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April 25, 2014
Results
TUCSON, Ariz. (UNLVRebels.com) - UNLV junior Carl Jonsonfired a 5-under-par 66 and holds a two-shot lead after the first round of the 2014 Mountain West Men's Golf Championship, which was played on Friday at the Catalina Course at Omni Tucson National Resort (par 71, 7,144 yards).
Jonson started his round with four birdies in the first eight holes before bogeying No. 9. He then alternated birdies and bogeys on Nos. 10 and 11, and Nos. 15 and 16 before recording birdies on both Nos. 17 and 18. On the day, he led all golfers with eight birdies.
San Diego State's Riccardo Michelini is in second place at 3-under after a bogey-free round, while there is a two-way tie for third at 2-under.
Defending champion and No. 23 New Mexico is the team leader after shooting 5-under 279. The Rebels are just one shot back in second at 4-under 280. San Diego State is third at 3-under, followed by Air Force at 3-over and Wyoming at 6-over. Colorado State and San José State are both tied for sixth at 8-over, Boise State is eighth at 9-over, Nevada, Reno is ninth at 12-over, Utah State is 10th at 14-over and Fresno State is 11th at 23-over. All 11 MW schools are represented in the field, which is made up of 55 individuals.
Junior Kurt Kitayama also was under par during the first day of play for the Rebels as he is tied for fifth at 1-under 70, junior Nicholas Maruri is tied for 11th at even-par 71, sophomore Zane Thomas is tied for 23rd at 2-over 73 and sophomore AJ McInerneyis tied for 30th at 3-over 74.
Play at the 54-hole tournament will continue on Saturday and conclude on Sunday with 18 holes each day starting at 7 a.m. PT. Live scoring for the MW Championship is available courtesy of Golfstat through a link on UNLVRebels.com. For more information on the MW Championship, visit TheMW.com or its tournament central page.
The tournament is an opportunity for the Rebels to earn three more points in the Governor's Series, presented by NV Energy. The competition between UNLV and Nevada, Reno is in its second year and is a head-to-head athletic and academic challenge between the longtime rivals. UNLV won the inaugural series 37.5-10.5.
UNLV currently leads this year's competition 18.0-12.0. To track the scoring, visit the Governor's Series page at UNLVRebels.com.