By: by Mark Toma
FURMAN, S.C. – Kennesaw State finished the first round of the 2010 Furman Invitational tied for 11th place with the host Paladins and No. 44-ranked Virginia Tech on Friday at the Furman University Golf Course.
The Owls finished the opening round at 16-over par 304, 16 strokes behind No. 18-ranked Clemson and No.-ranked 29 Chattanooga in the 24-team field.
Jeff Karlsson led Kennesaw State with a 1-over par 73 on Friday to finish in 14th place while J.P. Putnam finished with a 2-over par 74 as he ended the round in a tie for 20th place.
Karlsson started off slow with a bogey on three of the first five holes as he started on the back nine. However, he was able to regroup, beginning with a birdie on the par five 15th hole. He finished 1-under par on the final nine holes of the round, including an eagle on the par five second hole.
Putnam, who also started on hole No. 10, got off to a strong start and was even par through the first 14 holes before he bogeyed the par 5 sixth hole and the par 4 eighth hole. Putnam finished the day with a team best four birdies.
Sam Curtis enjoyed a pair of birdies in the first round, finishing with a 5-over par 77. Curtis bogeyed four of his first five holes, but recovered to finish his back nine with a 1-over par. Alex Jones finished at 8-over par 80 and Peter Hermansson ended the first round at 10-over par 82.
The 2010 Furman Invitational can be followed via live stats at
www.golfstat.com. The Owls will tee-off at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
