Kansas University senior Gary Woodland did not want to stop playing after his first-round 67 Monday at the Kansas Invitational.

Good thing for Woodland, the first day of the tournament at Alvamar Country Club consisted of two rounds.

Woodland continued to be in control during his second round, firing a 68, putting him at 9 under for the tournament and six shots ahead of Houston’s Jordan Irwin.

“I was glad I had to keep going,” Woodland said. “I didn’t have to stop and sleep on it. I had to keep going and keep my momentum going.”

Thanks to the dominating play of Woodland, Kansas was able to finish with a two-round total of 574, 10 shots better than second-place Iowa State, heading into today’s final 18 holes. Senior Tyler Docking also helped, firing a first-round 70 and a second-round 74, good for a fourth-place tie. Freshman Bobby Knowles finished 2-over on the day, putting him in a tie for 12th place.

“The other guys came in like a good team,” Kansas coach Ross Randall said. “Every one of them had at least one pretty good round. This golf course played pretty difficult, so we are happy with our position right now.”

Kansas University senior Gary Woodland lines up a putt during the Kansas Invitational. Woodland shot back-to-back rounds of 67 and 68 on Monday to take a commanding lead after the first day of competition at Alvamar Country Club.

Woodland hit every green in regulation during his final nine holes, and poured in three more birdies to continue to extend his lead. He missed just one fairway on the final stretch, bombing drives, many of which approached 350 yards.

His most impressive hole on the back nine was the 562-yard, par-5 15th. Woodland used a driving iron off the tee and launched it nearly 300 yards, leaving him 270 yards from the pin. He pulled out his 3 wood and hit it just over the green. Woodland then chipped from 25 feet to within two feet to set up his last birdie of the day.

“I just felt like I was in control today and I thought if I could just keep it in play I could make putts down the stretch,” Woodland said. “I hit bad shots here and there, but I got good breaks too.”

One of those bad shots that turned into a good break was his drive on the par-4 16th, where he drove it into the woods down the right side. The good news was the Topeka native hit it so far he cleared the trees and was able to have an unobstructed second shot, 50 yards from the hole, and would make par.

Kansas University's Tyler Docking lines up a putt at the Kansas Invitational. Docking shot rounds of 70 and 74 on Monday at Alvamar Country Club.

Winds gusted throughout the day, making it difficult for the players to judge distances.

“The course played really tough today,” Woodland said. “I would definitely say that the golf course won. With the north wind, and with it being cold, the golf course was set up tough.”

Kansas plans to play the exact same way tomorrow, despite leading by 10 shots.

“I assume the wind is going to blow again, so we just need to take care of our own business and don’t worry about other people,” Randall said. “If we can do that, and play relatively well, I think we will be OK. You can’t take anything for granted in this game.”

Today’s final round tees off at 8:30 am.

“We are young but we are playing well,” Woodland said. “We need to go out and play a good round (today) and close the deal.”

Team Results

Kansas 287 287 — 574

Iowa State 293 237 — 584

Houston 294 291 — 588

Nebraska 295 294 — 589

California – Davis 299 297 — 596

South Dakota State 297 300 — 597

Louisiana-Lafayette 306 296 –602

North Texas 300 304 — 604

Western Kentucky 301 305 — 606

UMKC 301 306 — 607

Northern Iowa 313 297 — 610

Illinois State 306 305 — 611

Missouri State 301 311 — 612

Cleveland State 310 303 — 613

Drake University 298 320 — 618

Oral Roberts 303 319 — 622

Individual Results

1. Gary Woodland, Kansas 67 68 — 135

2. Jordan Irwin, Houston 70 71 — 141

3. Louie Bishop, UC Davis 71 71 — 142

T4. Tyler Docking, Kansas 70 74 — 144

T4. Rodney Hamblin, Iowa State 70 74 — 144

T4. Devin Carrey, Louisiana-Lafayette 73 71 — 144

T4. Cole Howard, North Texas 73 71 — 144

T4. Michael Haverfield 69 75 — 144

T9. Joe Cermak, Iowa State 74 71 — 145

T9. Ty Capps, Nebraska 73 72 — 145

T12. Bobby Knowles, Kansas 74 72 — 146

T12. Patrick Roth, Kansas 74 72 — 146

T25. Zach Pederson, Kansas 76 73 — 149

T66. David Cosel, Kansas 82 75 — 157

T81. Walt Koebel, Kansas 82 78 — 160

T85. Barrett Martens, Kansas 77 85 — 162