Kentucky in Third Place After Day One of General Hackler
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Competing in a national-class field, the No. 38-ranked Kentucky men’s golf team is in third place out of 15 teams following the first two rounds of the General Hackler Championship played Saturday in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
The Wildcats totaled an even-par 576, trailing first-place Texas A&M by nine strokes and second-place Georgia Tech by seven shots heading into Sunday’s final round. The field features eight teams among Golfstat’s top-40 collegiate squads, with A&M and Tech ranked in the top 10.
Five players are inside the top 20 of the individual leaderboard paced by freshman Max Mehles who fired a career-low 67 over the opening 18 holes. Mehles’ score was the second-lowest score in the opening round of any player in the field.
“Today was a good day for the boys,” UK coach Brian Craig said. “We had very consistent play on a pretty difficult day to play. We also had Max Mehles playing in the individual spot open with a 67 for the second-lowest score in the field in the first round. We need to come out tomorrow and just keep playing our game.”
Kentucky’s starters got the day going well with a trio of 71s from Lukas Euler, Chip McDaniel and Fred Allen Meyer leading the way to a first-round tally of 289. Paced by Cooper Musselman, who fired a 3-under par 69, the Wildcats carded a 1-under 287 in the second circuit.
Mehles is tied for fifth after securing the best two rounds of his young career to begin the tournament. He is in search of his first-career top-10 finish and is just two strokes off the pace of the leader.
Euler, McDaniel, Meyer and Musselman all rank among the top-20 individuals. Euler is tied for 13th place with a 1-under par 143. McDaniel and Meyer are tied for 16th with an even 144. One stroke later is Musselman, tied for 20th at 145.
Player Roundup
Mehles shot 5-under to begin the day behind six birdies. He logged red numbers on three consecutive holes on the front nine beginning at the par-four sixth. Mehles played the back nine at 3-under with birdies on the Nos. 13, 15 and 16. He followed his career-low round with a 2-over 74 in the second round to remain in contention for the individual title.
Euler had a steady day, posting a pair of birdies over the final five holes to go 1-under in the first round. He was even par in the second round and finished with six birdies on the day. He is seeking his fifth-consecutive top-20 finish.
After an opening bogey, McDaniel rallied with three birdies to reach 1-under in the opening round. He added four birdies on the second tour to end the day with an even 144.
Like McDaniel, Meyer posted a 71-73 card. His day was highlighted by an eagle on the par-five 15th hole during the second round.
After an opening 76, Musselman got hot during the second round. He had an eagle on the par-four, 440-yard second hole, adding four birdies to reach his eventual 69.
Sophomore Matt Liston had six birdies on the day, notching an 80-75 card.
The Tournament Setup
Teams: Coastal Carolina, East Carolina, East Tennessee, Georgia Tech, Kent State, Kentucky, Liberty, LSU, North Carolina State, North Florida, Princeton, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Virginia, Virginia Tech
Course Details: This Robert Trent Jones signature course has a course rating of 76.1 and a slope rating of 148. Jones changed the original course design in 1976-77 with modifications to holes 3, 4, 11, 15, and 18. Each hole has its own descriptive name to give golfers an idea of what to expect before they tee off. “Waterloo”, hole 13, is the signature hole of the Dunes Course. Famous worldwide, it is a legendary hole where Lake Singleton comes into play. “Waterloo” has received every accolade and award as one of the greatest golf holes in the world.
Format: Par 72, 7,233 yards – Play five and count four scores
Schedule of Play: 54 total holes; 36 holes on Saturday and final 18 on Sunday
Saturday, March 10 – Rounds 1 and 2 (shotgun start)
Sunday, March 11 – Round 3
Live Look: Live stats are available via golfstat.com.
Forecast: Sunday partly cloudy, high of 65
Agate
3 – Kentucky (289, 287, E)
*T5 – Max Mehles (67, 74, -3)
T13 – Lukas Euler (71, 72, -1)
T16 – Chip McDaniel (71, 73, E)
T16 – Fred Allen Meyer (71, 73, E)
T20 – Cooper Musselman (76, 69, +1)
T77 – Matt Liston (80, 75, +11)
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s golf team, follow @UKMensGolf on Twitter and on the web at UKathletics.com.
