By: by Mark Toma
MOBILE, Ala. - J.P. Putnam and Sam Curtis each shot a 1-over par 73 as Kennesaw State stands in 10th place after the first round of the 2010 Mobile Bay Intercollegiate at the Magnolia Grove Crossings Golf Course on Sunday afternoon.
The Owls finished the first round with a 12-over par 300 and trail leader Vanderbilt by just 10 strokes. Kennesaw State is just a shot behind Louisville, two shots behind Mississippi State and three shots behind Iowa State with two rounds remaining.
"We got off to a good start, but we made some mental mistakes and had some poor execution during the middle of the round,” said head coach Jay Moseley. “We need to get a better feel for the greens tomorrow. We are in good shape to move up with a better round tomorrow."
Putnam and Curtis are six shots off the lead and are tied for 16th place in the 102-player field. Putnam, who started play on the 10th hole, had a slow start to the tournament. He bogeyed three of the first five holes, but recovered nicely as he birdied two of the next four holes before parring the back nine.
Curtis, playing in his first event for the Owls, got off to a strong start as he birdied the first hole he played for Kennesaw State. He would be at 2-under par through eight holes before he bogeyed the next two holes. He remained at even par through the next six holes before finishing the round one over.
Kent Bulle of Middle Tennessee State leads the field with a 5-under par 67, the only score below 70 in the first round. Bulle birdied four of the first eight holes and was four under on the front nine, before going one under on the back nine.
Ben Greene shot a 4-over par 76 as he is in a tie for 43rd place. Peder Hermansson is tied for 68th place after finishing the round at 6-over par 78. Chad Wilson had a rough first round, finishing at 14-over par 86 and tied for 98th place.
The Owls begin the second round with Wilson teeing off at 9:06 a.m. Hermansson follows at 9:14 with Greene, Curtis and Putnam following every eight minutes.
Golfstat will have live scoring from the event.
