TUCSON, Ariz. — Zac Jones had a career day as BYU men’s golf sits in third after darkness suspended play during the second round of the Arizona Intercollegiate on Monday.

“Zac has been playing some great golf this spring,” said BYU director of golf Todd Miller. “We know he can get hot. We’ve been waiting for him to break out in collegiate golf and today was a big step in that direction. Zac had one of the best days on the greens I’ve witnessed as a coach, and it was a lot of fun to watch.”

Jones got off to a blistering start as he carded seven birdies in his first nine holes, including five straight on holes 9-13, to take the solo lead through nine holes. After three bogeys, the sophomore closed with three more birdies, giving him 10 for the day. His 7-under 65 in round one notched his BYU career low and put him one shot back of Arizona’s Johnny Walker who held the first-round lead at 8-under.

“Really, everything was on today,” said Jones. “I hit my driver great, hit a couple of irons and wedges close, chipped in once and made lots of putts. If there’s one thing that stands out though, I would have to say, my putter. The greens were pure, especially in the morning and I love their speed, so it seemed like every putt I hit had a chance to go in.”

Through 12 holes in round two, Jones has carded two birdies, an eagle and a lone bogey to grab a share of the overnight lead at 10-under par. Chaz Aurilia and Cal McCoy of Arizona and Jack Cantlay of Long Beach State each hold a share of the lead with Jones.

No. 11 Texas A&M holds the team lead at 26-under-par through 30 holes with No. 22 Arizona just four back at 22-under. BYU is knotted with Cal at 15-under for third while Long Beach State sits in fifth at 12-under.

"I was impressed by our team's performance today," said Miller. "This has been a difficult winter for collegiate golfers in Utah. Usually, we get a fair amount of winter golf in and we have some kind of idea of how we will start the spring. I really didn’t know what to expect from our guys today but they handled it well."

David Timmins sits in the top 25 after 30 holes at 3-under par. The senior posted a 3-under 69 in the opening round and is even through 12 holes of round two. Keanu Akina is two back of Timmins at 1-under-par in a tie for 27th.

All-American Carson Lundell is tied for 35th after day one and looks to make a move as play resumes tomorrow. Tyson Shelley rounds out the Cougars’ day one scoring at 2-over as he sits in a tie for 48th.

Round two will resume at 9 a.m. MST with play continuing immediately into the final round. Live scoring is available at golfstat.com.

Individual Leaderboard

*Thru 12 holes of round two

Team Leaderboard (Top 5)

*15-Team Field

PROVO, Utah — BYU men’s golf will get its spring season underway at the 43rd Arizona Thunderbirds Intercollegiate, Jan. 30-31 at the Tucson Country Club.

After a fall season in which the Cougars finished third or better in three of their five events, BYU head coach Bruce Brockbank and company will continue their quest to return to the NCAA Championship for the fourth time in five seasons as they tee it up in Tucson.

"These next few tournaments are crucial for our goal to make it back to the national championship and into match play," said BYU director of golf Todd Miller. "Our guys have played a lot of tournaments over the winter and have been working hard to keep their game sharp despite the lack of green grass in Utah this winter. I believe we have enough experience and depth with this team that it won’t take too long to start shooting some great scores."

Carson Lundell, David Timmins, Tyson Shelley, Keanu Akina and Zac Jones will begin the spring season for the Cougars. Lundell, Timmins, Shelley and Jones will make their sixth starts after competing in all five fall events, while Akina will be making his fourth start of the 2022-23 campaign. 

BYU will take on a 15-team field comprised of Arizona, Cal, Cal Poly, CMU, Iowa State, LBSU, New Mexico, New Mexico State, Seattle, Saint Mary’s, SMU, Santa Clara, Texas A&M and West Virginia next week in Tucson. 

The 2023 edition of the Arizona Thunderbirds Intercollegiate will be hosted by the Tucson Country Club for the second-straight year and the fifth time in tournament history.

After practicing indoors all winter, BYU will be tested by the 7,022-yard layout that has played host to 16 USGA Qualifiers, six Arizona Golf Association Amateur Championships and PGA Tour Qualifying school.

The Cougars will make their 17th appearance in the event since the inaugural trip in 2001. BYU took home the team title in 2006 after posting an 18-under par total at Arizona National Golf Club.

BYU finished at 12-under par during the 2022 playing with two Cougars finishing in the top-25. Carson Lundell was the low finisher last season as he carded rounds of 69-70-70—209 to shoot 7-under and finish tenth.

Live scoring for the 43rd Arizona Thunderbirds Intercollegiate will be available at golfstat.com.