Joshua Sedeno (University of Alabama photo)

Sedeno, a senior at University of Alabama majoring in Consumer Science Communication,holds the lead over Christian Banke, a junior at San Diego State University from Danville; Davis Bryant, a sophomore at Colorado State University from Aurora; Ryggs Johnston from Libby Mont.,who heads to Arizona State University in the fall; Notre Dame senior Hunter Ostrom from Boise, Idaho; A.J. Ott, a senior at Colorado State from Fort Collins; and Evan Peterson, a senior at St.Mary’s (CA) from Clovis, Calif. all of whom shot four-under-par 66.

Playing under partly cloudy skies and warm temperatures, Sedeno played the #15 (par 5)and #7 (par 3) island greens in five shots in his 32-31 round. “I put the ball in good spots off the tees and I didn’t put myself in a position to make a lot of bogies. I hit down the middle of the green,”he said, adding, “I practiced to get ready and the hard work paid off.” Sedeno last played the course during a past Southwestern Amateur when he was 17.

Bryant said he didn’t get into much trouble but his short game bailed him out a few times, hitting 12 greens and making 27 putts. Johnston, who was a competitor in last year’s tournament but withdrew due to an injury, rebounded well after a rough start making some longer putts.

Ostrom, a three-time competitor in the tournament, shot even on the second nine but was strong in his short game taking advantage of the par 3s. After a rough start, Ott had a nice eagle on#8 and played solid coming in with birdies on #15 and #18. Peterson gave himself good looks at making a putt for birdie. His only bogie was a 3 putt.

The tournament continues tomorrow morning with tee times beginning at 7:30 a.m. through 9:40 a.m.

Now in its 104th year, the Southwestern Amateur has been played at a variety of sites throughout Arizona, California, Texas, Nevada and New Mexico.

Since its founding in 1915 as a regional match play invitational tournament for private golf course members to compete against the nation’s best amateur players, the Southwestern Amateur has developed a stellar reputation as a high-quality competition for the nation’s top players.

The tournament was changed to a stroke play event in 1966 to meet the growing demands of the tournament and the increased popularity of the game created during the Palmer-Nicklaus era. For the past six years, the Southwestern Amateur has been played at the Desert Mountain Club in Scottsdale on one of Desert Mountain’s six Jack Nicklaus-designed signature golf courses.