GRAND HAVEN, Mich. – The opening round of the third annual Folds of Honor Collegiate took place on Monday at American Dunes Golf Club. This year’s tournament has expanded to 15 men’s teams and 15 women’s teams to better reflect the Folds of Honor mission, with 57 percent of scholarship recipients being female.
In the morning window, Texas sophomore Lauren Kim carded five birdies and a bogey-free 67 (-5) to take the Women’s Round 1 lead.
“My putting and short game saved me out there,” said Kim, a Surrey, British Columbia, native. “My ball-striking is like my ‘B’ game right now, but my short game definitely saved me today. I’m glad that I helped out the team and am very grateful as a woman to be here after the women’s field was added.”
Arizona, led by senior Carolina Melgrati’s two-under 70, built a one-shot lead over Ohio State heading into Tuesday’s second round.
Men’s Leaders
“We stayed patient the entire time and didn’t make huge mistakes,” first-year Arizona Head Coach Giovana Maymon said. “We knew it was going to be windy, and I thought that we were pretty good at staying on the right side of the hole all day. The course is in great shape and we love the people who make this what it is.”
“Making your easy pars is very important here because of how tough many of the holes are,” said Milan, Italy, native Melgrati. “You have to take advantage of the easy ones even if you don’t make birdie. We’ve had a lot of big changes at Arizona lately, but I feel like we’re doing great so far. We have a good coaching staff behind us and you can see it on the leaderboard.”
Alabama was the only men’s team under par and lead by 12 after Round 1. In his collegiate debut, Jack Mitchell used six birdies and an eagle on the par-5 6th hole to lead the Crimson Tide with a seven-under 64 and field by three. Michigan State’s Ashton McCulloch is three shots back and Mitchell’s teammates Dominic Clemons and Jonathan Griz are T3 and five back.
“I was really calm coming into the day and excited throughout the week to get over here and make my debut,” Athens, Ala., native Mitchell said. “I hit the ball really well today, chipped it solid when I needed to, and rolled in a lot of putts on the back nine. A round like this solidifies the work I’ve been doing and the people around me pushing me everyday. I’m in a great system and it’s truly cool to see the success.”
“I’m so proud of Jack,” said Alabama Head Coach Jay Seawell. “He and his teacher have worked so hard, making some changes in his golf swing. I knew he was ready to play. I didn’t know he was going to shoot 64 on this hard golf course, but all he told me beforehand was, ‘I want the teammates to learn to trust me.’ I think he gained a lot of trust today.”
“We start at zero everyday,” Seawell continued. “That’s been our motto for a long time. If you play well, you start at zero. If you play poorly, you start at zero. That’s golf. Tomorrow starts its own day. I look forward to seeing how our guys handle this.”
The men will tee off for Round 2 of the 2024 Folds of Honor Collegiate at 7:15 a.m. ET and the women at 12:00 noon EST. Follow this men’s link and women’s link for live scoring and Golf Channel’s live coverage will run 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 4:30-7:30 p.m. ET.
Women’s Day One Leaders
About Folds of Honor
