AWENDAW, S.C. – The Coastal Carolina men's golf team opened play at the Hootie Intercollegiate with a strong showing on Sunday, carding an 11-under 277 to sit tied for fifth place after the first round at Bulls Bay Golf Club.
The Chanticleers are tied with No. 37 Clemson at 11-under, trailing tournament leader College of Charleston (-23), No. 39 Kansas (-18), No. 43 South Carolina (-13) and No. 45 Purdue (-12) on the par-72, 7,200-yard layout.
Sophomore
Drew Sykes paced Coastal Carolina with a career-low-tying 7-under 65 and is tied for second place individually after 18 holes. Sykes recorded a clean round highlighted by four birdies on the front nine and three more on the back, finishing just one shot off the individual lead.
Harrison James added a 3-under 69 to sit inside the top 20, while
Jack Lee posted a 1-under 71 to give the Chants three players under par on the day.
Freshman
Santiago Schele finished even-par 72, and senior
Max Bengtsson rounded out the lineup with a 2-over 74.
As a team, Coastal Carolina combined for 18 birdies in the opening round and played the par-5s effectively, helping the Chants position themselves in the top five of a competitive 15-team field.
The Chanticleers will continue play at the Hootie Intercollegiate with the second round on Monday morning. Coastal Carolina is paired with Purdue and Clemson and will tee off beginning at 9:00 a.m.
