CENTREVILLE, Va. – On the strength of a 3-under 69 in the 1st round and 1-under 71 in the 2nd round from Andrew Potter, the FGCU men's golf team is in 2nd place at the suspended George Mason Patriot Intercollegiate at Chantilly National Golf and Country Club.
 
FGCU fired an opening-round 293 (+5) and was even par in the 2nd round of the day when play was suspended due to darkness. All of FGCU's golfers finished their 2nd rounds with the exception of Doug Smith, who has one hole left to play – the par-3, 196-yard 4th.
 
Play will resume at 8 a.m. on Tuesday with the conclusion of the 2nd round before the players are reset and sent back out for the final round. Live scoring – which as of Monday night displayed some inaccuracies in the FGCU scoring – will be available via Golfstat.
 
The Eagles are just two shots behind leader Delaware (+3) as they are in search of their first tournament title since the 2013-14 season. FGCU is three shots clear of 3rd-place Appalachian State (+8) and six ahead of 4th place and host George Mason (+11).
 
Potter (Naples, Fla./Community School of Naples) is currently 4-under par and tied for 2nd overall in the field of 95 golfers. He tied for the second-lowest round of his career with the 69 – something the junior has now done three times. It is his fourth career round in the 60s, with his career low coming as a freshman when he shot a 66 at the FAU Slomin Autism Championship.
 
After recording a pair of bogeys and playing +2 through the first seven holes of his opening round, Potter played the final 11 holes 5-under par thanks with a quintet of birdies from holes 11-3 as he began his round on the 4th hole. Potter rolled in three birdies and made just two bogeys in his second 18 of the day, and is just one shot behind tournament leader Tripp Summerlin (-5) from Appalachian State.

"Andrew is playing very nicely, but everyone is doing a good job of sticking to their pre-shot routine and course strategy which I'm proud to see," said FGCU head coach Eric Booker. "Hopefully we can continue that tomorrow and pick up a win."
 
Smith (Windermere, Fla./Olympia HS) is also in the top-10 overall as he is tied for 9th. The sophomore opened the day with a 74 in the 1st round before bouncing back with a 2-under 2nd round as he has one hole to play and is even par overall.
 
Robert Renner Jr. (Arlington Heights, Ill./Saint Viator HS) and DJ Griffiths (Binghamton, N.Y./Susquehanna Valley HS) are both tied for 35th overall after the duo each shot rounds of 75-75: 150 (+6). Rounding out the FGCU scoring for the day was Grant Renegar (McComb, Miss./ Meridian CC/Parklane Academy), who signed for rounds of 81 and 74 at the par-72, 7,071-yard layout just outside Washington, D.C.
 
FGCU Lineup
T-2) Andrew Potter: 69-71: 140 (-4)
T-9) Doug Smith*: 74-(-2): E
T-35) DJ Griffiths: 75-75: 150 (+6)
T-35) Robert Renner Jr.: 75-75: 150 (+6)
T-58) Grant Renegar: 81-74: 155 (+11)
* 2nd round not yet complete.
 
Patriot Intercollegiate Field (Golfstat Ranking)
1) #195 Delaware*: 288-(+3): +3
2) #169 FGCU*: 293-(E): +6
3) #193 Appalachian State*: 292-(+4): +8
4) #168 George Mason: 293-294: 587 (+11)
T-5) #158 Elon: 302-288: 590 (+14)
T-5) #200 Bethune-Cookman: 289-301: 590 (+14)
7) #174 Georgetown: 295-296: 591 (+15)
8) #234 St. Bonaventure: 294-303: 597 (+21)
T-9) #188 Longwood: 304-301: 605 (+29)                                        
T-9) #257 Saint Joseph's*: 299-(+18): +29
11) #207 Columbia*: 307-(+12): +31
12) #222 Villanova: 311-299: 610 (+34)                                                 
13) #262 Lafayette: 307-308: 615 (+39)
14) #240 St. John's*: 317-(+17): +46
15) #244 Wagner: 308-320: 628 (+52)
16) N/A McDaniel: 317-314: 631 (+55)
* 2nd round not yet complete.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For schedule updates, news and information, visit FGCUAthletics.com. For the latest news and behind-the-scenes access to information, photos and videos, follow @FGCU_MGolf on Twitter and @FGCU_MGolf on Instagram.
 
COACH BOOKER
FGCU is led by 4th-year coach Eric Booker, a member of the PGA Tour and Web.com Tour (formerly the Nationwide Series) for portions of 17 years from 1990-2007. Booker finished in the top 5 three times in tournaments on the PGA Tour, and also played in the U.S. Open and PGA Championship. He played in 62 career events on the PGA Tour, with his best finish being a tie for 3rd at the 1999 Honda Classic.
 
HELP THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.