Kearney’s Zech shoots a 66 at Missouri Class 3 golf tournament

Source: The Star

Garvey Scott | The Kansas City Star

Kearney’s Ryan Zech was on target all day Monday at the Missouri Class 3 tournament, shooting a 5-under 66.

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NIXA, Mo. | Ryan Zech hardly cracked a smile or showed an ounce of emotion as he walked off the 18th hole at Fremont Hills Country Club on Monday after the first round of the Missouri Class 3 golf tournament.

Zech, a sophomore at Kearney, had reason to show some excitement. He fired a 5-under 66 on the par-71 course, tying him for the second-lowest round in state tournament history.

More important, it gave Zech a 7-stroke lead heading into today’s final round.

“I just tried to hit the fairways and then get on the greens,” Zech said. “There are a lot of pars on this course. You have a chance to come out and if you putt well to score pretty low.”

Zech’s simple philosophy began to work more and more as the match went on. After bogeying the opening hole and making par on each of the next three, he went 6 under over the next 14 holes and shot a 33 on both the front and back nines.

His 66 tied his lowest 18 holes ever and was his lowest in high school competition.

With a wide margin between him and the rest of the field, Zech is set up to become the first Class 3 golfer to finish under par since 2005.

“He’s such a complete player,” Kearney coach Mike Fallein said. “The things he is able to do never really surprise me. He’s a talented golfer.”

The Bulldogs will also be counting on him to help them make up a 9-stroke deficit in the team standings.

Because of a scoring error, Kearney had to disqualify the score of Robert Neumann — who had a 73 in his opening round — because his scorecard didn’t match his actual score. With his score, the Bulldogs would have shot a 307 as a team, but instead enter the final round tied for fourth at 329 after using their fifth player’s score.

Neumann, who won the district tournament, will be eligible to play for Kearney as part of the team today but won’t be eligible for the individual title.

“I just wish it would have been brought up at the table,” Fallein said of the scoring error being brought up nearly 30 minutes later. “It’s water under the bridge now for us, though. We have to take our medicine and go on.”

Westminster Christian leads the team standings at 320. Warrensburg is second with a 321, while Pembroke Hill is third at 327.

Class 4Rockhurst turned in a solid first-round effort and jumped out to the lead at Rivercut Golf Course in Springfield.

The Hawklets had a team score of 300, with all five golfers shooting 77 or lower.

But Rockhurst hasn’t wrapped up the title. Chaminade is second at 307 entering today’s final round. Park Hill South is fifth with a 313.

“We’ve come from 6 behind before,” Rockhurst coach Mike O’Leary said. “Last year we were in fourth place and 4 or 5 strokes back. Seven strokes is nothing, especially with all the water holes and difficulties this course provides. Bad things can happen. I don’t think they will, but we don’t want to get complacent.

Rockhurst was led by Michael McGee who shot a 2-over 73. That score puts him in a six-way tie for second, just 1 stroke out of the lead.

Park Hill South is fifth with a 313.

Class 2Two Kansas City-area golfers are in contention at the state golf tournament in Sedalia.

Blaine Broderick of Richmond and Hunter Lewis of Lawson both shot 77s in the opening round at the Sedalia Country Club. They enter today’s final round in a tie for fourth, 4 strokes behind J.J. Brown of Ash Grove.

Burning up the course Kearney’s Ryan Zech shot a 66 Monday, tying for the second-lowest score in Missouri state tournament history. Here are the 10 lowest rounds:

submitted by COLE YOUNG - 2009-05-18 23:21:02