Todd Drexler

William Buhl Leads After 36 Holes at Gopher Invitational: Razorbacks T-7th

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – William Buhl, a junior on the Arkansas men’s golf team, birdied six of his last 11 holes and carded rounds of 69-67 Sunday to own a one-shot lead with a 36-hole score of 136 at the Gopher Invitational. The Razorbacks are tied for seventh (288-291=579).

Thanks to an opening-round 68, freshman Julian Perico is tied for ninth with an even-par total of 142 over 36 holes.

Buhl led the field by playing the par 4’s at 4-under par and his 11 birdies over 36 holes were the third-best total. Perico led the field with 28 pars.

Third-ranked Oklahoma and #10 Texas are co-leaders over the 14-team field with a 36-hole total of 569, followed by Iowa (574), Purdue (576), Michigan State (576) and San Diego State (578). North Carolina State, like Arkansas, has a two-round total of 579 to stand in a tie for seventh.

The Gopher Invitational, played at the par-71, 7,368-yard Windsong Farm Golf Club, will conclude Monday with 18 final holes.

Buhl’s 36-hole score of 136 is a career-best for the opening two rounds of an event. He was in fourth place after the opening 18 holes Sunday. Buhl was 1-under par on his opening nine holes with a birdie on the par-4, 3rd hole.  He added birdies on holes 12 and 13 but fell back to 1-under after a pair of bogeys. However, he had a birdie on the par-4, 17th to finish with a 69. In the afternoon session, Buhl dropped to even par for the day with a double bogey on the first hole. He traded a birdie on the 4th hole with a bogey on the 7th to stand at 1-over on his second round. From that point, Buhl had birdies on six of his final 11 holes to shoot a 4-under-par 67.

Perico got off to a hot start with birdies on three of his first seven holes. He dropped a shot on the par-5, 9th hole to make the turn at 2-under. He reeled off eight pars and a birdie on the par-5, 12th to turn in his 3-under par 68 on the opening 18 holes. In the second round Sunday afternoon, Perico had 16 pars and three bogeys for a 3-over 74.

Tyson Reeder, who had 25 pars, ranked second in the field by playing the par 4’s at 2-under par. He is tied for 31st with a 36-hole total of 147. In the morning round, he shot a 1-over 72 after posting a double bogey, a bogey, two birdies and 14 pars. Reeder used three birdies, including two to end his afternoon, and 11 pars to shoot a 74 in the second round.

Luis Garza is tied for 67th with a two-round score of 154 (79-75) and Wil Gibson is in 75th with a score of 167 (82-85).

Also competing this weekend (Sept. 8-9) was Noah Edmondson at the Pioneer Creek Intercollegiate, played at the par 72, 6,994-yard Pioneer Creek Golf Course. The senior shot a final-round 75 and moved up four spots to finish 49th with a 54-hole total of 231 (77-79-75).

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