WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – Freshman Drake Bushong (Pekin, Ill./Pekin) shot a first-round two-under 69 and is the leader after 36 holes at the Zach Johnson Invitational, while the Bradley men's golf team is second in the team standings.
Bushong continued his strong play by matching a season-best with a two-under par 69 at the par-71 Glen Oaks Country Club and fired a 73 in the afternoon to close Monday's action even at 142. He has a one-shot lead on Northern Iowa's Eric Sikkema, who finished the day in second at 142.
Bushong has now shot 75 or better in each of his eight collegiate rounds and is the first Bradley freshman to open their career with eight consecutive sub-80 rounds since former Braves standout Seth Trolia had 13 straight to start the 2011-12 season.
In addition to Bushong, senior Garrett Cox (Mahomet, Ill./Seymour) ran his streak of consecutive sub-80 rounds to a career-best 11 with matching scores of 73. Cox is four back of Bushong in a tie for seventh at 146. Senior Lyle Burns (Mahomet, Ill./Seymour/Parkland C.C.) followed up a first-round 76 with a 71 and is one behind Cox at 147 in a tie for ninth.
Junior Zach Jewell (Mapleton, Ill./Limestone/Illinois Central) and sophomore Daniel Lensing (Spring Park, Minn./Orono) will enter Tuesday's final round tied for 34th (157). Jewell had a 76 to start the day and an 81 in the afternoon, while Lensing opened Monday's action with a 77 and carded an 80 in the second round. Junior Bobby Jacobs (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso) made his season debut and is in the field as an individual. Jacobs is tied for 44th at 160 after shooting a pair of 80's.
Bradley was atop the team leaderboard after the first round (294), but slipped to second to close the day after a second-round score of 297. Missouri Valley Conference rival Northern Iowa is five shots ahead of Bradley in first at 586. The Braves are second at 591 and hold a four-shot edge on third-place South Dakota (595). Oral Roberts is fourth overall at 596, while tournament-host Drake rounds out the top five at 598 in the nine-team field.
The final round of the Zach Johnson Invitational is scheduled to tee off Tuesday at 9 a.m. For live scoring visit - https://www.birdiefire.com/tournament/13284/scores/combo/
