Baylor Men’s Golf Leads American Teams in Japan - kcentv.com - KCEN HD - Waco, Temple, and Killeen

TANAGURA, Japan – Baylor men's golf leads all four American teams, but the Bears are in fifth place behind four teams from Japan after shooting 6-over-par 286 on Wednesday at the 2012 Topy Cup at Tanagura Country Club in Tanagura, Japan.

"Today was a rough day because we made several mistakes on the greens," head coach Greg Priest said. "Most of the teams went low today, but we just have to bounce back tomorrow."

The Bears (+1; 275-286=561) entered the day in third place, just two strokes back of the co-leaders after shooting and opening-round 275, but Tohoku Fukushi (-20; 273-267=540) expanded its lead by posting a 267 to move 10 shots ahead of Osaka Gakuin (-10; 273-277=550). Baylor is 21 strokes back of Tohoku Fukushi, 11 back of Osaka Gakuin, six behind third-place Nihon (-5; 276-276=555) and five back of fourth-place Senshu (-4; 283-273=556).

Mikkel Bjerch-Andresen (-3; 66-71=137) was tied for the lead after an opening round 66, but he shot 1-over 71 to fall into a tie for seventh place individually. Kyle Jones (E; 69-71=140) and Niclas Mansson (E; 69-71=140) both followed first-round scores of 69 with scores of 71 in the second round, moving them to even par and a tie for 14^th in the tournament.

Ryan O'Rear (+4; 71-73=144) and Andreas Gjesteby (+8; 75-73-148) each shot 3-over 73 in the second round. Gjesteby, who is playing in his first tournament at Baylor, improved two strokes over his opening round.

"I thought we did a good job of hanging in there and battling back on the back nine, because most of it was played in heavy rain," Priest said. "This is a young group of guys and a great learning experience for them."

The tournament's final round begins at 7 a.m. Thursday in Japan, which is 5 p.m. CT Wednesday. Gjesteby has the Bears' first tee time at 7:15 p.m. CT, followed by O'Rear at 7:24 p.m., Mansson at 7:33 p.m., Jones at 7:42 p.m. and Bjerch-Andresen at 7:51 p.m.

Follow the official twitter feed of Baylor men's golf, @BaylorMGolf, for updates throughout the tournament.

Team Standings (through 18 holes)

1. Tohoku Fukushi (-20; 273-267=540)

2. Osaka Gakuin (-10; 273-277=550)

3. Nihon (-5; 279-276=555)

4. Senshu (-4; 283-273=556)

5. BAYLOR (+1; 275-286=561)

6. Oregon State (+7; 291-276=567)

7. Chuo Gakuin (+11; 286-285=571)

8. San Diego (+16; 290-286=576)

9. Yamaguchi Fukushi Bunka (+19; 288-291=579)

10. Pacific (+19; 290-289=579)

Individual Standings (Baylor players through 18 holes)

T7. Mikkel Bjerch-Andresen (-3; 66-71=137)

t14. Niclas Mansson (E; 69-71=140)

t14. Kyle Jones (E; 69-71=140)

t35. Ryan O'Rear (+4; 71-73=144)

t46. Andreas Gjesteby (+8; 75-73=148)