The Kent State men’s golf team shot 17-over-par through two rounds Sunday at the Jack Nicklaus Invitational in Columbus, Ohio.

The Flashes are 11 shots behind the host of the tournament, the Ohio State University Buckeyes, for first place. Kent state started off slow to begin the tournament at 11-over-par. 

The Flashes played better in the second round and made a push up to the leaderboards after a 6-over-par round to complete their day at the challenging Scarlet Course. 

“We competed well — we hung in there,” Kent State coach Page said about his team’s effort. “We were very determined today and a lot of the mistakes we made were very correctable.”

Freshman Chase Johnson leads the team at even par and is tied for fourth place. Page raved about how consistent he has been and how good he has been playing.

“He is going to be a great player for Kent State,” Page said. “He is the real deal.”

Johnson said he played at the Scarlet Golf Course before in high school. He started off slow at the start of the tournament but said he was satisfied with how he responded and got a better feel for the course. 

“Off the tee today, I couldn’t hit the fairway to save my life,” Johnson said. “I am satisfied with how I scrambled…I’m satisfied with my even par.”

Junior Sebastian Bendsen has been one of the most consistent golfers on the team but was off on his game Sunday, shooting 9-over-par. He finished his day in 42nd place.

“I just didn’t have the rhythm today,” Bendsen said. “I kind of struggled a bit.”

To round out the lineup, senior Taylor Zoller currently sits in sixth place at 2-over-par. Sophomore Josh Whalen is not too far behind Zoller with a 24th-place spot at 5-over-par. Freshman Ian Holt finished with a score of 8-over-par to put him in 39th place. Freshman Spencer Dobbs is tied for 43rd place, posting a score of 10-over-par.

The Flashes will return to action Monday to play the third and final round.

Contact Ray Strickland at [email protected].