Sim outright second at Western Amateur
BY iseekgolf.com | US Mens Amateur Tour | 2005 Western Amateur Championship | Round Two | 29 Jul 2005
Brian Carroll, 22, of Crystal Lake, Illinois, is enjoying his 15 minutes of fame in the 103rd Western Amateur, presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf, at Point O’Woods G. & C.C., Benton Harbor, Michigan.
Carroll, a senior at George Washington University, started Thursday’s second round with a one-stroke lead and promptly eagled the first hole he played, the par 4, 398-yard, 10th. He covered the last 17 holes in one over – with one bogey and 16 pars – to finish with a 1-under-par 69. Coupled with an opening round 65, Thursday’s score was good enough to give Carroll a three-stroke lead at 6-under-par 134 through 36 holes.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Carroll, who qualified for the championship Monday with a 71 at The Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame. “With the quality of the field here, I didn’t think I’d be leading. But the way I’m playing, I feel good right now.”
Carroll started his round at 7:39 a.m. and minutes later holed a 53-degree gap wedge from 118 yards out for his opening eagle. “It landed past the hole and spun back in,” he said. “That helped. It definitely made me more comfortable the rest of the round, knowing I had a lot of insurance.”
“I hit every fairway, missed one green and had one three-putt. I shot a 69 and didn’t have a single birdie,” he noted. “I was coming close quite a bit, but I couldn’t get any to drop.” The eagle was all he needed.
Following a chilly day with winds blowing upwards of 20 mph, Carroll and the rest of the field woke up Thursday to ideal weather, with little or no wind and temperatures hovering around 80. “We had perfect conditions to play golf,” said Carroll, who praised Point O’Woods’ 7,032, par 70 layout. “I love this course. It’s in perfect shape, and the greens roll great.”
His game plan for Friday’s 36 holes is simple. "I’m going to keep the ball in the fairway and just play the ball below the hole," Carroll said. “You don’t want to be above the hole out here.”
In second, three strokes back at 137, was Golfweek’s top-ranked amateur, Michael Sim, 20, of Perth, Western Australia. Tied for third at 138 were University of Texas recruit Randy Lowry, 18, of Spring, Texas, and 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Nathan T. Smith, 26, of Brookville, Pennsylvania.
“I’m happy to be in second,” said Sim, who shot an even par 70 Thursday to go with his 3-under-par 67 Wednesday. “All I’m trying to do is qualify for the final 16. It’s match play from there, it’s like a new tournament.”
Source – Western Amateur
