LA QUINTA, Calif. (Feb. 20, 2018) – After being forced to wait an extra day to get its spring season underway, the ETSU men’s golf team finally teed things up.

Junior Geuntae Kim (Daegu, South Korea) and freshman Jack Rhea (Jonesborough, Tenn.) led the Blue and Gold in round one as the Buccaneer duo posted a 1-over-par 72 on Tuesday afternoon from The Prestige at PGA West.

Kim and Rhea are both tied for 17th and sit five shots off the lead. Northwestern’s Sam Triplett fired a 4-under 67 to take a one-stroke lead into Wednesday’s final round. Oregon’s Norman Xiong (No. 22 via Golfstat) and Stanford’s Franklin Huang are both 3-under 68, while a group of five golfers are two shots back at 2-under 69.

Oregon and Oklahoma State are both tied atop the leaderboard in team scoring as they both totaled a 1-under 283. Oklahoma State – the top-ranked team in the country – and Oregon (No. 40) were the only two teams to post a score below par, as No. 43 Pepperdine is in third at 1-over 285 and No. 10 Stanford and No. 44 Northwestern are tied for fourth at 2-over 286.

The Bucs are sitting in the middle of the pack as the Blue and Gold are in eighth at 10-over-par 294. ETSU is ahead of No. 19 Southern Cal (+12) and No. 38 San Diego State (+17).

ETSU’s other countable scores came from freshman Austin Carter (Kingsport, Tenn.) and sophomore Trevor Hulbert (Orlando, Fla.). Carter and Hulbert are tied for 43rd at 4-over-par 75.

Monday’s opening round was cancelled due to high winds, forcing the tournament to go to a 36-hole format. 

The final round will conclude on Wednesday as the Bucs tee off at 10:30 a.m. ETSU is paired with Southern Cal and San Francisco.

Live scoring will be provided via Golfstat. Recaps and scores will be posted on ETSUBucs.com following each round, while Twitter updates can be accessed by following @ETSU_MGolf.

For more information on Buccaneer men’s golf, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men’s golf page.