COLLEGE GROVE, Tenn. – The number-one seed Vanderbilt men’s golf team opened the first round of the NCAA College Grove Regional with a nine-under par, 279, after a stellar performance on The Grove’s back nine. The Commodores lead the team leader board by six shots over UCF, with the top five teams at the regional advancing to the NCAA Championship May 26-31 at Rich Harvest Farms Golf Club in Sugar Grove, Ill.
The Commodores jumped out to the first-round team team lead by simply overwhelming The Grove, which is playing at a lengthy 7,383 yards, on the back nine Monday afternoon. Sophomore Patrick Martin, who is tied for the individual lead after tying The Grove’s collegiate tournament low round with a 66, made six birdies in his last seven holes to finish at six-under. Junior Theo Humphrey, who is in a tie for sixth after a first-round 69, had four birdies on the back nine, freshman John Augenstein chipped in three birdies on the back nine and a one-under 71 for the day, and senior Matthias Schwab capped off his first round with two birdies in his last four holes to end the day with a one-over par, 73. Augenstein is in a tie for 14th individually, while Schwab is in a tie for 24th.
Combined, Vanderbilt made 15 birdies on the back nine and a tournament-best 26 for their first round.
“I’m really proud of how the guys hung in there today,” said Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh. “We wanted to let the round come to us and not try to force it and for the most part, we were able to do that. The guys really played some outstanding golf, especially on the back nine. Patrick doubled the first hole, but showed a lot of toughness in how he responded to that. It was a huge round for our team. Theo and John were also very solid all day.”
Martin, a first-team All-SEC selection who led the field with nine birdies for the day, is tied with Bryson Nimmer of Clemson for the individual lead. The pair owns a one shot lead on Manuel Elvira of UCF and Cam Norman of Troy.
As a team, Vanderbilt led the field in par four scoring (4.02, +1), par five scoring (4.60, -8), and birdies (26). Martin and Augenstein were also one and two, respectively, in par three scoring.
“Today was a good start and we are excited about how we played,” said Limbaugh. “However, we understand that this is a marathon and we need to continue to have discipline in how we execute and respond to adversity. It’s a difficult golf course so we have to remain patient and trust each other.”
1. Vanderbilt – 279
T1. Patrick Martin – 66
T6. Theo Humphrey – 69
T14. John Augenstein – 71
T24. Matthias Schwab – 73
T40. Will Gordon – 75
