Laramie, Wyo. (16, 2019) --An outstanding opening day has the Wyoming Cowboys in second place after the first two rounds of the 2019 Ram Masters Invitational being hosted by Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo.  The Cowboys opened with an even par round of 280 as a team in Monday's morning round and followed that with a 277 (-3) in the afternoon to finish day one at 557 (-3). UW is only seven strokes behind first-place Colorado State at 550 (-10) and is three strokes ahead of third-place Texas El Paso, who sits at 560 (Even).  Those are the only three teams who finished Monday at even or under par.
 
Sophomore Tyler Severin and junior-college transfer Bryce Waters led the way for the Pokes on Monday, as they both fired 36-hole totals of 140 (Even) to tie for 12th.  Severin opened the tournament with a 76 (+6) in the morning but shot the best round of his college career in the afternoon, firing a 64 (-6), which was the lowest round of the tournament on Monday.  Severin had eight birdies and two bogeys to go with eight pars in his afternoon round to post the six-under 64.  His previous career low round was a 70 (-2) as a freshman last season.
 
Leading the race for the individual title is Oskar Ambrosius of Texas El Paso, who posted a133 (-7).  He holds a one-shot lead over Michael Cliff of Fresno State at 134 (-6) and a two-shot advantage over AJ Ott of Colorado State at 135 (-5).  
 
The Cowboys had an amazingly consistent team performance on Monday.  In addition to Severin and Waters at 140 (Even), junior Carl Underwood shot a 141 (+1) and sophomore Kirby Coe-Kirkham ended Monday at 142 (+2).  Senior Dan Starzinski finished Monday at 146 (+6). Two other Cowboys are playing as individuals.  They are redshirt freshman Liam Clancy, who sits at 144 (+4), and sophomore Jared Edeen, who stands at 145 (+5). 
 
"I'm proud of the way Tyler (Severin) competed in the afternoon," said Joe Jensen, University of Wyoming Director of Golf and Head Men's Golf Coach.  "He was six over after the opening round, but then shot an outstanding round in the afternoon.  I told him after the first round that he was close.  He hung in there.  Then a couple good things happened and he got some momentum and kept it going the rest of the round.

"There was a lot of energy from our guys today.  I was pleased to see Bryce (Waters) play the way he did the first time in the lineup. He played comfortable.  Carl (Underwood) and Kirby (Coe-Kirkham) both played with enthusiasm and confidence and had a nice finish today, as well.  I want to see Dan (Starzinski) get back going tomorrow.  He opened with an even par round but struggled some in the afternoon.
 
"Tomorrow we need to come out and play tough.  We need to be patient because this is a difficult, really good golf course as you can tell by the scores.  It is a good test for our team.  We have to come out with tough energy tomorrow, and keep our positive attitude and energy.  We'll need to maintain our focus, because to compete tomorrow we will have to make some difficult putts.  That is how difficult this course is playing."  
 
The tournament is being contested at the Fort Collins Country Club in Fort Collins, Colo.  The course measures 7,218 yards and plays to a par of 70.  The final round of the Ram Masters Invitational is scheduled to tee off at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 17.