LSU’s Doyle, Gaunt shoot under-par first round of SEC Championship’s stroke play

Tigers have work to do after 12th place standing

LSU's Connor Gaunt fired a 1-under 69 during the first round of the SEC Championships on Wednesday. PHOTO BY: LSU athletics

Drew Doyle and Connor Gaunt each fired rounds of 1-under 69 to lead LSU during the opening round of the SEC Men’s Golf Championships in St. Simons, Georgia.

The Tigers opened the day with a 2-over team score of 282 and stand in 12th place after the first round – six strokes out of sixth place.

The top eight teams following 54-holes of stroke play advance to match play beginning Saturday. The tournament continues with 18 holes on Thursday followed by the final round of stroke play on Friday.

Texas A&M leads after the first round at 11-under, followed by Alabama (-10), Auburn (-9) and Mississippi State and Ole Miss each at 5-under.

Other counting scores for LSU during the opening round include Garrett Barber at even-par 70, while Cohen Trolio and Luke Haskew both carded 4-over rounds of 74.

Starting on the back nine, Barber led the Tigers with four birdies and got to 2-under following a birdie on No. 17. Barber closed with a 2-over 37 on the front nine to cap his day at even par.

Doyle, who leads the Tigers with five Top 10 finishes this year, had back-to-back birdies on holes No. 7 and 8 before settling for a bogey on this final hole to finish at 1-under. Doyle’s opening round included three birdies.

Since making his SEC Championships debut in 2021, Doyle has shot even-par or better rounds five times in seven rounds.

Gaunt posted 15 pars during his round, which tied for the most among all competitors, and added a pair of birdies – one on each side – and a bogey to end the day at 1-under. Doyle and Gaunt are both tied for 23rd overall heading into the second round on Thursday.

LSU will be paired with Georgia and Missouri and start on back nine again on Thursday in the second round. Haskew will get LSU started in round two at 8:20 a.m. tomorrow, followed by Trolio at 8:30, Barber at 8:40, Gaunt at 8:50 and Doyle at 9.

Live scoring for the tournament can be found at www.golfstat.com.

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Tiger Rag News Services

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