TULSA, Okla. — Second-year William Pulley carded back-to-back rounds of par or better and 2nd-year Drew Simmons fired an opening-round 5-under 66 on Monday, propelling the Harding men's golf team into a tie for fifth place after 36 holes at the NSU Men's Classic at Page Belcher Golf Course's Stone Creek layout.
The tournament marked a historical milestone for the program: it was the first Harding men's golf event featuring an all-American five-man lineup since the 2014 Great American Conference Championship.
Competing in their second tournament of the fall, the Bisons opened the day with a 2-under 282—their lowest single-round team score of the young season—before posting a 10-over 294 in the afternoon. Harding enters Tuesday's final 18 holes tied for fifth place with Southwest Baptist at 8-over 576 (282-294), just one stroke back of fourth-place Southwestern Oklahoma State (+7).
Host Northeastern State leads the 13-team field at 14-under 554 (277-277), holding a four-stroke lead over co-runners-up Southern Arkansas (279-279—558, -10) and Northwestern Oklahoma State (287-271—558, -10).
Pulley paced the Bisons on the 36-hole individual leaderboard, finishing the day in a tie for 11th place at 2-under 140 (69-71). The Colleyville, Texas, native opened his morning with a 2-under 69 that featured four birdies and followed with an even-par 71 in the second round. Pulley took advantage of the par 5s throughout Monday, tying for sixth in the 77-player field with a 4.25 stroke average (-6).
Simmons provided the fireworks of the morning round with a collegiate career-low 5-under 66, finishing just two strokes off the school single-round record and tying for the fifth-best stroke score in program history. The Plano, Texas, native torched the front nine with a 5-under 30 that began with an eagle on the 532-yard, par-5 first hole, followed by a birdie on the par-3 second and another birdie on the par-4 fifth. Simmons added a 76 in the afternoon to sit tied for 14th at even-par 142 (66-76).
Fourth-year Easton Denney sits tied for 41st at 4-over 146 after turning in rounds of 72 and 74. Fourth-year Conner Geist shares 49th place at 7-over 149 (76-73), while 3rd-year Austin Bibb rounds out the Harding lineup tied for 65th at 11-over 153 (75-78).
As a team, Harding excelled on the par 3s, ranking third in the field with a 3.20 stroke average (+10). The Bisons also tied for second in total eagles with three, tied for fourth in par-5 scoring at 16-under (4.60), and ranked third overall in total pars with 108.
Northeastern State's Will Livermore leads the individual race at 7-under 135 (67-68), holding a one-stroke lead over Southern Arkansas' Luke Cote (-6) and NSU teammate Ian Wilcoxen (-6).
The final 18 holes of the 54-hole event will conclude Tuesday morning.
