A Bogey-Free 64 Puts Former NDSU Golfers Herzog and Deziel in Front at MGA Mixed Team

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  LAKEVILLE, Minn. – Looking to improve on a ninth-place finish a year ago, former North Dakota State University golfers Maddie Herzog and Nate Deziel fired a bogey-free 7-under 64 Monday at Brackett’s Crossing Country Club to take the first-round lead at the 33rd Minnesota Golf Association Mixed Amateur Team Championship.

Herzog and Deziel will take a three-stroke lead over 2016 champions Olivia Herrick and Trent Peterson, the team of Mallory Belka and Marcus Belka, and the twosome of Molly Stevens and Brandon Sperling to the final 18 holes of play Tuesday.

“Neither one of us has played here, so I thought we played pretty smart today,” Deziel said. “I didn’t hit a lot of drivers from the get-go. We played to the 150 marker, played to our strengths and both had birdie looks on the first nine holes.”

“I made a bomb [on No. 16] and then we both birdied 18 and were really getting into a rhythm and finding our stride,” Herzog added. “Nate had a lot of looks and that’s when he started making some putts.”

The field played a four-ball format during Monday’s opening round, but the final 18 holes Tuesday will consist of a Modified Chapman alternate-shot format.

Beginning their first round on the 10th tee Monday, Herzog started strong by carding three birdies over her first seven holes, including a massive 80-footer for birdie at the par-3 16th, before her and Deziel carded birdies at the 18th to turn in 4-under for the round.

Deziel hit his approach inside of 10 feet at the first and converted his birdie chance to put his team at 5-under before chipping in for birdie at the par-3 fifth.

Herzog wedged her approach to 12 feet at the par-4 sixth for the twosome’s final birdie of the round to put them into the clubhouse lead at 7-under 64.

“If we play like we did today, I think our game plan will stay the same,” Deziel said ahead of Tuesday’s final round format change.

Herzog and Deziel first teamed up in 2020, finishing tied for fifth at Hastings Golf Club. The two then improved two spots during the 2021 championship at Pebble Creek Golf Club before a final-round 74 dropped them out of contention last season at Northfield Golf Club.

Herzog had previously paired with Andrew Israelson at the 2019 championship, finishing sixth at Hastings Golf Club.

Also beginning on the 10th tee Monday, the brother and sister Belka tandem kept pace with Herzog and Deziel for a majority of the opening round Monday, turning in 4-under for the championship.

Mallory Belka took advantage of the par-5 third by rolling in her short birdie chance to put her team at 5-under before older brother Marcus carded the team’s final birdie of the afternoon at the sixth from eight feet to reach 6-under.

But the two would stumble coming in by carding back-to-back bogeys at the eighth and ninth holes to finish in a three-way share of second at 4-under 67.

“We both started off playing really well—a lot of fairways, greens and two-putts,” Marcus Belka said following the opening round Monday. “We kind of fell apart a little bit at the end, which hurt, but overall, a good day.”

“We got off the tee well and we weren’t scrambling,” Mallory said. “We both had birdie putts.”

Disappointed with a bogey-bogey finish, the Belkas were both looking forward to the format change for Tuesday’s final round.

“I’m going to have to be more aggressive off the tee, because if I do what I did today, it will leave a lot longer clubs in for her,” Marcus said. “We’re going to hope it works to our advantage—it’s golf, so anything can happen.”

“If I can just hit fairways, he’ll have some short shots into a lot of these greens,” Mallory added.

Herrick and Peterson, who claimed the 2016 championship at Valleywood Golf Course, turned in 2-under Monday before Peterson carded three birdies during the twosome’s final nine holes to finish the opening round three shots off the lead with a 74.

Stevens and Sperling managed one birdie during their opening nine Monday, before Stevens carded birdies at the 12th and 14th to help her team reach 3-under for the day.

Sperling added one last birdie at the 18th to keep him and Stevens within striking distance of Herzog and Deziel with a 74.

Sperling teamed with Gavin Cronkhite to win the Minnesota Public Golf Association Four-Ball Championship earlier this season at Monticello Country Club.

The brother and sister team of Caleb and Kathryn VanArragon combined to shoot a 3-under 68 Monday as the two will enter Tuesday’s final round in fifth place, four shots off the lead.

The final round of the 33rd MGA Mixed Amateur Team Championship is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday at Brackett’s Crossing Country Club.