Clemson senior All-American Jacob Bridgeman continued his record setting play with a second-round 63 Monday afternoon and is in second place after 36 holes at the Valspar Collegiate at The Floridian in Palm City, Fla.
Bridgeman and his Clemson teammates are tied for ninth as a team after 36 holes with a 565 score. Pepperdine, ranked 10th in the nation, had a strong day and stands at 28-under-par 540 after two rounds. The defending National Champions are 14 shots ahead of sixth ranked Arizona State and 16 ahead of fourth ranked North Carolina, the highest ranked team in the field. The 15-team field features four of the top 10 and eight of the top 25 teams in the nation according to Golfweek, and 20 of the top 100 individuals according to the Golfstat rankings.
The tournament has the added incentive that the champion of this tournament will receive an invitation to the 2023 Valspar Invitational on the PGA Tour.
Bridgeman started the day with a four-under-par 67 in the morning. That round featured five birdies and an eagle. His only blemish of the round, and of the day for that matter, was a triple bogey seven on the 18th hole. The native of Inman, SC had 13 birdies and an eagle on the day, including eight birdies and no bogeys in the afternoon round. That afternoon round was his third bogey free round in his last five.
Bridgeman tied his own Clemson record for consecutive rounds of 67 or better with his afternoon 63. He also had five rounds of 67 or better over his last three rounds of 2019-20 and the first two of 2020-21. He now has 45 career rounds in the 60s, tied for second on the Clemson all-time list with D.J. Trahan. Bryson Nimmer is the career leader with 46, so he could tie that mark on Tuesday.
Bridgeman is on an incredible streak in that he his now 28-under-par over his last five rounds and two tournaments for Clemson. He shot 16-under par in winning the Linger Longer Invitational last week. Prior to that he won the Canadian Tour Qualifier in Alabama with a 19-under-par score over 54 holes.
Bridgeman trails Pepperdine’s Dylan Menante by just one shot entering Tuesday’s final round on the par 71 course that measures 6,921 yards.
Zack Gordon is Clemson’s second best player after 36 holes after rounds of even par 71 and one over par 72. In both rounds he had an front nine score of 37, followed by a back nine with three birdies. He is tied for 38th in the medalist race.
Carter Pendley and Kian Rose are tied for 56th in the standings after 36 holes. Pendley had rounds of 72-75 and Rose had rounds of 77-70. Both players made eagle on the par 4 sixth hole, a 300-yard hole, in the second round. Rose’s 70 was his best in his last 11 rounds and tied for his second best round of the year overall.
Colby Patton had rounds of 75 and 76 on Monday and his 151 score is tied for 71st
The final round will be played on Tuesday. Live scoring is available on golfstat.com.
