NCAA Division 1 men's championship

Inverness USA where the weather was

just as bad as at Inverness, Scotland

It could not have been any colder, wetter or windier at the REAL Inverness Golf Club as it was at the Toledo, Ohio version of Inverness Golf Club, the venue for the college-season-ending climax, the NCAA Division 1 men's championship.
Jonathan Bowers (Northwestern), Scott Langley (Illinois) and North Carolina State's Matt Hill shot two-under-par 69s to share the lead three ways in the individual title race.
Oklahoma State and Georgia are the front-running pair after the first round of the team event.
"It was very tough out there today," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "With the wind picking up and the severity of the golf course, it's just survival. Judging by the scores that you see some of these teams shooting -- and you have to remember they are very good teams -- it just lets you know that at any given time (the course) can up and bite you."
Bowers battled showers while shooting his 69 in the morning, while Langley and Hill fought through winds and chilly temperatures in the afternoon at the 7,255yd lay-out.
"On holes six through nine it was coming down pretty good," said Bowers, a left-handed junior who had four birdies and two bogeys. "We had our umbrellas and rain gear on. And then it softened. It didn't rain nearly as hard after that."
It didn't rain in the afternoon, although the early precipitation made the high, deep rough even harder to extricate an errant shot. Then the wind picked up and the mercury fell.
"I played great to shoot the score I did," said Langley, a sophomore who offset a double and two bogeys with six birdies. "It's a tough course anyway, then with the conditions -- it was kind of cold and windy."
Hill, a contender for national player of the year, was pleased that he persevered even though he three-putted the final hole for a bogey.
"I feel like I put myself in really good position," he said. "I have a lot of confidence going into tomorrow."
Texas Christian's Tom Hoge was four under par on the 18th but had an almost unplayable lie in a greenside bunker. Twice his ball rolled back to his feet. His triple-bogey finish left him at 70 along with Alex Ching (San Diego), Philip Francis (UCLA), Tennessee's David Holmes and Nick Taylor (Washington). Only eight players in the 156-man field broke par.
"This is a long golf tournament, so one hole is not going to kill you," Hoge said. "It's a little bit frustrating to leave some shots out there on the last hole, but I know we have a lot of work left."
Top-seeded Oklahoma State, led by Trent Leon's 71, totalled four-over 288 and were joined in the pole position by Georgia, led by 71s from Russell Henley and Brian Harman.
The Cowboys didn't count the 74 of Kevin Tway, playing on the same course where his father Bob holed a bunker shot on the 72nd hole to stun Greg Norman and win the 1986 US PGA Championship.
This is the first year the tournament is being played under a combination medal and match-play format. All 30 qualifying teams and the six individual players will compete in three days of medal play. Those 54 holes will determine the medallist and will cut the field to a final eight teams for match-play. The teams will then play quarter-final and semi-final matches on Friday, with the championship match set to start for Saturday.
Chattanooga was a surprising third with 292 strokes, followed by Washington and San Diego with 293; Arizona State, Ohio State and Tennessee with 294; Michigan with 296; and Arkansas and Duke with 297.
WEATHER NOTE: It wasn't any better today (Wednesday) at Inverness Golf Club, Toledo in the state of Ohio. Coming up to noon local time, play still had not begun in the second round because of rain.

INDIVIDUAL SCOREBOARD
Par 72. Yardage: 7,225.
69 Matt Hill (Carolina State), Scott Langley (Illinois).
70 Nick Taylor (Wasington), Alex Ching (San Diego), Tom Hoge (Texas Christian), David Holmes (Tennessee), Philip Francis (UCLA).
71 Russell Henley (Georgia), Trent Leon (Oklahoma State), Corey Nagy (Charlotte), Fredrik Qvicker (Chattanooga), Simon Ward (UCF), Brian Harman (Georgia).
72 Morgan Hoffman (Oklahoma State), Jesper Kennegard (Arizona State), Bronson Burgoon (Texas A&M), Rickie Fowler (Oklahoma State), Lion Kim (Michigan), Darren Wallace (Washington), Clark Klassen (Duke), Alexander Sitompul (Michigan), Brad Wright (Ohio State), Hugues Joannes (Lamar), Kyle Stanley (Clemson).
British/Irish scores:
75 Chris Paisley (Tennessee) (jt 105th).
76 Darren Wright (Tennessee) (jt 119th).
77 Garrick Porteous (Tennessee) (jt 152nd).