MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – For the second time in three events this spring, Jason Mendel carded a pair of scores at or below par on the opening day of play after the junior led the University of South Alabama men's golf team Saturday with a 1-under-par 71 followed by a 72 in the first two rounds of the General Hackler Championship.
It's the fourth tournament in a row that Mendel has shot multiple scores of par or better, as he enters the final round of the event tied for seventh in a field of 84 individuals.
"Jason played well for us today. He has been playing well all spring, today was a continuation of that," stated Jaguar head coach Alex Hamilton. "His growth and his development since he got to South Alabama is truly remarkable, he is a heck of a student-athlete and a great representative of our university. Jason has been grinding really hard back in Mobile and it is paying off for him here, it's great to see."
Rasmus Karlsson posted a 74 in both rounds on Saturday, Sylas Elliott recorded a 75 and 77 while Drew Cooke matched Elliott in the morning but was one stroke behind over the second 18 holes. Peter Staalbo shot scores of 77 and 81 as well for the Jags.
No. 15 Wake Forest took the lead after 36 holes with scores of 279 and 282 for a 15-under-par 561 group total on the first day of play, giving the Demon Deacons a 10-shot lead on 14th-ranked Kent State and 12-stroke advantage over No. 9 Louisiana State. The Jaguars are tied with East Tennessee State for ninth among the 15 schools competing, with the two recording 596 team scores as USA posted a 295 in the morning and a 301 the second time around the course.
Will Zalatoris of Wake fired a 5-under-par 67 in the afternoon round to finish with a 9-under-par 135 36-hole total, building an advantage of one shot over Kent State's Ian Holt and two over teammate Paul McBride.
Mendel carded eight birdies over 36 holes at the par-72, 7,233-yard Dunes Golf & Beach Club, with all but one of those coming on the back side of the course. In the morning, he posted a 3-under-par 33 on the back nine highlighted by three straight birdies on Nos. 15-17 after starting the event with a bogey at the 14th hole; Mendel tacked on a three at the 380-yard 10th and a two at No. 12 — playing at 190 yards — to finish the round. He was 2 under through four holes the second time around the course when he birdied the 15th and 17th again, with his final one coming at No. 6.
"I think this is a real good golf course for Jason and his style of game," Hamilton said. "He does a very good job with his ball striking, he keeps the ball in front of him, and he makes a lot of pars. He's a grinder and a tough competitor who gets the ball up and down a lot. When you break down the course there are only three holes playing under par — and each of those are barely under par — so as a whole it is playing difficult, but it is a slow death more than it is implosions all over the place. Jason kept it in front of him and ground out some good scores."
Karlsson is tied for 40th place in the individual standings after recording birdies on Nos. 4 and 9 in the first round before starting the afternoon with a three at the 450-yard 14th. Elliott posted one fewer birdie than Mendel to end the opening day in a tie for 60th individually; after birdies at the seventh, 13th and 17th holes in the morning, the junior carded back-to-back threes at Nos. 1 and 2 before adding another at the 12th to go along with a birdie at No. 14 his second time around the course. Cooke — who is tied for 64th in the individual standings — had a four at the 529-yard fourth in the opening round and another at No. 13, playing at 640 yards, during afternoon action, while Staalbo is tied for 75th after birdying the 10th and 11th to finish the morning 2 under over his last six holes.
"Overall we're in an OK spot as a team, obviously this is an elite field — probably better than a regional would be — at one of the premier golf tournaments in the country. To be in the mix a little bit for a large portion of the day was good to see," said Hamilton. "But to be honest, Jason carried us to where we are; other than him, I didn't see a ton of great golf today. Rasmus is playing decent, but the other three definitely have some work to do. Hopefully we can get out there and play tomorrow — the forecast doesn't look very good — and show some mental toughness."
The final round will see action tee off with a shotgun start beginning at 9 a.m. (CDT) Sunday.
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—USA—
General Hackler Championship
Dunes Golf & Beach Club, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Par 72, 7,233 yards
Team Scores: 1) Wake Forest 279-282—561 (-15); 2) Kent State 285-286—571; 3) Louisiana State 286-287—573; 4) South Carolina 291-293—584; 5) Virginia Tech 288-298—586; 6) East Carolina 299-288—587; T7) North Florida 293-295—588; T7) Kentucky 294-294—588; T9) South Alabama 295-301—596; T9) East Tennessee State 297-299—596; 11) Iowa State 305-292—597; 12) Coastal Carolina 301-298—599; 13) Virginia 295-306—601; 14) Charleston Southern 297-305—602; 15) North Carolina State 300-303—603.
Individual Leaders: 1) Will Zalatoris, WF 68-67—135 (-9); 2) Ian Holt, KSU 68-68—136; 3) Paul McBride, WF 67-70—137; 4) Mark Lawrence, VT 69-72—141; T5) Keenan Huskey, USC 67-75—142; T5) Brandon Pierce, LSU 70-72—142; T7) Jason Mendel, USA 71-72—143; T7) Ryan Stachler, USC 74-69—143; T9) six individuals with 144.
South Alabama Scores: T7) Jason Mendel 71-72—143 (-1); T40) Rasmus Karlsson 74-74—148; T60) Sylas Elliott 75-77—152; T64) Drew Cooke 75-78—153; T75) Peter Staalbo 77-81—158.
