The WSU men’s golf team is tied for 14th place after the first round of the Paintbrush Invitational with a score of 14-over-par (305).

Senior Nick Mandell, juniors Zach Anderson and Derek Bayley and sophomores AJ Armstrong and Grant Cole make up the varsity five for WSU.

Armstrong leads the team at 3-over-par (75). Both Anderson and Cole carded a shot 4-over-par (76) and recorded a combined seven birdies.

Mandell shot a score of 78 in the first round, coming in at 6-over-par.

Bayley had a difficult time finding his stroke, as he shot 11-over-par (83) and will be looking to improve his score on the second day of the tournament.

With heavy ground to make up in a competitive field, the Cougars will look to improve their final position on the leaderboard in rounds two and three.

The University of Oregon leads the pack by four strokes, shooting 6-under-par (282) in round one. Texas Tech University sits in second place at 2-over-par (286) and is right on the Ducks tail.

The Cougars teed off Monday and will conclude play Tuesday afternoon. The two-day tournament is hosted by the University of Denver at the Colorado Golf Club.

Reporting by James Loss