SMU Begins American Men’s Golf Championship with Two-Stroke Lead

BELLEAIR, Fla. – After one day of competition, the SMU Mustangs took a two-stroke lead over the field at the American Athletic Conference Men’s Golf Championship at the Pelican Golf Club shooting a 3-under 277. North Texas’ Tucker Allen and Charlotte’s Conor Gough pace the individual field at 4-under 66.

The average score for the first 18 holes of the tournament was 71.69 on the par-70, 6,881-yard course. Twenty-seven of the 60 players shot par or better in the opening round, including fourteen players shooting under-par.

SMU had a strong showing in the opening round, shooting a round-low 3-under 277. Three Mustangs are tied for seventh place after shooting 1-under 69 – J Holland Humphries, William Sides and Zach Kingsland. SMU’s fourth scorer, Chaz Aurilla, finished at par.

Wichita State joined the Mustangs shooting under-par for the opening round, finishing at 1-under 279. Michael Winslow led the Shockers at 2-under 68 and is tied for third place. Zach Sokolosky and Blake Lorenz both finished tied for seventh place at 1-under 69.

Memphis shot an even par to end the first round in third place. Esteban Vazquez enters the second round tied for seventh place at 1-under 69. Yixiang Wang and Adam Coull both shot par for the opening round to enter the second round tied for 15^th place.

South Florida enters the second round in fourth place. The Bulls shot 1-over 281 in the first round. Jake Peacock leads the Bulls at 1-under 69 and is currently tied for seventh place. Shubham Jaglan and Sam Nicholson shot par for the course to enter day two tied for 15^th place.

Charlotte rounds out the top five having shot 2-over 282. The 49ers are led by Conor Gough’s leading 4-under 66. Justin Matthews has the second-best score for Charlotte at even par.

Teams will resume the second round of the 2024 American Men’s Golf Championship on Saturday with tee times expected to begin at 8 a.m. (ET).

2024 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE MEN’S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

Team Standings Through Round 1

1. SMU 277 (-3)

2. Wichita State 279 (-1)

3. Memphis 280 (E)

4. South Florida 281 (+1)

5. Charlotte 282 (+2)

6. UAB 283 (+3)

7. Rice 285 (+5)

T8. East Carolina 286 (+6)

T8. North Texas 286 (+6)