- Patriot All-America photo

Starting on the back nine, Perkins came roaring out of the gate with six birdies in his first eight holes. He had two bogeys and two birdies the rest of the way.

Three players are at 3 under, tied for second: Michael Feagles of the University of Illinois, Mason Andersen of Arizona State, and Alex Schaake of the University of Iowa.

The 2019 Patriot All-America Invitational presented by Valley Toyota Dealers welcomes 84 elite amateur golfers, headlined by defending champion Isaiah Jackson, a senior at the University of Memphis, and 2017 champion, Mason Overstreet, a senior at the University of Arkansas. The 54-hole tournament runs through Tuesday.

The field features PING All-America golfers from all three NCAA Divisions, NAIA and NJCAA rankings as well as U.S. Military Academies and International Universities. Among the strongest in the field includes 6 top-100 from the World Amateur Golf Rankings including Quade Cummins from the University of Oklahoma, Noah Norton from Georgia Tech, Joshua McCarthy from Pepperdine University, Schaake, Cameron Sisk from Arizona State University and Zan Luca Stirn from Arkansas State University.

The Patriot All-America Tournament holds great significance as the players are playing for more than just a victory. Each player represents a fallen or severely wounded soldier bearing the name of the American hero embroidered on the player’s golf bag donated by PING. The soldier’s stories are shared on a card and attached to the golf bag so the players can better understand the soldier they are playing for. At the conclusion of the tournament, the player’s bags are shipped back to their school and auctioned off with all proceeds benefiting the Folds of Honor Foundation, which provides scholarships to children and spouses of military service men and women.

The Patriot All-America is a collaboration between the Arizona Golf Association, Golf Coaches Association of America, JDM Partners and the West Valley Mavericks in partnership with the Folds of Honor Foundation and support from the Thunderbirds, the Waste Management Phoenix Open host. This is the 9th year this unique event will be played since its inception in 2011.