Flames Tied for 2nd Place at Sea Best Invitational

A pair of consistent rounds on Monday allowed Liberty to conclude the first day of play at the Sea Best Invitational tied for second place.

Following 36 holes of action at the TPC Sawgrass – Dye's Valley Course (par 70, 6,790 yards), the Flames (291-293) are tied for second place with Duke (284-300). Both teams carded a 24-over par 585 on Monday.

A strong opening round of even par by North Florida allows the Ospreys to sit atop the leaderboard. North Florida holds a 13-stroke lead over Liberty and Duke as they lead the 12-team field with an 11-over par 571 (280-291).

The Flames will return to the course on Tuesday morning to begin their final round, heading off the No. 1 tee (par 5, 558 yards) starting at 8:54 a.m.  

Round Recap – Liberty's Starting Five:
• Kieran Vincent – T2 1-under par 139 (68-71)
• Alexandre Fuchs – 10 4-over par 144 (73-71)
• Ervin Chang – T26 9-over par 149 (74-75)
• Jonathan Yaun – T37 12-over par 152 (76-76)
• Isaac Simmons – T63 18-over par 158 (82-76)
• Individual – Zach Barbin – T17 7-over par 147 (75-72)

Field Reflections:
• A total of four strokes separate five teams that currently hold the spots second through sixth place on the team leaderboard.
• Following Liberty and Duke, Charlotte is in fifth place at 25-over par 585 (284-301).
• NC State is in fifth place with a 27-over par 587 (289-298) and tournament host Jacksonville is in sixth place with a 28-over par 588 (295-293).
• The TPC Sawgrass – Dye's Valley Course, the sister course to the famed TPC Sawgrass – Stadium course, was a stiff test of golf on Monday.
• The par-70 course played to a stroke average of 74.96 during the morning flight and a 76.51 average during the afternoon round.
• Only six players in the 75-man field managed to finish the first 36 holes of play in red figures.
• NC State's Easton Paxton leads the field with a 4-under par 136 (68-68).

Birdies and Bogeys – Liberty Team Notes:
• Three strokes behind NC State Easton Paxton are five players tied at 1-under par 139, including the Flames' Kieran Vincent (68-71).
• Vincent's opening round 2-under par 68 was his third sub-70 round in a row.
• Vincent led the Flames on the day and finished tied for first in the field with 12 birdies on Monday.
• Alexandre Fuchs sits in 10th place following a 4-over par 144 (73-71) after leading the field with 26 pars.
• Zach Barbin, who is competing as an individual, is tied for 18th place following a 7-over par 147 (75-72).

Course Information:
• TPC Sawgrass – Dye's Valley Course (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)
• Par 70, 6,790 yards

Following the Flames at Sea Best Invitational:
• Live stats will be available at Golfstat.com
• Twitter @LibertyGolf
• Instagram @LibertyGolf
• Round 3 Tee Time: Tuesday at 8:54 a.m./EST (No. 1 tee)

Photos provided by Todd Drexel