Freshman Cullan Brown birdied five times and eagled once on Friday to enter the clubhouse with a tie for the lead after day one of the Mason Rudolph Championship. Brown fired a round at 7-under par to lead the field by three strokes.
Kentucky sits in a tie for fifth following the opening 18 holes at 5-under par. The team’s opening round score of 279 is the best team round of the season with the previous best coming at Hootie at Bulls Bay when Kentucky shot a 281 during round three on March 26.
The former Lyon County All-State golfer’s opening round 64 tied for the lowest individual round in the Brian Craig era at Kentucky, equaling Jordan Blann’s record of 64 in 2009. Brown had previously shot his career-best of 70 twice this season.
“Cullan Brown had a little coming out party today. A 64 as a freshmen coming off an injury that kept him off the course for a while, is not bad at all,” Craig said. “I am also proud of Matt Liston who played very solid golf today with a 71. As a team, we are in a good position after day one. We need to keep the focus on what we can control and stay positive. There is a lot of golf left.”
The course is set up as a par 71 over 7,100 yards. The field is comprised of 15 other teams, including three from the SEC in Tennessee, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. Tennessee leads the team standings at 15-under par.
(INFORMATION FROM UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY ATHLETICS)
