Chambana Sun

The Fighting Illini men's golf team, holding the 13th rank nationally, leads the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational after the first day of competition. At the end of two rounds on Saturday, the team led with an 11-under-par score at the Forest Hills Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.

Illinois was led by notable performances from sophomore Max Herendeen and junior Ryan Voois, both of whom placed in the top 10 individually. Herendeen started strong with a bogey-free round of 66 and followed it with a 69, placing him at 9-under and in a tie for second place. Head coach Mike Small commented on the team's performance, stating, "With the strength of this field, and a golf course that's very gettable, if you play from strength and hit the correct shots, good scores can be shot here, which we showed this afternoon."

Voois, after a first round at 73 with just one bogey, adjusted his form to shoot a 69 in the second round, bringing him to 2-under for the tournament and in ties for ninth place. Senior Jackson Buchanan is also in the top 20, having scored consecutively at 72 in both rounds, holding even-par at a tie for 19th place.

Additional contributions came from sophomore Ethan Wilson and freshman Trey Marrion. Wilson saw a significant improvement from his first to second round, jumping 32 spots with a second-round score of 70, landing him in a tie for 30th. Meanwhile, Marrion recorded a 74 and a 76, settling into a tie for 58th place.

The competition is close, and Illinois holds a narrow lead over other top-ranked teams including No. 5 Oklahoma State, No. 1 Texas, and others within close range. Illinois will begin their final round with tee times starting at 9:40 a.m. ET. Live scoring is provided by Golfstat.