Two Down, One to Go

Owls tied for eighth heading into final round of Linger Longer Invitational

3/27/2010 8:01:25 PM

By: by Scott Lipsky

Tournament Page

GREENSBORO, Ga. – The Kennesaw State men’s golf team matched their score from round one on Saturday, shooting a +15 303 to put themselves in a tie for eighth heading into the final day of the Linger Longer Invitational, co-hosted by the Owls and Mercer, at the Landings at Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Ga.

Sophomore Jeff Karlsson led the way for the Owls once again on Saturday, following up on his opening round 72 with a two-over par 74 on Saturday. Karlsson got off to a quick start in round two, making an eagle on the par-5 second hole. He shot a two-under 34 on the front nine, before coming in with a six-over par 40 on the back nine. He is currently tied for eighth after two rounds.

“I thought my putting could have been much better today. It was disappointing to get off to a good start and leave shots out on the golf course,” said Karlsson. “I had a stretch on the back nine where I really struggled, making four bogeys in a row. Having said that, I’m pleased that despite some missed chances out there I was still able to put together a round that puts myself and my team in good position for tomorrow.”

Karlsson’s eagle three on the second hole was one of five that were made on the second hole on Saturday. The hole, which at 488 yards is short for a par-5 to begin with, was made even more conducive to low scoring since it was playing downwind, as was most of the front nine. Overall, 48 out of the 91 players in the field made birdie or better on number two, including three Owls.

Senior J.P. Putnam was close behind Karlsson on Saturday, as he bounced back from an opening round 81 with a three-over par 75. Chad Wilson, who is playing as an individual, shot a 76, while Ben Greene and Alex Jones rounded out the team scoring with a of 77s. Sophomore Sam Curtis had a 12-over par 84 on the day.

Overall, the average score on Saturday was just 76.18, as compared to 77.75 on Friday. Owls head coach Jay Moseley thought that his team’s performance could have been a little better on Saturday, but is optimistic for Sunday’s final round.

“The course was playing a little bit easier today. Any time you get an opportunity, you want to take advantage of good conditions like the ones we had today,” said Moseley, who is in his first year leading the Owls squad. “We got off to a really good start, made the turn in great position, but on the back nine, we lost some shots to the field, and missed some good opportunities to capitalize on putting together a great team round. Hopefully, this will give our guys some motivation tomorrow to come out and finish strong and play 18 holes the way we know that we’re capable of.”

The Owls are tied with Louisville at +30 heading into Sunday in the 16-team field, which features six teams ranked in the top-25 nationally. They trail leader Oklahoma State by 27 strokes. OSU, who came into the event ranked number two in the country, fired a two-under par 286 on Saturday, and we bettered only by Texas A&M, who shot a three-under 285 as a team.

Alabama’s Bud Cauley, who fired a first round 64 to jump in front, leads the event by three strokes heading into Sunday after a second round 73 put him at seven-under par.

Linger Longer Invitational- Round 2 Results

T8 Jeff Karlsson 72 74 146

T29 Ben Greene 74 77 151

T52 Alex Jones 79 77 156

T59 JP Putnam 82 75 157

84 Sam Curtis 78 84 162

T46

Chad Wilson ***

154

*** Playing as Individual

Oklahoma State

-2

293

286

579

Alabama

294

290