Florida State University Athletics
Koepka Leads Men’s Golf At USF Invitational
3/4/2012 12:00:00 PM | Men's Golf
March 4, 2012
DADE CITY, Fla. (seminoles.com) –
Senior Brooks Koepka, a Ben Hogan nominee as the nation’s top golfer, is in a tie for 24th in the individual standings and the No. 18 ranked Florida State men’s golf team is in 14th place in the team standings after the first round of the USF Invitational at the Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club. Koepka is only nine strokes out of the lead and only four strokes out of the top five in the individual standings with two rounds and 36 holes remaining to be played.
No. 16 ranked UCF, one of three teams ranked in the top 25 of the national rankings playing in the event, is the team leader after the first round. The Knights hold a five stroke over Middle Tennessee State – the defending team champion. Jose Joia of UCF is the first round leader with a seven under par score of 65. Joia vaulted to the top of the individual standings with three birdies on his first five holes; he has a two stroke lead over teammate Brad Schneider.
Koepka (Wellington, Fla.) played well at the beginning of the round with two birdies on his first three holes and a birdie on his final hole to finish with a two over par score of 74. He carded 13 holes at par or better including four of his last five holes of the afternoon.
Koepka is a candidate for the Hogan Award — the most prestigious award in men’s college golf. The award is presented annually to the top men’s NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or NJCAA college golfers. A list of 10 semifinalists will be unveiled on Wednesday, April 11, and then will be pared down to three finalists on Thursday, May 10. The winner will be crowned at a banquet at Colonial Country Club on Monday, May 21
Senior Wesley Graham (Port Orange, Fla.) is the Seminoles’ leader in the individual standings with a two under par score of 70 – but is playing as an individual and not as a part of Florida State’s starting five. Graham carded four birdies and a total of 16 holes of par or better in his first round of play. He birdied his first two holes and spent the entire round below par and was as many as 12 strokes under par.
USF Invitational/March 4-6, 2012/First Round Florida State Results Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club/Dade City, Fla./Par 72 14/17. Florida State 306 T24. Brooks Koepka 74 T35. Chase Seiffert 75 T56. Joaquin Lolas 78 T68. Kyle Cobb 79 T81. Daniel Berger 81 T7. Wesley Graham 71
USF Invitational/March 4-6, 2012/First Round Team Results Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club/Dade City, Fla./Par 72 1. UCF 284 10. Arkansas State 303 2. Middle Tennessee 289 T11. Florida Gulf Coast 305 3. Georgia 291 T11. Louisville 304 4. North Carolina 292 13. DePaul 305 T5. Kentucky 295 14. Florida State 306 T5. South Florida 295 15. Florida Atlantic 311 T7. Eastern Michigan 296 16. Cincinnati 312 T7 Troy 296 17. Marquette 315 9. Villanova 299