The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
NCAA Southwest Regional Championship
Spieth fires course record 66 in opening round of NCAA Norman Regional Championship
05.17.2012 | Men's Golf
May 17, 2012
NORMAN, Okla. -- Texas freshman Jordan Spieth shot a course record 6-under-par 66 in competitive play from the championship tees at Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club on Thursday to lead all individuals after the opening round of the NCAA Norman Regional Championship. No. 1-seed Texas shares the 18-hole lead with fourth-seeded Florida State at 9-under 279.
After making par on the first four holes, Spieth played the last five holes of the front nine at 4-under. His first birdie opportunity came on the par-5 fifth hole, and he followed with his team-leading third eagle of the year on the par-5 eighth hole. With another birdie on nine, Spieth made the turn in 32 before he sank three-straight birdies on 12, 13 and 14. A missed three-foot par putt for bogey on 16 was the Ben Hogan Award finalist's only blemish of the day.
Senior Dylan Frittelli turned in a 2-under 70 that included five birdies and three bogeys to aid Texas' climb atop the leaderboard. Sophomore Toni Hakula also finished the day under par at -1. Frittelli and Hakula are tied for 10th and 15th places, respectively.
Junior Julio Vegas began with a slow start after bogeying the first and sixth holes and then made a double bogey on seven. He immediately began to shave strokes off of his +4 scorecard with back-to-back birdies on eight and nine, and found a third subpar on the 14th hole to dip to 1-over. Vegas' fourth birdie on the par-5 18th hole left him at even-par 72 and tied for 20th place.
Junior Cody Gribble rounds out the Texas squad tied for 59th place at 7-over 77.
The low five teams and the low individual not on those teams from each of the six regionals will advance to the May 29-June 3 NCAA Championship at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. The Longhorns have successfully advanced from the NCAA regional to the NCAA Championships in each of the last five seasons.
Texas is paired alongside Florida State and third-place Illinois (284, -4) in Friday's second round beginning at 9:10 a.m. off the first tee.
First-round Team Standings
T1. TEXAS - 279 (-9)
T1. Florida State - 279 (-9)
3. Illinois - 284 (-4)
T4. St. Mary's (Calif.) - 286 (-2)
T4. Washington - 286 (-2)
6. Oklahoma - 287 (-1)
7. Arizona - 289 (+1)
8. Georgia Tech - 290 (+2)
9. Sacramento State - 292 (+4)
10. South Carolina - 294 (+6)
11. IUPUI - 297 (+9)
12. San Diego - 303 (+15)
13. Middle Tennessee State - 304 (+16)
14. Loyola U.-Chicago - 307 (+19)
Top-10 Individuals (through one round)
1. Jordan Spieth, TEXAS - 66 (-6)
2. Brooks Keopka, Florida State - 67 (-5)
T3. Ben Geyer, St. Mary's (Calif.) - 68 (-4)
T3. Thomas Pieters, Illinois - 68 (-4)
T5. Daniel Berger, Florida State - 69 (-3)
T5. Wesley Bryan, South Carolina - 69 (-3)
T5. Luke Guthrie, Illinois - 69 (-3)
T5. Cheng-Tsung Pan, Washington - 69 (-3)
T5. James White, Georgia Tech - 69 (-3)
T10. Dylan Frittelli, TEXAS - 70 (-2)
T10. Four additional individuals at 2-under 70
Additional Texas players
T15. Toni Hakula - 71 (-1)
T20. Julio Vegas - 72 (E)
T59. Cody Gribble - 77 (+7)
POST-ROUND COMMENTS
Texas Head Coach John Fields
On Texas' first round at the NCAA Norman Regional Championship: We came out today and played solid. We have motivation to keep playing well. If we continue to play well, we'll remain in this thing.
On freshman Jordan Spieth's round: Jordan got off to a really great start, with a 32 on the front. I know he wasn't happy with the way he closed, but he certainly put up a nice number for us.
On Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club: This is a fine golf course. The greens are really nice bent-grass greens that keep you on your toes because they're fast and have some false edges. It's a golf course where you need to remain present and patient. If you make a mistake out here, it's a tough enough golf course that it will make you pay.
Freshman Jordan Spieth
On his course record 66: That's what you shoot to do. I had no idea what (course record) was. They told me after my round, and that was pretty cool to hear. It's cool that my name will be in the record book for a little while, but I'll still go out there and try to beat it tomorrow.
