Albin Bergstrom set USF’s record for low round vs. par and matched the Bulls’ lowest round with a 9-under 63 to start the tournament.
USF set the program’s 36-hole scoring record with a 27-under 549. The Bulls are two shots away from leader Notre Dame with 18 more holes to play Monday.
VERO BEACH, Fla., OCT. 20, 2019 – USF men’s golf is back in the title hunt at the Quail Valley Intercollegiate after a record-breaking performance by Albin Bergstrom and the Bulls on Sunday.
Bergstrom matched USF’s low-round record with a 63 and reached a new program milestone for low round vs. par (-9) on his first 18 holes of the day. The red-hot start included 10 birdies, six during a 6-under run on the back nine, which helped the sophomore tie the tournament’s single-round scoring record.
Bergstrom (Ljunghusen, Sweden) followed up his 63 with a 1-under 71 in the afternoon and he’s currently tied for third place at 10-under, two shots away from leader Paul Foulquie of Missouri-Kansas City. Bergstrom shot par or better on 33 holes Sunday and he’s tied for the tournament lead with 13 birdies.
Starting with a 20-under 268, USF grabbed the lead in the first round on the way to setting the program’s 36-hole record with a 27-under 549. No. 7 Notre Dame (-29) grabbed the lead in the afternoon with an 18-under 270.
USF is looking for another title at the Quail Valley Intercollegiate after winning the event in record-breaking fashion in 2017 and placing second at the tournament last fall.
Luke Gifford and Kyle Flexsenhar are both tied for 17th at 5-under and two shots away from the top 10.
Gifford used six birdies to card a 5-under 67 in the opening round and put together an even-par performance on his second 18 holes. Solid play has continued for the sophomore from Boca Raton, Fla., who earned co-medalist honors the last time out at the Marquette Intercollegiate on Oct. 8.
Flexsenhar collected six birdies during his 3-under 69 in the first round. The senior from Lake Mary, Fla., shot par or better on 16 holes and finished the second round with a 2-under 70.
Freshman Runchanapong Youprayong (Bangkok, Thailand) is tied for 22nd place at 4-under after following up his even-par 72 with a 4-under 68 that included six birdies.
Ryoto Furuya shot par or better on 16 holes to finish the first round with a 69. The senior from Alpharetta, Ga., is just a shot outside the top 25 at 3-under after carding an even-par 72 in the second round.
USF Lineup Scores
| 2 | South Florida | 268 | 281 | 549 |
| 3 | Albin Bergstrom (2) | 63 | 71 | 134 |
| T17 | Luke Gifford (1) | 67 | 72 | 139 |
| T17 | Kyle Flexsenhar (5) | 69 | 70 | 139 |
| T22 | Run Youprayong (3) | 72 | 68 | 140 |
| T30 | Ryoto Furuya (4) | 69 | 72 | 141 |
Quotable
Assistant coach Brad Caldwell on USF’s team performance on the first day of the Quail Valley Intercollegiate after shooting 20-under in the first round:
“Overall, I’m very pleased. Anytime you can shoot 20-under par on any golf course, I don’t care where you’re playing, that’s great golf. Obviously, we’d like to be leading heading into the final round but we’re in a good spot. Notre Dame is a really good team that’s ranked seventh in the country, we know that. But I like being the chasers, we can play aggressively. This course can obviously yield some birdies, so we should have a good battle.”
Caldwell’s thoughts on Albin Bergstrom, who set USF’s low round vs. par record and matched the low round record with a 9-under 63 in the opening round:
“There’s probably not enough works to describe how good his good can be. His first round was extremely effortless. He stuck to his game plan and executed flawlessly on pretty much every golf shot he hit. The greens are a good speed to where you can be aggressive on them. He got hot with the putter and just rode that wave all morning long. The guys really fed off that, knowing he was playing well. They knew it was out there, so it gave them the confidence to know they could do it as well. It’s awesome how that can be infectious among the team, even though they’re not even watching him. You can get those senses and those feelings.”
Notables
- Sophomore Albin Bergstrom matched the program’s low-round record (63) and set USF’s low round vs. par record (-9) in Sunday’s opening round. Rigel Fernandes also carded a 63 at the Gator Invitational in 2016.
- USF set the school’s 36-hole scoring record with a 27-under 549. The previous record of 26-under 550 was registered at the USF Invitational in 2014.
- Bergstrom is tied for the most birdies (13) in the 80-player field. The sophomore is two shots off the lead and seeking his second title of the season. With two career titles, he’s two away from matching the USF career record set by Chase Koepka (2012-16).
- USF is tied for the lead in the 14-team field with 49 total birdies. The Bulls rank second in par-3 scoring (3.03) and par-4 scoring (3.89, -11).
- Freshman Sam Nicholson, sophomores Massimo Mbetse and Anthony Muttillo, and junior Cole Castro also are competing in the event as individuals.
Up Next
Follow Monday’s final round in progress at the official Golfstat scoring page HERE.
About USF Men’s Golf
USF men’s golf captured four consecutive American Athletic Conference Championship titles in wire-to-wire fashion prior to 2019 and has earned seven straight trips to NCAA Regionals. The program is led by Steve Bradley, who has been named American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year four times. Follow @USFMGolf on Twitter for the latest information concerning the program.
