IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Kansas men’s golf team completed the opening two rounds of the Hawkeye Invitational on Saturday at Finkbine Golf Course and sit in a tie for 13th-place at +10.
Will King, Gunnar Broin, Cecil Belisle, Davis Cooper and Max Jelinek all share a tie for 41st in the 90-golfer field at +3 (145) after 36 holes. William Duquette, who is competing as the individual, is at +8. As a team, the Jayhawks shot rounds of 286 (+2) and 292 (+8) and sit in a tie for 13th-place at +10 with Missouri State.
Wisconsin leads the 16-team field at (-10), followed by TCU (-5), Central Arkansas (-5), Illinois State (-4) and tournament host Iowa (-2) to round out the top five. Kansas is two shots behind 10th place heading into Sunday’s final round.
“We actually played really well on the front nine in both rounds today but played awful on the back,” said Kansas head coach Jamie Bermel. “We made some sloppy mistakes and played with very little toughness and grit. It was windy out there, but it was windy for everyone.”
ROUND ONE
In the opening round Saturday morning, Kansas was led by a pair of even-par rounds of 71 from Broin and Jelinek.
Broin caught fire early and was six-under through the first 13 holes, which was highlighted by five birdies and an eagle on the Par 5 11th hole.
Jelinek played solid throughout the round, allowing four bogeys on the scorecard but backing them up with that many birdies.
Kansas natives King and Cooper both shot rounds of 72 (+1). King carded five birdies but allowed five bogeys, while Cooper logged four birdies but allowed three bogeys and a double.
Duquette shot a one-over 72 to open his event, carding four birdies but allowing three bogeys and a double.
Despite picking up four birdies on his card, Cecil Belisle recorded a two-over round of 73.
ROUND TWO
The second round kicked off at the conclusion of the first round Saturday afternoon.
Belisle was solid through the first 16 holes of his second round, carding five birdies and just one bogey. Belisle capped off his second round with a one-over round of 72.
King fired off a three-under front nine to begin the second round and ended with a 73 (+2). Cooper also shot a 73 in his second round that included a birdie on the 12th hole.
Broin and Jelinek each shot a 74 (+3), while Duquette posted a 78 (+7).
CURRENT STANDINGS
T41. King (+3)
T41. Broin (+3)
T41. Belisle (+3)
T41. Cooper (+3)
T41. Jelinek (+3)
T73. Duquette (+8)
“Our backs are against the wall, and we need to come out on Sunday and post a number,” Bermel added ahead of the final round.
THE FINAL ROUND
Kansas will tee off for the third and final round on Sunday, April 14 at 8:15 a.m. CT in a shotgun start format. Live scoring for the final round will be available on Golfstat, while fans can also follow live updates from the official Kansas Men’s Golf Twitter account.
