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SEA ISLAND, Ga. — The Vanderbilt men’s golf team stands in fifth place after round one of the 2007 Southeastern Conference Championships at the Sea Island Golf Club.
Senior Luke List is part of a four-way tie for third place; four strokes off the lead held by Will Roebuck of Ole Miss. Roebuck birdied the final two holes of the day to register the only under-par round of the day. He holds a three-stroke advantage over Auburn’s Patton Kizzire.
The Rebels hold the day one lead behind the stellar play of Roebuck. Alabama sits three back of the lead, followed by Louisiana State and Tennessee. At 22-over, the Commodores stand only seven strokes off the pace, and one stroke out of third.
The Commodores were in the first group of the day, but the early start did not bring favorable conditions.
“The wind blew really hard all day,” VU Head Coach Tom Shaw said. “We might have played one hole without any wind, but it pretty much blew for everybody. The wind was a good 15 miles harder than during yesterday’s practice round.”
Forecasts for Saturday’s second round call for more of the same.
“We know what to expect now,” Shaw continued. “I think our guys feel solid after the first round. On day one, you don’t want to get too far away from the lead. And we’re in a good position for tomorrow.”
The back nine gave the Commodores fits on Friday. After posting a team-score of five-over on the front, the squad went plus-17 on the back side.
“On the back side, there’s a stretch of holes around 11 through 14 that are really tough,” Shaw added. “The hole location on 14 is right out by the water, and the wind is just whistling around the pin. Scores were going up for all the teams on the back nine”
The Commodores posted two bogeys and two double bogeys on the 14th, including a chip-in double for sophomore Jon Curran.
Curran and senior Dos Goldsmith both carded six-over rounds of 76. Junior Billy Whalen also scored for the Commodores, posting a seven-over 77. Two double-bogeys on the last five holes took sophomore Tyler Matthews’ round out of scoring range (eight-over 78).
The Commodores will begin the second round of the 54-hole event at 8:40 a.m. CT. The tournament is being played on Sea Island’s par-70, 7,005-yard Seaside Course.
