CHOUDRANT, La. — On the strength of junior Jarrod Barsamian‘s 3-under par 69, the LSU men’s golf team wrapped up Monday’s first round at the Squire Creek Invitational in third place after firing a team total of 2-over 290 at Squire Creek Country Club.
The second round of the 54-hole event was suspended with approximately six holes complete due to heavy rain in the area and will resume beginning Tuesday at 8 a.m. The start of the final round will follow the conclusion of the second round weather permitting.
Barsamian, a native of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., finds himself in a three-way tie for second place in the individual standings after firing the second-lowest round of his LSU career.
Freshman Clayton Rotz continues to play well in just his third tournament at the collegiate level as he fired a 2-under 70 in the first round to finish the day in a tie for fifth place. This marks the third time in four competitive rounds that Rotz has carded a 2-under 70, including the first and third rounds at the Shoal Creek Intercollegiate three weeks ago.
In addition, fellow freshman Andrew Loupe finished the first round in a tie for 33rd place with a 2-over 74, while senior Brian Noonan and freshman John Peterson posted matching rounds of 5-over 77. Sophomore Brent Blaum fired a 1-over 73 to tie for 23rd while playing as an individual.
“We had a couple guys play really well today,” said LSU head coach Chuck Winstead. “Jarrod and Clayton had good rounds for us, and Andrew picked up a couple shots with some birdies toward the end of his round. The bottom line is that we need to putt the ball better and continue to improve as a team when we resume play tomorrow.”
The Ole Miss Rebels have jumped out to an early lead in the team standings after firing a team total of 6-under 282, while Jacksonville State is two shots back in second place at 4-under 284.
Ole Miss’ David Marino is currently atop the leader board in the race for medalist honors after posting a 4-under 68 in the first round. Teammate Kyle Ellis and Louisiana Tech’s Timothy Byrd are one shot back in a tie for second place with Barsamian at 3-under 69.
Following their appearance this week in the Squire Creek Invitational, the Tigers will travel to Somis, Calif., on Oct. 22-23 to compete in the Club Glove Intercollegiate at Saticoy Country Club before wrapping up the fall season in the Bridgestone Collegiate Championship at Forest Oaks Country Club in Greensboro, N.C., from Oct. 29-30.
SQUIRE CREEK INVITATIONAL ? FIRST ROUND RESULTS
TEAM SCORES (Par 288)
1. Ole Miss 282 -6; 2. Jacksonville State 284 -4; 3. LSU 290 +2; 4. Middle Tennessee State 291 +3; 5. UL-Lafayette 292 +4; 6. Southern Mississippi 293 +5; T7. Sam Houston State 294 +6; T7. UT-Arlington 294 +6; 9. Nevada 295 +7; 10. Arkansas State 296 +8; 11. College of Charleston 297 +9; T12. Nebraska 298 +10; T12. New Orleans 298 +10; T12. Louisiana Tech 298 +10; 15. North Texas 304 +16; 16. Arkansas-Little Rock 305 +17; 17. UL-Monroe 307 +19; 18. Rice 310 +22
TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS (Par 72)
1. David Marino, Ole Miss, 68 -4; T2. Jarrod Barsamian, LSU, 69 -3; T2. Kyle Ellis, Ole Miss, 69 -3; T2. Timothy Byrd, Louisiana Tech, 69 -3; T5. Clayton Rotz, LSU, 70 -2; T5. Rocky Cleland, Southern Miss, 70 -2; T5. Craig Smith, Middle Tennessee State, 70 -2; T5. Gonzalo Berlin, Jacksonville State, 70 -2; Soonam Kim, College of Charleston, 70 -2; T5. Kent Bulle, Middle Tennessee State, 70 -2
LSU SCORES
T2. Jarrod Barsamian 69 -3
T5. Clayton Rotz 70 -2
T23. Brent Blaum * 73 +1
T33. Andrew Loupe 74 +2
T71. Brian Noonan 77 +5
T71. John Peterson 77 +5
* – denotes a player competing as an individual