“A great day by Cooper today,” UK head coach Brian Craig said. “Max (Mehles) also played sold golf. We are still in this thing. We just need a solid day tomorrow. I can guarantee we will give it our best shot.”
Freshman Max Mehles notched a 1-over 73 to help UK’s cause. The Cats sit 10 strokes back of Ole Miss for the fifth spot on the leaderboard. Following tomorrow’s round, the top five teams will move on to the NCAA Championship in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
If any team staring at a deficit can make a run, it’s this team. Kentucky chased down Auburn at the Gary Koch Invitational in its final regular-season event of the season to take home its fourth tournament title of the regular season.
Musselman and Mehles’ sparked play during Tuesday’s round enabled the Wildcats to improve by seven strokes from the opening round to the second round and advance one spot on the leaderboard.
The host Texas A&M Aggies lead the field at 18-under. Clemson is just one stroke off the Aggies’ pace, while Baylor is in third at 6-under. UCLA is even par and Ole Miss is 3-over to round out the top five.
Senior Chip McDaniel continues to pace all UK players on the individual leaderboard as he sits in 13th through two rounds. McDaniel fired a 74 on Tuesday and is 1-under-par for the tournament. The Manchester, Kentucky, native had four birdies, including two in the opening four holes to highlight his round.
Musselman’s 68 enabled him to surge into a tie for 32nd after capping the opening day tied for 65th. The Louisville, Kentucky, native’s day began with an even-par score on the front nine. He then birdied back-to-back holes at the par-five 10th and the par-three 11th to pick up some momentum. Birdies on the 14th and 17th pushed his score to 4-under for the day with a dazzling finish to the round. He is 3-over-par for the tournament.
Junior Fred Allen Meyer is tied for 40th following a round of 76 on Tuesday. Meyer is 5-over for the tournament.
Mehles enjoyed a solid round with a 1-over 73. He had birdies on consecutive holes at the par-three second and the par-four third to get his round going in the right direction. Sitting at 3-over par through 12 holes, Mehles capped his round in stylish fashion with red numbers on the par-four 14th and the par-five 15th to get to 1-over. He’s tied for 60th and 9-over-par for the tournament.
Junior Lukas Euler is tied for 64th after registering a 77. He played marvelous golf on the back nine with a birdie on the No. 14 and eight pars to help take some positive momentum into the final round on Wednesday.
Kentucky is slated to tee off from the first hole beginning at 9:25 a.m. ET. Euler will get the round going followed by Mehles, Meyer, Musselman and McDaniel.
Live stats are available via Golfstat.
The Tournament Setup
Teams: No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 11 Baylor, No. 14 Clemson, No. 23 Kentucky, UCLA, Ole Miss, South Carolina, San Francisco, Georgia, Mississippi State, UNC Wilmington, Northern Colorado, Bradley
Course Details: The course was constructed in 2004 with Jack Nicklaus and Jack Nicklaus Jr., serving as the architects. It’s played on Bermuda grass year round nestled among majestic native hardwoods, rolling hillsides and the natural banks of the Turkey Creek.
Format: Three-day, 54-hole event stroke play. Count top four scores each day.
Live Look: Live stats are available via golfstat.com.
Forecast: Wednesday (Partly cloudy, high of 92, 20% chance of rain, SSW 11 mph)
Agate
7 – Kentucky (298, 291-589, +13)
13 – Chip McDaniel (69, 74 – 143, -1)
T32 – Cooper Musselman (79, 68 – 147, +3)
T40 – Fred Allen Meyer (73, 76 – 149, +5)
T60 – Max Mehles (80, 73 – 153, +9)
T64 – Lukas Euler (77, 77 – 154, +10)
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s golf team, follow @UKMensGolf on Twitter and on the web at UKathletics.com.
‑ GO CATS –
For more information contact:
Deb Moore
