KENNEWICK, Wash. – Linfield’s Alex Fitch shot
a four-under round of 68 to lead the Wildcats to the top of the
team standings on the first day of the 2012 Northwest Conference
Men’s Golf Tournament at Canyon Lakes Golf Course. Host
Whitworth is five strokes behind Linfield in second
place.
Fitch’s round of 68 gives him a one-stroke edge over
Pacific Lutheran’s Dustin Hegge, who shot a three-under 69.
There is a four-way tie for third place between
Whitworth’s Joey Degroff, Linfield’s Connor Magnuson,
Puget Sound’s Nick Kelly and Pacific’s Garrick Knowles
– all with one-over rounds of 73.
The team scores following the first day are: Linfield 293,
Whitworth 298, Pacific Lutheran and Puget Sound 303, Pacific (Ore.)
311, Willamette 314, Whitman 319, George Fox 325, Lewis & Clark
376.
Winds were down on Saturday, allowing for lower scores.
There were ten rounds of 74 or better.
In addition to Fitch and Magnuson, Tyler Klopp shot a 74 and
A.J. Taylor shot 78 to give the Wildcats four players in the top
20.
Jesse Salzwedel and Saul Martinez both shot rounds of 74
for the Pirates (tied for seventh place), while Stephen Plopper is
16th after a round of 77. Christian Boudreau shot 81 for the
Bucs.
PLU and UPS are tied for third place, but the Lutes will play
in the final group of Sunday’s pairings because of
Hegge’s opening round.
The second round will begin at 7:30 a.m. as a shotgun
start.