) T-8. Francis Marion 297 (+9) 10. S.C.-Aiken 298(+10) 11. Virginia Tech 299 (+11) 12.East Carolina 300 (+12) 13. Davidson 303 (+15) 14. North Florida 305(+17) 15. UNC-Wilmington 306(+18) T-16. Charleston Southern 307(+19) T-16. Presbyterian 307(+19) T-16. Elon 307 (+19) 19. Winthrop 309 (+21) T-20. Rhode Island 312(+24) T-20. Appalachian State 312(+24) T-22. Wofford 313 (+25) T-22. OldDominion 313 (+25) 24. Marshall 320(+32) Ohio StateResults Scores T-3.Patrick Simard 71 (-1) T-11. Kyle Coconis 72 (E) T-31. Bo Hoag 74(+2) T-71. Brad Smith 77 (+5) T-91.Zach Sebert 79 (+7)
