What Happened
The 43rd Mid-Amateur Championship began at 8:00 AM today at La Gorce Country Club in Miami Beach, Fla. Throughout the day, the leaderboard underwent constant flux, revealing a five-way deadlock at day-end. Jake Sherwin, sharing the top spot, birdied two holes on the front, and added two more on the back to finish his day with a 69 (-2). Anthony Brodeur saw an eagle on hole 15, jumping him into a tie for the lead.
Carl Santos-Ocampo, also in the leading pack, had three birdies and the fewst bogeys among those tied for the lead. Despite three bogeys, Jordan Elsen joined the leaders with a balanced performance, securing three birdies on the front nine and two on the back. Finally James Preston had a hot start, eagling the third hole to take an early advanatge.
What's Next
Starting Friday, there will be a hole-by-hole play-off to determine the last qualifier's place in the Championship immediately - all other ties for seeds will be broken randomly.
Notable
- Carl Santos-Ocampo has the fewest bogeys among those tied for the lead.
- Eleven players posted under-par rounds through the first 18 holes.
- There are four past champions within the top 15.
- Defending champion, Jay Halverson, posted even par (71) with two birdies and currently sits T-11.
Quotable
"I hit the ball pretty good, much better than last week, so I think I'm starting to pick up on some momentum going into tomorrow. The wind really didn't bother me at all today- I love playing in the wind, and it's a very gettable golf course, greens are rolling just fine, and I feel like I',m finally getting into something with my swing." - Jake Sherwin on how his first round went.
"It was fun. Good pairings, great golf course. It's more of a second-shot golf course. There's opportunity out there for scoring, but it'll get you if you hit poor shots, so it does a good job at rewarding good shots." - T J Shuart on what he likes most about La Gorce Country Club.
