Wolcott tied for eighth after opening round of Shoal Creek Invitational

Monday, April 15

Birmingham, AL

All Day

University of Tennessee

Shoal Creek Collegiate

Wolcott tied for eighth after opening round of Shoal Creek Invitational

April 15, 2019 | Men's Golf

Redshirt sophomore Hunter Wolcott shoots first round 71 (-1) to lead Tennessee

By: Andy Kovar

SHOAL CREEK, Ala. – With four players in the field left to finish the opening round of the Shoal Creek Invitational, No. 22 University of Tennessee men's golf team is tied for seventh on the leaderboard.

The first round of play at Shoal Creek Country Club was suspended due to darkness at 8:15 p.m. with a few players remaining to finish the final hole in their rounds. Tennessee sits in the middle of the 15-team field.

The Vols are 10 shots clear of No. 13 Auburn while sitting just one shot back of Kentucky. The tournament comes just one week away from the Southeastern Conference tournament.

Leading the team through 18 holes of play is redshirt sophomore Hunter Wolcott, who came into the tournament ranked as the No. 88 player in the country according to the latest Golfstat rankings.

Wolcott shot an opening round 71 (-1) on Monday in a tie for eighth and just four off the lead entering the second round. The Burns, Tenn. native is tied for fourth in the field with 15 pars while also finding a pair of birdies.

He was one of four Tennessee players to birdie the par-5 3rd while also finding a birdie at the par-3 13th. His lone bogey of the round came on hole No. 1.

Entering the tournament, Wolcott had three top-25 finishes in four starts this spring including his first collegiate win at The Hayt. He will be looking for his fourth tomorrow in the final day of competition.

The remaining four players in the Tennessee lineup are tied for 44th at 4-over-par.

The final groups will finish the first round at 9:30 a.m. ET tomorrow morning with the second round of play starting immediately after the conclusion on round one.

Coach's Take
On how playing at Shoal Creek prepares the team for postseason:
"It's a championship course and it will expose your weaknesses when the conditions are tough but today was as easy it will ever play with no wind and lift, clean and place and we did not take advantage." – Coach Brennan Webb

On Hunter Wolcott's round:
"He played a very solid boring round of golf, wasn't bothered by the pace of play and maintained his focus for the entire round." – Coach Brennan Webb

On areas of focus heading into tomorrow:
"Our success is determined by our attitudes and toughness. These are the things we can control and we need to do a much better job tomorrow." – Coach Brennan Webb

Day One Scores:
Team

T1	Alabama	-3 (285)
T1	LSU	-3 (285)
3	Charlotte	+2 (290)
4	North Florida	+3 thru 17
5	Jacksonville State	+4 (292)
6	Kentucky	+10 (298)
T7	Tennessee	+11 (299)
T7	Bowling Green State	+11 (299)
9	Troy	+12 (300)
10	UAB	+13 (301)
11	Lamar	+15 (303)
12	Jacksonville	+16 (304)
T13	Auburn	+21 (309)
T13	Samford	+21 (309)
15	Georgia State	+23 (311)