Clegg Leads After Dominant First Round At Old Waverly

Friday, March 26

West Point, Miss. (Old Waverly GC)

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Mississippi State

Old Waverly Collegiate

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Clegg Leads After Dominant First Round At Old Waverly

March 26, 2021 | Men's Golf

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By: Adrian Spears, Communications Student Assistant

WEST POINT, Miss. – Mississippi State's men's golf program hosted the first round of the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship on Friday. The slow winds and clear skies made a beautiful setting for Ford Clegg to climb to the top of the leaderboard.

The junior had a near-perfect performance shooting four straight birdies on the front nine to take an early lead. He sunk another birdie to land at the 4-under mark at the turn and opened the back nine, shooting under par on Holes 10, 12 and 13. Clegg double-bogeyed Hole 15 but made up for it, closing the round with another birdie to finish with a 5-under 67 that was good for first place through 18 holes.

"I thought it was a good day overall," head coach Dusty Smith said. "Ford did a great job of pacing the team today. He had an unfortunate break on 15, but huge birdie for us on 18."

The Bulldogs finished at 1-under 287 and in the top half of the field.

Freshman Loïc Ettlin opened the round with two birdies on holes one and two. He finished in a tie for 25^th with an even-par performance. Freshman Hunter Logan shot even or under par through the first four holes but finished the round at 3-over tying for 59^th.

Seniors Garrett Johnson and Austin Fulton ended the round in a tie for 48^th. They both shot birdies on Hole 18 to finish the opening round at 2-over 74.

"I'm really proud of the guys with how they finished," Smith said. "The three birdies on 18 gave us great momentum going into tomorrow. I thought it was a good start and we look forward to building on it."

Junior Ben Nelson competed as an individual and finished the round in the top 25. He opened the round with a bogey, but shot par or better through Hole 12. Nelson carded a 1-over on the day to land in a tie for 15^th. Seniors Cameron Clarke and Griffin Agent also played as individuals in the tournament. Clarke shot 2-over, and Agent finished at 8-over.

William Wann, Austin Vukovits and freshman Pedro Cruz Silva rounded out the Bulldog individuals. Wann carded a 3-over 75 through the round to tie for 59^th. Vukovits shot a 1-over par through the first nine holes but hit par on the last five holes to finish the round tied for 33^rd with a 1-over 73. Cruz carded a 4-over 76 in his first collegiate round.

Round two of the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship is scheduled to tee off at 8 a.m. CT Saturday morning. Fans are encouraged to attend, but advised to be aware of weather conditions.

For more information on the Bulldog golf program, follow on Twitter and Instagram and like on Facebook by searching "HailStateMG."