PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Little Rock sits in seventh place after the opening 18 holes of the NCAA Palm Beach Gardens Regional at PGA National. The Trojans posted a 7-over 295 in round one and sits one shot back of the coveted number five seed, sitting one shot back of both Florida and College of Charleston (6-over 294).
2022 NCAA Palm Beach Gardens Regional Round One Results
Entering as the number eight seed in the regional, Little Rock had a strong showing to start round one as the Trojans sat at 3-under and at times atop the 14-team leaderboard.
Jansen Smith led the charge through the front nine with a 2-under 34, followed by a 1-under 35 from
Anton Albers while
Magnus Lomholt and
Nico Horder were both even.
But the back nine at PGA National proved challenging for the Trojans, who went a combined 10-over to slip back to seventh. Playing the famed "Bear Trap" on holes 15, 16 and 17, known as one of the most challenging three-hole stretches in golf, the Trojans registered three birdies, two bogeys and a pair of double bogeys, but was able to remain within striking distance.
Smith was the top Little Rock finisher in round one, shooting a 1-over 73 and is tied for 15th among the individual standings. Albers, Horder and Lomholt are all one back at 2-over 74, tied for 22nd, with Rauch rounding out the scorecard at 3-over 75, tied for 33rd.
Little Rock competed in one of the top groupings of the day as South Florida currently sits second at 2-over 290 with College of Charleston one shot ahead of the Trojans at 6-over 294. The Trojans are two shots better than 22nd-ranked Florida State (9-over 297) and three better than 34th-ranked New Mexico (10-over 298) as the Trojans, Seminoles and Lobos will play together in round two.
Top-seeded Vanderbilt holds the team lead after round one at 3-under 285, holding a five shot lead on second-place South Florida (2-over 290) and seven shots better than third-place Notre Dame (4-over 292). Davidson College (5-over 293) is fourth with Florida and College of Charleston (6-over) tied for fifth, putting the Trojans within three shots of third.
Tuesday's second round will begin in similar fashion for the Trojans as they will be among the second wave to tee off from hole one at 7:25 a.m. CT, beginning with Rauch and leading up to Smith's 8:09 a.m. CT tee time. Live scoring is available at GolfStat.com.
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