GREENSBORO, N.C. - The Bridgewater College men's golf team opened play Monday afternoon at the O'Briant-Jensen Memorial at The Cardinal by Pete Dye in Greensboro, with a tie for fourth in a field of 20 teams; including 12 teams ranked in the top 50 nationally.
The Cardinal is well known for being an extremely difficult golf course, and the conditions in Monday's round took it to the next level. With temperatures in the low- mid 40s, winds gusting, and bursts of heavy rain throughout the day it couldn't have gotten much tougher for the players. The average score in the nationally competitive field was 79.84 with nearly a quarter of the holes averaging almost an entire stroke over par and an astonishing 231 scores of double bogey or worse.
"I really loved how much the guys grinded out there today," said head coach Nick Shlickenrieder. "In conditions like these you can really see what teams have been working hard and truly want it. We're in a good position to fight tomorrow, and I expect the guys to grind out another good result to finish the fall season."
The Eagles were led by senior Brandon Washburn who came in with a 76 to put him in a tie for 21st. Washburn carded three birdies on the day to help counteract a singular double bogey on the Par 5 15th and six bogeys. This is Washburn's third trip to the Cardinal in his career, and his experience was a big advantage today.
The next two counting scores for the Eagles were junior Jayden Hendricks and freshman Jackson Baugher who came in with a pair of 77s. Hendricks had a colorful scorecard where he carded three birdies, three bogeys, and three doubles. Baugher on the other hand played steadily with just one birdie and no score higher than bogey, which was a strong showing for both players amongst competitive first round scores. They both sit in a tie for 30th.
The final counting score for the Eagles on Monday was a 78 from sophomore Walker Gillespie who felt like he struggled to get anything going throughout the day. Gillespie made no big mistakes though, making no score higher than bogey. Gillespie is in a tie for 42nd headed into the final round.
The men will return for the second and final round of action at the O'Briant-Jensen Memorial tomorrow, Oct. 28 in Greensboro, N.C.
