Ole Miss Men’s Golf Sits Tied for Ninth Through First Day at the NCAA Norman Regional

Through the first day of action at the NCAA Norman Regional, Ole Miss men’s golf sits tied for ninth after going 5-over in its first 18 holes. The Rebels got off to a later start than normal at 11:30 CT, following a weather delay due to rain. 
 
“We picked a pretty poor time to have one of our worst rounds of the spring. However, this group has been great all year with their backs against the wall,” said head coach Chris Malloy. “I tell these guys all of the time that confidence only matters when things aren’t going your way. That’s when you need to be confident. We will need to bounce back tomorrow with all of the confidence that we can find and we will climb this leaderboard the next two days.”
 
Hugo Townsend carried the Rebel lineup tied for sixth after going 3-under. The graduate transfer shot a bogey-free front nine and chipped in five birdies in the opening round to fire a 69.
 
Following Townsend’s lead was Sarut Vongchaisit, with the senior chipping in four birdies. The Bangkok, Thailand, native, wrapped up day one at 1-over to finish tied for 35th.
 
After a tough start, Cameron Tankersley turned his day around in the final nine holes to make up ground to finish tied for 53rd. The freshman chipped in three birdies on the front nine, to go 3-over.
 
Kye Meeks added two birdies on the front nine and looks to improve on his 4-over score on Tuesday, sitting tied for 56th.
 
Patton Samuels rounds out the Rebels, finishing 5-over and tied for 63rd through the first 18 holes.
 
Composed of a total of 14 teams and five individuals, the Norman Regional stands between the Rebels and what could be just their seventh trip to the NCAA Championships in program history and the first time since 1985 Ole Miss has appeared in back-to-back years. In order to reach that point, however, the Rebels will need to sit in fifth place or better at the conclusion of this week’s 54 holes of action.
 
Only the top five teams and top individual from a non-advancing team will be able to continue their season at Grayhawk Golf Club later this May in Scottsdale, Arizona.  
 
The Rebels continue regional play tomorrow morning teeing off with Kansas and LSU beginning at 8:55 a.m. CT.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports