Alpharetta, GA -- The 15th-ranked BYU men's golf team had a rough outing on the golf course Monday, as they stand in 14th place after 18 holes at the United States Collegiate Championship in Georgia.
The tournament is stacked with the top ranked teams in the country, including four of the top five: No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 USC and No. 5 UCLA.
Regardless of their depth, the 15-team field faced cold conditions and the tough Lakeside Course at the Golf Club of Georgia that made it tough for each team to shoot low for the day. BYU shot a 22-over-par 310 while No. 14 Georgia Tech leads the tournament with a 4-over-par 292.
"There is no way for me to explain how tough the golf course is, the greens were extremely fast," said head coach Bruce Brockbank, "It's a very challenging championship-style course where one hole is as demanding as the next. However, we definitely made it more difficult than it needed to be."
Junior Daniel Summerhays, currently ranked No. 15 nationally, led the Cougars with a solid one-under-par. Individually he sits tied for 3rd place just one shot off the lead. Next for the Cougars was Senior Nick Becker with a four-over-par 76.
"I played well and still shot a 76," said Becker, "This is one of those golf courses where one mistake can cost you two or three shots. You have to enjoy playing it because you can get frustrated so easily."
The rest of the Cougar pack had out-of-character performances, with Senior Clay Ogden at eight-over-par, and Freshman Robbie Fillmore and Senior Jake Ellison tied with an 11-over-par 83.
"A championship course tends to bring out the weaknesses of each player. We were in a situation where we found out about those weaknesses. We hope to learn from them," said Brockbank, "If we are consistent, hang in there and have more persistency, our scores will be much more respectable tomorrow. "
The tournament continues on Tuesday with Cougar tee times starting at 12:09 pm EST.
TEAM RESULTS
1 Georgia Tech 296-295--591 +15
2 Clemson 292-301--593 +17
3 Georgia Tech 292-306--598 +22
T4 Georgia State 298-302--600 +24
T4 Oklahoma State 298-302--600 +24
T6 UCLA 299-302--601 +25
11 Brigham Young 310-297--607 +31
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
T3 Daniel Summerhays 71-75--146 -1
T29 Clay Ogden 80-72--152 +8
T63 Nick Becker 76-77--153 +9
T74 Jake Ellison 83-74--157 +13
T74 Robbie Fillmore 83-76--159 +15