K-State in Sixth at Golfweek Conference Challenge
Sep 16, 2018 | Men's Golf
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Kansas State senior men's golfer Jeremy Gandon carded a 2-under par 70 during the first round of the Golfweek Conference Challenge on Sunday at the par-72, 7,071-yard Cedar Rapids Country Club.
Gandon, who was joined in the top-15 by Wildcat redshirt freshman Brian Choe, led K-State to an even-par 288 on the day to reside in sixth place entering Monday's second round. The Wildcats are one stroke away from fifth-place Campbell.
A product of Charpey, France, Gandon is coming off a junior campaign in which he tied for the Big 12 Championship and finished eighth in school history in single-season stroke average at 72.72. He enters the second round in Iowa tied for ninth place thanks to five birdies and two bogeys on Sunday.
One stroke behind Gandon was Choe, who was competing in his first collegiate round. The Coppell, Texas, product had four birdies and two bogeys in round one to sit in a tie for 14th place at 1-under par 71.
"It was an ok day," head coach Grant Robbins said. "I didn't think we were very sharp from a ball-striking standpoint, but the guys did a great job of staying patient and were able to grind it out to even par.
"This is an old-style Donald Ross course that features very severe green complexes, so it is important to be hitting approaches from the fairway. We are in good shape, but we need to drive it better to set up more birdie opportunities."
Junior Ben Fernandez is tied for 23rd at even-par 72, while freshman Will Hopkins is tied for 49th at 3-over par 75. Sophomore Kyle Vance is tied for 77th at 7-over par 79.
"Unfortunately, Kyle suffered an injury on his fifth hole today," Robbins said. "He gave everything he had playing through the pain, but his status for the rest of the tournament is questionable. We need to be prepared to play with four guys the rest of the way."
Arkansas State recorded an 11-under par 277 on the day and has four players in the top 10 entering Monday's second round to sit atop the team leaderboard. Thomas Thurloway of Jacksonville holds a one-stroke lead on the individual leaderboard at 6-under par 66.
Round two of the Golfweek Conference Challenge will be held Monday as K-State tees off beginning at 9:40 a.m. Live results are available at www.golfstat.com, while final results will be posted at www.k-statesports.com at the conclusion of the round.
Golfweek Conference Challenge
Cedar Rapids Country Club
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Par 72 / 7,071 Yards
Team Scores: 1. Arkansas State, 277 (-11); 2. Jacksonville, 281 (-7); 3. Iowa, 282 (-6); 4. San Jose State, 283 (-5); 5. Campbell, 287 (-1); 6. Kansas State, 288 (E); 7. Southern Illinois, 289 (+1); 8. Furman, 292 (+4); T9. Ball State, 293 (+5); T9. UCLA, 293 (+5); T11. Jacksonville State, 295 (+7); T11. Loyola Marymount, 295 (+7); 13. Boston College, 297 (+9); 14. Dayton, 299 (+11); 15. UTEP, 301 (+13); 16. Sacramento State, 305 (+17).
Top Individuals: 1. Thomas Thurloway, Jacksonville, 66 (-6); 2. Gonzalo Leal, Iowa, 67 (-5); 3. Joel Wenin, Arkansas State, 68 (-4); T4. Five Players, 69 (-3).
K-State Individuals: T9. Jeremy Gandon, 70 (-2); T14. Brian Choe, 71 (-1); T23. Ben Fernandez, 72 (E); T49. Will Hopkins, 75 (+3); T77. Kyle Vance, 79 (+7).
Gandon, who was joined in the top-15 by Wildcat redshirt freshman Brian Choe, led K-State to an even-par 288 on the day to reside in sixth place entering Monday's second round. The Wildcats are one stroke away from fifth-place Campbell.
A product of Charpey, France, Gandon is coming off a junior campaign in which he tied for the Big 12 Championship and finished eighth in school history in single-season stroke average at 72.72. He enters the second round in Iowa tied for ninth place thanks to five birdies and two bogeys on Sunday.
One stroke behind Gandon was Choe, who was competing in his first collegiate round. The Coppell, Texas, product had four birdies and two bogeys in round one to sit in a tie for 14th place at 1-under par 71.
"It was an ok day," head coach Grant Robbins said. "I didn't think we were very sharp from a ball-striking standpoint, but the guys did a great job of staying patient and were able to grind it out to even par.
"This is an old-style Donald Ross course that features very severe green complexes, so it is important to be hitting approaches from the fairway. We are in good shape, but we need to drive it better to set up more birdie opportunities."
Junior Ben Fernandez is tied for 23rd at even-par 72, while freshman Will Hopkins is tied for 49th at 3-over par 75. Sophomore Kyle Vance is tied for 77th at 7-over par 79.
"Unfortunately, Kyle suffered an injury on his fifth hole today," Robbins said. "He gave everything he had playing through the pain, but his status for the rest of the tournament is questionable. We need to be prepared to play with four guys the rest of the way."
Arkansas State recorded an 11-under par 277 on the day and has four players in the top 10 entering Monday's second round to sit atop the team leaderboard. Thomas Thurloway of Jacksonville holds a one-stroke lead on the individual leaderboard at 6-under par 66.
Round two of the Golfweek Conference Challenge will be held Monday as K-State tees off beginning at 9:40 a.m. Live results are available at www.golfstat.com, while final results will be posted at www.k-statesports.com at the conclusion of the round.
Golfweek Conference Challenge
Cedar Rapids Country Club
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Par 72 / 7,071 Yards
Team Scores: 1. Arkansas State, 277 (-11); 2. Jacksonville, 281 (-7); 3. Iowa, 282 (-6); 4. San Jose State, 283 (-5); 5. Campbell, 287 (-1); 6. Kansas State, 288 (E); 7. Southern Illinois, 289 (+1); 8. Furman, 292 (+4); T9. Ball State, 293 (+5); T9. UCLA, 293 (+5); T11. Jacksonville State, 295 (+7); T11. Loyola Marymount, 295 (+7); 13. Boston College, 297 (+9); 14. Dayton, 299 (+11); 15. UTEP, 301 (+13); 16. Sacramento State, 305 (+17).
Top Individuals: 1. Thomas Thurloway, Jacksonville, 66 (-6); 2. Gonzalo Leal, Iowa, 67 (-5); 3. Joel Wenin, Arkansas State, 68 (-4); T4. Five Players, 69 (-3).
K-State Individuals: T9. Jeremy Gandon, 70 (-2); T14. Brian Choe, 71 (-1); T23. Ben Fernandez, 72 (E); T49. Will Hopkins, 75 (+3); T77. Kyle Vance, 79 (+7).
Players Mentioned
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