Brown, Gilbert Among Desert Shootout Top-20 After 18 Holes
March 21, 2013
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GOODYEAR, Ariz. – Chris Gilbert led the Kansas scoring lineup with a 1-under 70 and Bryce Brown turned in a career-best 2-under 69 as an individual as the Jayhawks opened play at the Desert Shootout at Palm Valley Golf Course Thursday. As a team, the Jayhawks shot 291 (+7) and were near the bottom of the leaderboard after 18 holes on the par-71, 6,925-yard course.
Gilbert, a senior from Simi Valley, Calif., continued to cement his role as leader of the Jayhawks by shooting a 34 on the back nine, while carding his team-best 11th round under par and finished day one two strokes out of the top-10 in a tie for 20th with 10 other golfers. Brown, a junior from Lincoln, Neb., didn’t qualify for KU’s scoring five earlier this week but turned in the best performance by any Jayhawk Thursday and best round of his career. He was tied for 13th after 18 holes.
The two were KU’s only golfers to finish under par for the round and were nearly joined by senior Alex Gutesha, who was two-under-par with three holes to play but closed his round with three straight bogeys and settled for a first-day tally of 1-over 72. As a unit, the Jayhawks walked off the course in 15th place, ahead of only Wyoming, which shot a 293 (+9). Tulsa led the field with a 274 (-10) and Illinois’ Thomas Pieters was the top individual shooter with a 6-under 65.
“We didn’t play very well today,” Kansas head coach Jamie Bermel said. “We made way too many mistakes, hit a couple balls out of bounds. It was really sloppy golf from start to finish.
“I think the guys just got a little impatient. There was very little wind and the par-fives are fairly easy. They had a lot of wedges in their hands and didn’t get off to a good start, then get a little careless. A couple strokes here and there can turn a 72 in to a 74 or 75 and we just can’t do that. We have two more rounds and need to get off to a better start.”
Dylan McClure contributed a 74 (+3) and the Jayhawks counted Stan Gautier’s 75 (+4) to round out the team scoring. Ryley Haas competed as a member of the scoring lineup but his 77 (+6) was left off the team total.
Brown finished the opening round as the top individual scorer in the field and shot two strokes better than his previous career low of 71 at the Bill Ross Intercollegiate last fall. The round marked the second under par in nine events over three years for Brown.
“I’m happy for Bryce,” Bermel said. “He’s played in the lineup three or four times and it’s good to see. Hopefully he continues his good play.
Kansas returns for another 18 holes Friday before closing play with a final round of 18 on Saturday.
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