STOCKTON -- The BYU men’s golf team is in the hunt after the first round of play at the Pacific Invitational. The Cougars finished the day 5-under-par to place fourth after 18 holes as senior Robbie Fillmore fired the best round of his career at 65 (-6).
“We had a great day today,” said BYU head coach Bruce Brockbank. “The weather was perfect, the golf course was in great shape and we played a lot better than we’ve been playing. I challenged the guys to go out and play mentally tough, and they did a good job of that.”
Fillmore posted seven birdies on the day in recording a masterful round. After going 2-under on the front nine, he dominated the final nine holes with four birdies. At the end of the day, Fillmore was tied for third place in the field, just one stroke back of the co-leaders. His previous career-best came in 2008 at the John H. Burns Invitational when he tallied a final-round 66 as a sophomore.
“Robbie played extremely well,” said Brockbank. “He really stepped up in a big way. I’m excited for him, and I think he’ll play well the next two days.”
Also finishing the day in the top 10 was Cougar sophomore Jordan Rodgers, who tied for 10th at 2-under-par. His round of 69 featured three birdies and consistent play on the front and back nine holes as he went 1-under on each. With this round-one score, Rodgers has now had at least one round under par in three of the four tournaments the Cougars have competed in this year.
Senior Brady Johnson also finished the day under par at -1 with an 18-hole score of 70. He posted three birdies and two bogeys to tie for 18th in the field.
The Cougar field was rounded out by freshman Zac Blair at +4 and junior Esteban Calisto at +6. Blair tallied two birdies and finished tied for 52nd overall while Calisto had one birdie on the way to 59th place.
Overall, the Cougars are just one shot back of host Pacific and six shots behind the leaders. Tournament play will continue on Tuesday with round two.
“Tomorrow’s a big day,” said Brockbank. “It’s important to have a good week to end the fall season. It will be fun to get in contention and see how we do.”