Ohio finished the first round of the Pinehurst Invitational in 13th place out of 16 teams. Five Bobcats shot a 306 — 22 strokes over par.
The first and third round of the tournament is held at Pinehurst’s No. 6 course, while the second round is set to be held at the prestigious Pinehurst No. 2 course, a course that is not played by the average duffer.
The No. 2 course will host the U.S. Open, a PGA major championship, and the U.S. Women’s Open next year.
Ohio senior Byron Firestone carded a 38 on his first nine holes, to move to the back nine at 3 strokes over-par. After the turn, he fired a 33 (-3), to get back to even par at 71 — matching his career low. He finished tied for ninth place with two other golfers.
Firestone is paired with Miami’s Austin Kelly and Toledo’s Patrick Cermak in Monday’s 9:21 a.m. tee time, going on the back nine of Pinehurst No. 2.
Ohio junior Connor Coldwater shot a 77 and struggled on the back nine with three bogies and one double bogey. He salvaged his round with a 37 on the front nine. Coldwater is tied for 57th place.
With another up-and-down round, Ohio senior Michael Lamping finished the day with an 8 over-par round of 79. He carded a 42 (+7) on his first nine, but then ended up finishing his round with a 1 over- par 37, including three birdies in his last five holes of the day.
Ohio sophomore Andrew Mlynarski shot a 36 (+1) on his first nine, but complemented that performance with a 7-over score of 43 on his second nine to finish with a 79. He is tied with Lamping.
The team plays the next round on the No. 2 course at Pinehurst, which will present as many challenges, if not more, than any other course that they will play all season.
ab109410@ohiou.edu
