BELLEAIR, Fla. – Houston paced the field for the opening round of the American Athletic Conference Men’s Golf Championship at Pelican Golf Club on Friday. The Cougars shot a team score of 8-under 272 following the first 18 holes.  UCF (277, -3) and South Florida (278, -2) ended the day in second and third place, respectively.
 
The average score on the first round of the tournament was 72.22 on the par-70, 6,881-yard course. A total of 15 of the 45 players shot par or better, including ten showings of under-par.
 
Houston got off to a blazing start to open the championship, shooting 272 (-8) to finish the first round with a five-stroke lead. Austyn Reily finished with three eagles on the day, including opening up his round with one to finish with an opening round best 6-under 64. Santiago De La Fuente shot 66 (-4) including six birdies.
 
UCF sits in second place after shooting three-under 277.  Three Knights finished under-par, with Luis Carera and Johnny Travale both shooting two-under 68 and Markus Braadlie shooting 69 (-1).
 
South Florida finished the opening round in third place, shooting 278 (-2). The Bulls were one of just three teams to shoot under-par. Nino Palmquist led South Florida with a 3-under 67, while Jake Peacock shot 69 (-1) for the round.
 
Cincinnati and Memphis finished at 284 (+4) to finish in a tie for fourth place. The Bearcats were led by Ryan Ford who shot 2-under 68 and Rylan Wotherspoon who shot par for the course.
 
James Morgan of Memphis led the way for the Tigers, finishing tied with the second-best score for the day among all players with a 4-under 66.
 
Other individuals shooting under-par were Temple’s Ethan Whitney who finished the first round tied for second place in the individual standings with a 4-under 66. East Carolina’s Lucas Augustsson tied for sixth place, shooting 2-under 68 to lead the Pirates.
 
Teams will resume the second round of the 2023 American Men’s Golf Championship on Saturday with tee times expected to begin at 8 a.m. (ET).
 
 
2023 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE MEN’S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP
Final Team Standings
1. Houston                272 (-8)
2. UCF                        277 (-3)
3. South Florida       278 (-2)
t-4. Cincinnati          284 (+4)
t-4. Memphis            284 (+4)
6. SMU                      285 (+5)
7. Wichita State       292 (+12)
8. East Carolina       293 (+13)
9. Temple                  294 (+14)