University of Richmond Athletics
Hot Start Lifts Spiders at VCU Shootout
09/19/2023 | Men's Golf
RICHMOND, Va. — The Richmond Spiders opened the VCU Shootout with a Round 1 score of 13-under par Monday morning, the second lowest score in program history. UR shot 8-under in Monday afternoon's Round 2 to enter Tuesday's final round at 21-under par, good for fifth place in the 15-team field and just six shots behind tournament leaders JMU.
The birdies came early and often for the Spiders Monday morning, with junior Patrick Isztwan opening his round with a birdie on the 16th hole at the Creek Course at the Country Club of Virginia and then holing his approach shot on 17th hole for eagle. Isztawn finished Round 1 with a 2-under 70, while his fellow junior Cole Ekert registered seven birdies and 11 pars for a career-best 7-under 65, tied for the second-lowest round in Spider history, trailing only Matt Lowe's 8-under 63 at Lonnie Poole in Raleigh, N.C. in 2016.
Grad student Lou Baker opened his tournament with a 3-under 69, and freshman Owen Pearce added a 1-under 71 to put Richmond's team score for the first 18 holes at 275, 13 strokes under par. The only lower round in program history was Round 1 of the 2017 Atlantic 10 Championship at Grand Cypress in Orlando, Fla., when UR shot 15-under (273).
In Round 2 Monday afternoon, the Spiders carded an 8-under 280, with Isztwan leading the way with a career-low 5-under 67 that moved him into eighth place on the individual leaderboard at 7-under par (137).
"It's a course we're pretty comfortable on, so it was a nice beginning of the season for me," said Isztwan. "It definitely felt like a home game with the support we had from family and friends out there."
The only Spider above Isztawn on the individual leaderboard is Ekert, who shot 3-under (69) in Round 2 and is tied for fourth at 10-under par (134).
"It was a great day with contributions from all five players," said Coach Adam Decker. "They did a nice job of minimizing mistakes and bouncing back after a bad hole.
Richmond also counted Round 2 scores from sophomore Drew Carlin (1-under 71) and Baker (1-over 73) after Pearce was DQ'd for signing an incorrect scorecard following the round.
With 18 holes remaining, Richmond is 21-under par, trailing only Stetson and Lipscomb (-23), Davidson (-24), and JMU (-27). In addition to chasing their second VCU Shootout title in the last three years Tuesday, the Spiders also have a chance to break the program tournament scoring record. Richmond has twice played a tournament in 24 strokes under par: the 2022 VCU Shootout and the 2017 Atlantic 10 Championship.
"We have put ourselves in a nice position to play for the championship with a great final round," said Decker.
The Spiders will start Round 3 at 8:30 AM on holes 1-5.
The birdies came early and often for the Spiders Monday morning, with junior Patrick Isztwan opening his round with a birdie on the 16th hole at the Creek Course at the Country Club of Virginia and then holing his approach shot on 17th hole for eagle. Isztawn finished Round 1 with a 2-under 70, while his fellow junior Cole Ekert registered seven birdies and 11 pars for a career-best 7-under 65, tied for the second-lowest round in Spider history, trailing only Matt Lowe's 8-under 63 at Lonnie Poole in Raleigh, N.C. in 2016.
Grad student Lou Baker opened his tournament with a 3-under 69, and freshman Owen Pearce added a 1-under 71 to put Richmond's team score for the first 18 holes at 275, 13 strokes under par. The only lower round in program history was Round 1 of the 2017 Atlantic 10 Championship at Grand Cypress in Orlando, Fla., when UR shot 15-under (273).
In Round 2 Monday afternoon, the Spiders carded an 8-under 280, with Isztwan leading the way with a career-low 5-under 67 that moved him into eighth place on the individual leaderboard at 7-under par (137).
"It's a course we're pretty comfortable on, so it was a nice beginning of the season for me," said Isztwan. "It definitely felt like a home game with the support we had from family and friends out there."
The only Spider above Isztawn on the individual leaderboard is Ekert, who shot 3-under (69) in Round 2 and is tied for fourth at 10-under par (134).
"It was a great day with contributions from all five players," said Coach Adam Decker. "They did a nice job of minimizing mistakes and bouncing back after a bad hole.
Richmond also counted Round 2 scores from sophomore Drew Carlin (1-under 71) and Baker (1-over 73) after Pearce was DQ'd for signing an incorrect scorecard following the round.
With 18 holes remaining, Richmond is 21-under par, trailing only Stetson and Lipscomb (-23), Davidson (-24), and JMU (-27). In addition to chasing their second VCU Shootout title in the last three years Tuesday, the Spiders also have a chance to break the program tournament scoring record. Richmond has twice played a tournament in 24 strokes under par: the 2022 VCU Shootout and the 2017 Atlantic 10 Championship.
"We have put ourselves in a nice position to play for the championship with a great final round," said Decker.
The Spiders will start Round 3 at 8:30 AM on holes 1-5.
Players Mentioned
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