Friday, April 19
Belleair, Fla.
All Day
Rice University
vs
AAC Championship
Photo by: Conor Kvatek
Chugh Tied for Third at AAC Championship
4/19/2024 2:36:00 PM | Men's Golf
Belleair, Fla. — Junior Raghav Chugh carded a two-under par 68, tying for third-place after one round of the American Athletic Conference Championship.
After starting the day on the back nine with back-to-back pars, Chugh recorded three straight birdies before making the turn at -3. He opened his second nine with a birdie on the first before bogeying the next two holes. He got one back with a birdie on the sixth, but bogeyed the seventh before closing his round with back-to-back-pars.
The 68 was his eighth round of par or better this year and the 35th of his career. It was also his second round in the 60's this season and the 15th of his career, tying Jake Benson (2017-22) for the second most rounds in the 60's since 1991.
Freshman Jaivir Pande is tied for 28th-place after carding a one-over 71. Sophomore Lukas Boandl posted a two-over 72 to sit in a 31st-place tie. Freshman Reggie Zhu and fifth-year senior Jay Kirchdorfer are tied for 43rd-place after carding a four-over 74.
Rice is in seventh-place after shooting a five-over 285.
SMU leads the team tournament at -3, two strokes in front of Wichita State. Charlotte's Conor Gough and North Texas' Tucker Allen are tied for the individual lead at -4, two strokes in front of Chugh, Temple's Ethan Whitney, Wichita State's Michael Winslow and UAB's Will Stelt.
JUSTIN EMIL QUOTABLE
"We were really close today. There are some holes on this golf course that can change your round for better or worse. It's a great test and a phenomenal site for our championship. Raghav (Chugh) had a nice day out there and is in contention. Our focus is just one shot, one hole, one day at a time until we run out of golf to play."
NEXT UP
The second round begins at 7 a.m. CT, with the Owls teeing off at 8:05 from hole 10. Rice will tee off with student-athletes from East Carolina and North Texas.
After starting the day on the back nine with back-to-back pars, Chugh recorded three straight birdies before making the turn at -3. He opened his second nine with a birdie on the first before bogeying the next two holes. He got one back with a birdie on the sixth, but bogeyed the seventh before closing his round with back-to-back-pars.
The 68 was his eighth round of par or better this year and the 35th of his career. It was also his second round in the 60's this season and the 15th of his career, tying Jake Benson (2017-22) for the second most rounds in the 60's since 1991.
Freshman Jaivir Pande is tied for 28th-place after carding a one-over 71. Sophomore Lukas Boandl posted a two-over 72 to sit in a 31st-place tie. Freshman Reggie Zhu and fifth-year senior Jay Kirchdorfer are tied for 43rd-place after carding a four-over 74.
Rice is in seventh-place after shooting a five-over 285.
SMU leads the team tournament at -3, two strokes in front of Wichita State. Charlotte's Conor Gough and North Texas' Tucker Allen are tied for the individual lead at -4, two strokes in front of Chugh, Temple's Ethan Whitney, Wichita State's Michael Winslow and UAB's Will Stelt.
JUSTIN EMIL QUOTABLE
"We were really close today. There are some holes on this golf course that can change your round for better or worse. It's a great test and a phenomenal site for our championship. Raghav (Chugh) had a nice day out there and is in contention. Our focus is just one shot, one hole, one day at a time until we run out of golf to play."
NEXT UP
The second round begins at 7 a.m. CT, with the Owls teeing off at 8:05 from hole 10. Rice will tee off with student-athletes from East Carolina and North Texas.
Players Mentioned
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