Homan Advances To 3rd Round Of Southern Amateur Championship

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - On a day that was already sure to be boiling over with tension, Mother Nature added to the equation to test golfers at the 106th Southern Amateur Championship. Thursday's competitors at the Chenal Country Club had to battle severe storms, rain delays and sweltering heat that neared the century mark to make it past cut day.

In a starting field that included 168 golfers, Mississippi State was represented well by it's three participants from the Bulldog golf team who qualified last month. Among them only Coach Clay Homan made the cut with his 5-over par to finish the first two rounds with a total score of 149 to advance for third round play on Friday.

Play was suspended at 7:50 p.m. Thursday for a handful of golfers who were wrapping up the second round. Their second round will conclude at 7 a.m. Friday to determine the rest of the leaderboard.

It was a tale of two days for Fletcher Johnson and Barrett Edens, as the pair each fired off a great round, but each also posted a round that wasn't needed.

For Johnson the opening round kept him from advancing, as the freshman posted an eleven-over par. The Tupelo native followed the opening day with a strong finish as he posted a 2-over par on Thursday. The great effort from Johnson in the second round wasn't enough to propel him above the cut line however, as his run in the Southern Amateur ended on Thursday with a total score of 157.

Edens' run at the Southern Amateur began with the sophomore firing off a 3-over par to place himself above the cut line. The second round of play at the Chenal Country Club gave the Okolona, Miss., native a few struggles however, to leave Edens with an 8-over par score to fall below the cut line for Thursday.Edens carded a 155 to finish the tourney.