April 22, 2008

BRASELTON, Ga. - Perfect conditions led to improved scoring in the second round of the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship, with the JU men's golf team improving by nine shots on Tuesday.

The Dolphins posted a round of 307, with Matt Kleinrock, Christian Martin and Stephen Healy each carding a five-over par 76. JU was unable to make up any ground in the standings, sitting in 10th place heading into the final round.

Martin's round moved him to 11-over par after 36 holes, the team leader entering the final round at the par-71 Chateau Elan Golf Club.

"We played better today in perfect conditions," said JU head coach Jim Taketa. "The guys really grinded out there today, which is good to see when things aren't going your way. We're going to come tomorrow and play as hard as we can to put a good finish on the season."

Martin's round opened with a bogey at the second, but a birdie at the third got him back to even-par quickly. Back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 6 and 7 sent him to the back nine at two-over par.

Back-to-back bogeys plagued him again at Nos. 10 and 11, with four straight pars being interrupted by a bogey at the 16th with two pars to finish his round.

Kleinrock's round was a roller coast affair that left his exhausted. After opening with five straight pars, a bogey-par-double bogey stretch had him at three-over par through eight holes.

Just when things looked bleak, Kleinrock ran in a birdie at the ninth to make the turn at two-over par.

The back nine continued the ride, with bogeys at 11 and 14 dropping him to four-over par. A birdie at the 16th got it back to three-over par, but a double bogey on the par-3 17th finished his round at five-over par. He is at 12-over par through 36 holes.

Healy, the freshman from Ireland, had a bogey at the second but rallied with a birdie at the fourth to return to even-par. A bogey at the fifth was the only blemish on his scorecard the rest of the front nine, turning at one-over par.

The back nine saw Healy make five bogeys and one birdie, on the par-5 15th, to finish with a disappointing 76. He enters the final round at 15-over par for the tournament.

Justin Jones shot an eight-over par 79 to round out the team score. Four bogeys over a five hole stretch on the front nine was offset by a birdie at the eighth to make the turn at three-over par.

The back nine proved to be much tougher as Jones had five bogeys, including a back-to-back-to-back stretch from No. 14 to 16, to finish at eight-over par for the round and 18-over par for the event.

Freshman Tim Adams struggled on the back nine after making the turn at one-over par. He had five bogeys and two double bogeys as he finished with an 81 to sit at 19-over for the event.

JU will tee it up for the final time this season on Wednesday, going off at 8 a.m.