TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Seminoles.com) – Redshirt junior Cristobal Del Solar continued his streak of solid play as he posted his 10th round of the year under par to lead No. 4 Florida State Men’s Golf to a tie for third place in the first round of the Seminole Intercollegiate at Southwood Golf Club.
Despite a double bogey on the 18th hole, the Chile native led the Seminoles with a 3-under 69 as Florida State shot a collective 285 (3-under). James Madison (6-under 282) and Jacksonville (4-under 284) are first and second, respectively, through the first day.
“We really talked about getting off to a hot start and we feel like we hadn’t done that lately,” FSU head coach Trey Jones said. “We wanted to play the golf course and not let the golf course play us right out of the gate. We did a great job of that. We came out and got under par.”
Highlighting Del Solar’s first round were two eagles, as he started off well by scoring a 3 on the 547-yard par 5 first hole, followed by another 3 on the 628-yard par 5 on the fourth hole. He started the front nine well by shooting a 32. Del Solar is tied for fourth among individuals.
Del Solar tied for the best score on par 5’s on Friday, shooting 5-under with an average score of 3.75 in long-hole situations. His two eagles also led all players.
“From an individual standpoint Cristobal had a great round of golf,” Jones added. “He was five-under through 17 holes before his double bogey on 18.”
Providing the Seminoles with a boost was redshirt sophomore Harry Ellis, who shot a 1-under 71 to mark his second-lowest score as a Seminole. The Southampton, England, native finished his round with a back-nine 34, shooting birdies on the par-4 14th and the par-5 16th.
“Harry Ellis played well all day long. He’s really progressing in our lineup and has a world of opportunity to improve,” Jones said. “He’s probably improved more than anyone on our team. We’re real excited for him.”
Senior Hank Lebioda also shot under par, recording a 1-under 71. He took advantage of his four par-3 holes, averaging a 2.75 to tie for the second-best in par 3’s.
Freshman Corey Carlson, who played individually, also shot a 1-under 71. On the par-4, 335-yard 11th hole, the Green Cove Springs, Fla., native recorded an eagle to highlight a back-nine 35.
Freshman Tyler Bakich helped the team score after finishing up nicely on his final two holes. Southwood’s par 3 on hole 17 registered as the second-hardest hole of the day, but Bakich recorded a birdie and a nice par on 18 to help the Seminoles land a tie for third place.
Because of inclement weather in the forecast on Sunday, Saturday will consist of 36 holes with rounds two and three to finish the tournament. A shot-gun start will be utilized with all players teeing off at 8:30 a.m.
