Sept. 30, 2007
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Sophomore Doug Fortner (Tustin, Calif./Foothill) fired a career-low 68 to help spark Notre Dame into third place after the first round of the Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic, which teed off Sunday at the Warren Golf Course (par 70/7,011 yards) on the Notre Dame campus. The Irish posted a team score of 289 (+9) and find themselves four strokes back of tournament leader (and 25th-ranked) Michigan State, with Baylor currently sitting in second place at 288 among the 12-team field.
Fortner stormed from the gate with two birdies on his first three holes and rode that wave of momentum to the best round of his young college career, one shot better than his previous low mark (set in the first round of last spring’s Triumph at Pauma Valley). Michigan State’s Graham Baillargeon matched Fortner’s opening-round 68 to share the top individual spot through 18 holes.
Junior Josh Sandman (Greensboro, N.C./Southeast Guilford) and sophomore Kyle Willis (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) are tied for fifth place at one-over par 71. Willis, who is playing this week’s tournament as an individual competitor, carded the lowest round of his career, after shooting 72 on three prior occasions (including the final two rounds of last year’s Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic). Three other Notre Dame golfers currently are tied for 21st place at four-over par 74 — senior tri-captain Greg Rodgers (Phoenix, Md./St. Paul’s School), and freshmen Tyler Hock (Ocala, Fla./Forest) and Jeff Chen (Walnut, Calif./Los Altos). Both Irish rookies are playing as individuals this week.
Notre Dame will be back on course Monday beginning at 9:20 a.m. (ET) for the second round of the Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic, with the Irish contingent scheduled to begin on the first tee. Live in-progress scoring is available through the Golfstat web site and complete results will be posted on the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.und.com) upon completion of the day’s action. Fans also can obtain updates on the Irish at the Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic via the Notre Dame Sports Hotline (574-631-3000) and the Irish ALERT text message system (click here for more details or to sign up).
— ND —
Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic
Sept. 30, 2007 — Notre Dame, Ind.
Warren Golf Course (par 70/7,011 yards)
TEAM RESULTS (18-hole totals): 1. Michigan State 285; 2. Baylor 288; 3. NOTRE DAME 289; 4. Virginia 293; 5. North Florida 294; 6. Lamar 296; 7. Iowa 299; 8. Arkansas 300; 9. Colorado State 301; 10. (tie) San Diego, Georgetown and College of Charleston 307.
TOP FOUR INDIVIDUALS PLUS NOTRE DAME FINISHERS (of 75): 1. (tie) Doug Fortner (ND) 68 and Graham Baillargeon (MSU) 68; 3. (tie) Colton Williams (BU) and Todd Larson (Iowa) 69; 5. (tie) Josh Sandman (ND) and Kyle Willis* (ND) 71; 21. (tie) Greg Rodgers (ND), Tyler Hock* (ND) and Jeff Chen* (ND) 74; 38. (tie) Eddie Peckels (ND) and Olavo Batista* (ND) 76; 57. (tie) Connor Alan-Lee* (ND) 79; 59. (tie) Mike King* (ND) and Dustin Zhang* (ND) 80; 62. (tie) Carl Santos-Ocampo (ND) 81.
* – playing as individual competitor (scores do not count to team total)