TUCSON, Arizona – Amid cold and windy conditions, BYU men’s golf finished the first round of the Arizona Intercollegiate tied for 11th behind a tough performance from senior Kelton Hirsch.

Competing through winds in excess of 30 miles-per-hour, Hirsch shot a 76 on the day to tie for 28th individually with WCC counterparts Cameron Meeks of Loyola Marymount and Tim Widing of San Francisco.

As a team, BYU posted a score of 311, knotting them at 11th with the University of Denver. Host Arizona is leading the tournament with an even-par 284, while New Mexico (296), No. 17 ranked Wake Forest (299), Oregon (300) and UNLV (302) round out the top five of the 17-team field. The Cougars are one shot ahead of WCC foes San Diego, who is ranked 25th, and five strokes ahead of Loyola Marymount.

In the individual scoring, BYU freshman Keanu Akina carded a 77 in his first collegiate tournament and is tied for 38th, while junior Carson Lundell shot 78, sophomores David Timmins had 80 and Cole Ponich at 81.

“We missed quite a few short putts today,” said BYU head coach Bruce Brockbank. “I’m hoping our putting will be better the next couple days and that our guys will step up and post some great scores.”

Follow the Cougars’ second round action of the three-day 54-hole event from Tucson on Tuesday, Jan. 26 via Golfstat.

TUCSON, Arizona – The BYU men’s golf team is set to tee-off its spring 2021 season at the Arizona Intercollegiate on January 25-27 at the Sewailo Golf Club in Tucson.

The Cougars will face a field of 18 teams that includes host Arizona, No. 9 ranked Texas Tech, rival Utah as well as WCC-foes Loyola Marymount and San Francisco.

Monday’s action will be the first for the Cougars since their best showing of the fall season at the Rustic Collegiate Classic on November 5-6 in Moorpark, California. Carson Lundell shot a 66 in the final round at the Rustic Canyon Golf Course, leading BYU to a third-place finish behind the nation’s No. 1 ranked team Pepperdine and No. 25 San Diego.

Headed to Tucson for the Arizona Intercollegiate are Kelton Hirsch, a senior out of Centerville, Utah; Lundell, a junior from Alpine, Utah; sophomores David Timmins and Cole Ponich of Sandy and Farmington, Utah respectively; and freshman Keanu Akina of Kahuku, Hawaii.

The Arizona Intercollegiate is one of seven tournaments on BYU’s 2021 spring schedule. Follow the action from Tucson, Arizona, beginning at 9:50 MST on Monday, Jan. 25 with live stats via Golfstat.