Oct. 16, 2011

Lone Star Invitational Results

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Behind Joakim Mikkelsen's first-round 66, the 18th-ranked Baylor men's golf team sits in fourth place Sunday after 18 holes of the Lone Star Invitational at Briggs Ranch.

Baylor shot 5-under 283 and is nine strokes behind the leader, No. 16 New Mexico, which shot 14-under 274. Houston is five strokes behind New Mexico in second place, followed by No. 34 Arizona in third. Six teams carded sub-par first rounds, while a seventh team (Texas A&M) shot even-par Sunday.

"Overall, I thought we played well, but we didn't play as great on the par-5s," head coach Greg Priest said. "This is the first tournament out for both Jerry (Ruiz) and Niclas (Mansson), so they were a little rusty."

Mikkelsen, ranked No. 91 overall by Golfstat, is tied for second overall with Houston's Roman Robledo at 6-under 66, two strokes behind the leader, John Catlin of New Mexico (8-under 64). Three golfers are tied for fourth at 4-under 68, followed by a seven-way tie for seventh at 3-under 69.

The Drammen, Norway, native shot 5-under on the front nine and carded four birdies and an eagle on the par-5 No. 3. Sunday's first-round 66 was his lowest of the season and second-lowest of his career (65 at 2011 Wyoming Cowboy Classic).

"Joakim played extremely well, so we were able to hang in there," Priest said. "He carried us Sunday. We still have a long way to go. We have two more rounds to play and I think we are in a good position. We'll be ready to play a little better Monday."

Ryan O'Rear and Mikkel Bjerch-Andresen are tied for 23rd overall at even-par 72. Both Jerry Ruiz and Niclas Mansson made their season debut Sunday. Ruiz is tied for 31st at 1-over 73, while Mansson is tied for 45th after carding a first-round 74.

The second round of the Lone Star Invitational will tee off Monday at 8:30 a.m. CDT. Live scoring will be available at www.golfstat.com.