Knowles Leads @OspreyMGolf To Top of Leaderboard on Day 1 of The Hayt

Friday, February 26

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (Sawgrass CC)

9:45 a.m.

University of North Florida

The Hayt

Photo by: Todd Drexler

Knowles Leads @OspreyMGolf To Top of Leaderboard on Day 1 of The Hayt

2/26/2016 9:25:00 PM | Men's Golf

By: North Florida Athletics

Round 1 Results (pdf)

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Led by freshman Philip Knowles' first collegiate round under-par, the No. 37-ranked North Florida men's golf team vaulted to the top of the team leaderboard Friday after opening round play of UNF's home event, The Hayt, held at Sawgrass Country Club.

The Ospreys fired a first round 293 to build a six-shot advantage on the 15-team field that features eight teams currently ranked in the Top 50 nationally. Knowles matched his collegiate career best with a 2-under 70 and shared the medalist lead with Oklahoma State's Brendon Jelly.

Blustery winds kept the scores high as only seven players completed the opening round with scores of par or better. Knowles had a pretty steady front nine before getting things rolling on the back side collecting four birdies en route to going 3-under.

Knowles was joined in the Top 10 by teammates as sophomore Dillon Woods posted an even par 72 and senior Taylor Hancock finished with a 74 to end round tied for fifth and ninth, respectively. Freshman Andrew Alligood shot a 77 (T33) and freshman Travis Trace added an 81 (T72) to round out the Osprey lineup.

"We had some really good rounds today from Phillip and Dillon," said head coach Scott Schroeder. "The course played hard with the wind and pars were very good scores. We need to get some rest and be ready for another challenging day tomorrow."

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In addition to the UNF five-man lineup, several other Osprey linksters competed as individuals. Joe Stepnes is tied for 9th after an opening round 74 followed by Jack Comstock, Austin Padova and Osten Waite with matching scores of 77 (T33) and Jordan Batchelor with a 79 (T54).

North Florida leads the team competition after the opening 18 holes with crosstown rival Jacksonville currently second at 299. No. 13-ranked Oklahoma State is third at 300 with No. 47 Louisville (301) and North Texas (302) rounding out the Top 5.

Second round action at The Hayt is slated to begin Saturday at 9 a.m. off of both the No. 1 and 10 tees. North Florida will be paired with JU and OSU on No. 1 beginning at 10:30 a.m. Admission to the event is free and open to the public. Live scoring results are available online at Golfstat.com.

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