Landon Fox began play today as the lone entry from the Barton Community College men's golf team in the 2015 NJCAA Division I Men's National Championship at Sand Creek Station in Newton, Kansas. Teeing off in one of the early times, Fox carded a 39 and 40 to finish the opening round with a +7 79 placing in a 70th place tie among ninety-six other golfers.
Delayed thirty-minutes due to frost, the first hole provided a bit of chill to Fox's round missing a short putt lowside to begin the day. Missing an opportunity to birdie the tough second hole, Fox's chipping game kept him handy on the green all day while putts burned the edges. Running into trouble on the fifth off the box leading to another bogey, Fox came back draining a 20' downhill slider to get back at +1. Two holes later water off the box and finding sand on the approach dropped the Winfield sophomore two strokes to a +3 39 first nine score.
Just missing a 12' birdie trying to tame the 10th hole affectionally nick-named "The Beast", Fox carried momentum to the 11th bombing the tee shot within 63 yards of the hole. Too much backspin on the wedge pulled Fox further from the hole but still had a good opportunity for birdie burning the right edge.
Fighting trouble with the driver all day, Fox got a semi fortunate lie following a snap hook off the box. With a tremendous effort back to the center of the fairway from the gunk, Fox's approach behind the stick spun past the hole leaving a 15' uphill putt losing steam and drifting just wide right for a scrambled bogey.
Parring the thirteenth, Fox found the bunker off the fourteenth tee and suddenly Fox added two more numbers to the round moving to +6. Bouncing back on the next hole, Fox bombed the drive to within 70 yards but a lipped out approach for eagle and lipped out putt for birdie left the scorecard the same. A perfect chip on seventeen to hold par followed by a leaked drive off the eighteenth seemed to signify the day's round as a burned edge bogey putt closed the round of missed opportunity.
Having the morning tee times on the opening day, Fox will begin Wednesday's second day of competition at 12:30 p.m.
More regarding the NJCAA Division I Men's National Championships