Seminoles, Yaun Lead After Round 1 at Inaugural Folds of Honor Collegiate
GRAND HAVEN, Mich. - Round 1 of the inaugural Folds of Honor Collegiate took place on Monday at American Dunes Golf Club.
Florida State sits at the top of the team leaderboard, recording a 287 (-1) on a brisk Monday a few hundred yards from the east shore of Lake Michigan.
“Being from Florida, seeing how our guys handle different types of things is a really good thing,” Seminole head coach Trey Jones said of the brisk weather conditions.
With six birdies on the round, including three in his final seven holes, junior Brett Roberts led the way for the Seminoles with a two-under 70.
“Brett is one of the top players in the country, and he’s just getting better and better,” Jones said. “Here’s a great example of a guy from Miami that, as a freshman, would not have embraced this. Today shows his growth to say, ‘hey, this is the way it’s going to be,” and going out and playing really good golf.”
Liberty’s Jonathan Yaun, a second-team All-ASUN conference performer a season ago, leads the player leaderboard after he saved par on 13 holes en route to a three-under 69. The Flames, who had all five golfers compile a score three-over or lower, finished their round three shots off the lead.
“My goal today was to keep the ball flighted down and get the putter going,” said the senior from Minneola, Fla. “I stayed really patient today, playing one shot at a time, and I was really proud of myself.”
After his only bogey of the day happened on the 17th hole, Yaun was able to bounce back on the 18th with a birdie.
“18 was everything today,” he said. “You have to be a warrior in these conditions, but knowing you’re out there playing for more than just yourself was the key for me today.”
Grand Valley State’s Charles DeLong, the 2022 PING NCAA Division II First-Team All-American, is tied with Roberts for second place. The sophomore from Dewitt, Mich., recorded six birdies, including a stretch of four in five holes, to pace his round.
Liberty, Oregon State, Illinois, Arizona, Clemson, Kansas, Michigan State, and Grand Valley State are all within 10 strokes of Florida State for the team lead. 11 players from eight schools shot under par.
Round 2 of the 2022 Folds of Honor Collegiate will tee off at 9:30 am EST. Follow this link for live-scoring from Golfstat.
About Folds of Honor
Folds of Honor is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization that provides educational scholarships to the spouses and children of military members who have fallen or been disabled while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Beginning in 2022, it expanded its mission to include first responders. Our educational scholarships support private school tuition or tutoring in grades K-12, tuition for college, technical or trade school and post-graduate work, including a master’s degree, doctorate, or professional program. Funds for a second bachelor’s degree or trade/technical program certification are also available. Since its inception in 2007, Folds of Honor has awarded about 44,000 scholarships totaling about $200 million in all 50 states. Among the students served, 41 percent are minorities. It is rated a four-star charity by Charity Navigator and Platinum on GuideStar. It was founded by Lt Col Dan Rooney, the only-ever F-16 fighter pilot (with three combat tours in Iraq) and PGA Professional. He is currently stationed at Headquarters Air Force Recruiting Service Detachment 1, at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas. For more information or to donate in support of a Folds of Honor scholarship visit foldsofhonor.org.
About American Dunes Golf Club
In 2006, the Grand Haven Golf Club hosted a small golf tournament that would inspire the formation of Folds of Honor. The Grand Haven Golf Club closed in 2018 and a small group of patriots joined together with Jack Nicklaus to create American Dunes. The mission of American Dunes is unwavering. We are honored to raise awareness and funds for the families of our fallen and disabled veterans. Jack Nicklaus led the project by donating his $3,000,000 design fee, a group of 18 individuals sponsored a hole and five private investors joined together to preserve the birthplace of Folds of Honor. The grand opening of American Dunes Golf Club took place on May 2, 2021.