SUNRISE BEACH, Mo. – The Illinois State men's golf team got a balanced effort in its opening round of the MVC Championship, as each of the top four golfers were just one shot apart; however, the Redbirds find themselves needing strong rounds on Monday and Tuesday to repeat as MVC Champions.
Southern Illinois is the first-day leader at the MVC Championship and have carded an opening-round 278. Missouri State (285), Valparaiso (291), Belmont (295), Murray State (296), Drake (297), and Bradley (297) are directly ahead of Illinois State's 299, as Evansville (300) and Northern Iowa (302) are behind the Redbirds.
Leading the way for ISU was senior Valentin Peugnet, who carded a team-low 74, which is tied for 20th in the field, while Alex McCulla, Felix van Dijk, and Parker Wisdom each carded a three-over 75, good for a tie of 27th. TJ Barger was fifth among the golfers in the field with a 79, and is in 43rd with 36 holes remaining.
ISU will tee off in the second round on Monday morning, starting on the 10th hole at 9:40 a.m.
Peugnet got off to a slow start with a bogey in each of his first three holes; however, his final 15 holes he played at one stroke under par. After his rough three-hole start he followed with a par and a birdie, and after two more pars and a bogey he made the turn at four strokes over par. He finished his back nine at two under par with seven pars and two birdies – on the 13th and 17th holes – to finish with a team-best 74 (+2).
McCulla had a birdie in both the front and back half of the course, and his front half birdie came on the par-four second hole, and he made the turn at two shots over par as he added five pars and a trio of birdies. In his back nine he had six pars, with a birdie on the par-five 13th hole, along with two bogeys, finishing three over par with a 75.
van Dijk also started slowly with bogeys on his first two holes; however, he closed his front nine with seven pars to make the turn at two over par. After two more pars – moving his total to nine pars in a row – to start the back nine, he had back-to-back holes with a bogey and a double-bogey to push his aggregate score to five shots over par. He closed strong, with birdies on the 15th and 17th holes to drop his score to three shots over par with a 75 over the opening 18 holes.
Wisdom had a balanced start to his opening round with pars on each of his first six holes before a birdie on his seventh hole dropped him to a stroke under par. He closed his front nine with a bogey and a par to make the turn at even par. The Bloomington native's back nine opened with a par and a birdie; however, he stumbled down the stretch with four pars, two bogeys and a double bogey over his final seven holes to become the third member of the Redbirds on the day to card a 75.
Barger opened his day with pars on each of his first three holes before he ran off three consecutive bogeys. His first of two birdies on the day came a hole later, on the par-four seventh hole, before ending his front nine with back-to-back double bogeys, making the turn at six shots over par. His back nine opened with two pars and a bogey, pushing his aggregate score to seven shots over par. He answered quickly with a birdie on the par-five fifth hole, and had four pars and a bogey to end the day with a seven-over 79.
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