Johannsen Birdie on 18 Keeps Hawkeyes in the Lead

TOLEDO, Ohio — A long birdie putt on the 18th hole from first-year Andrew Johannsen kept the University of Iowa men’s golf team atop the leaderboard following the second round of the Inverness Intercollegiate on Monday.

After a neck-and-neck battle with Auburn throughout the round, the Hawkeyes remained in front at five-over par heading into the final hole. Johannsen closed his round with a birdie on 18, putting the Hawkeyes at four-over-par to maintain their position at the top of the team leaderboard.

“That was a great finish by the guys after a slow start. We had to work hard on the front because we weren’t hitting fairways,” said Iowa head coach Tyler Stith. “When you’re out of position here it’s tough, but we kept battling and finished with a solid round.”

Johannsen entered the second round at three-under-par after leading the Hawkeyes individually in the opening round. He finished the day with a two-over-par score, moving to a tie for third place. Johannsen currently trails only Ben Gregg of Texas Tech and Ryder Cowan of Oklahoma, with both Texas Tech and Oklahoma sitting behind Iowa in the team standings.

Second-year Bennett Warren also moved up the individual leaderboard during the second round. Warren carded a one-under-par 70 to bring his tournament total to an even-par 144, placing him in a tie for fifth.

Fourth-year Maxwell Tjoa recorded a three-over-par round and currently sits at two-over-par for the tournament, tied for 12th. Grant Gudgel is three-over-par through two rounds, while Ryan Shellberg sits at 12-over-par and is tied for 76th.

“Bennett came through with a great round. We really needed someone under par today and he delivered. But it was a team effort,” said Stith. “Grant was +4 early, but kept grinding and made a clutch birdie putt on the last hole. Andrew played a great back nine and birdies the last as well.”

The Hawkeyes will start their final round at the Inverness Club with a 11:20 p.m. (CT) tee time off of Hole 1.