Cougars finish 13th at John H. Burns Invitational

KAHUKU, Hawaii — After shooting back-to-back 9-over par, the BYU men’s golf team shot an 18-over on Friday to finish 13th at the John H. Burns Invitational.

“It was a lot more windy today,” said associate head coach Todd Miller. “Something like winds of 30-35 miles per hour. We just weren’t prepared for that coming out of the winter.”

The Cougars struggled with hitting the fairways and the greens. Hole No. 10, the first hole for the Cougars on the day, proved to be particularly difficult in the final round. As a team, BYU shot 9-over on that hole alone.

“We really struggled on that first hole,” Miller said. “The guys really held it together after that.”

While the team struggled as a whole, Hawaii native Justin Keiley played well in his first tournament of the season.

Keiley, who finished tied for 35th overall, shot a first round 2-under and finished 4-over for the tournament.

“Just did a great job,” Miller said. “He hit the ball well and was really consistent. Adam (Tebbs) was consistent as well. They stepped up and were ready to play.”

Zac Blair placed highest for BYU, finishing 31st. Blair led the Cougars with nine birdies throughout the tournament.

The team will resume play on Feb. 27 when it travels to California for the USC Intercollegiate.

Steven McCall works in BYU Athletic Communications as a golf sports information director. He can be reached at golf_sid@byu.edu or on twitter @S_McCall7.