Alex Knoll of Glen Brook Golf Club cooled off a little after
his course-record 8-under-par 62 at the Union League Golf Club at Torresdale
with a more modest 2-under 69 at Riverton Country Club in Wednesday’s second
round of the 98th Philadelphia PGA Professional Championship.
But it still gave Knoll a 10-under 131 total and a five-shot
lead heading into Thursday’s final round back at Torresdale, the Donald Ross
gem that was Torresdale-Frankford Country Club before the Union League purchased
the course in 2014.
The 34-year-old Knoll appears to be headed toward a third
straight appearance in the PGA Professional Championship. He led the way among
the Philadelphia Section PGA contingent at last spring’s PGA Professional
Championship – I like its old-school moniker, the National Club Pro – at
Belfair in Bluffton, S.C., finishing in a tie for 33rd place.
The top 11 finishers following Thursday’s final round at
Torresdale will advance to next April’s 53rd PGA Professional
Championship at the Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa in Austin, Texas. The
top-20 finishers in the PGA Professional Championship will earn a ticket to the
PGA Championship next May at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco.
Knoll came up just short of earning a spot in the field for
last spring’s PGA Championship at Bethpage Black.
Knoll made birdies at the seventh, ninth and 17th
holes to offset a bogey at the 12th hole Wednesday at Riverton. It
can be tough to follow up a round like Knoll had Tuesday at Torresdale, which
broke Sam Snead’s 78-year-old course record by two shots. But Knoll’s solid
round at Riverton left him in position to capture the Philadelphia Section
PGA’s signature event.
Brendon Post, an assistant coach and director of player
development for the Delaware golf program, had the best round of the day at
Torresdale, a 3-under 67 that left him alone in second place at 5-under 136,
five shots behind Knoll. Post opened with a 2-under 69 at Riverton Tuesday.
Post made birdies at the fourth, 10th, 11th
and 13th holes to get it to 4-under for the day at Torresdale before
suffering his only blemish of the day, a bogey at the 16th hole.
The biggest move of the day was made by Stonewall head pro
Ryan Lagergren, who fired a spectacular 7-under 64 at Riverton to gain sole possession
of third place at 4-under 137. Lagergren, fresh off overseeing another
successful staging of The Bull, Stonewall’s annual partner-guest, had opened
with a 3-over 73 Tuesday at Torresdale.
Lagergren made a birdie at the second hole followed by his
lone bogey of the day at the third hole. Then he started heating up with three
straight birdies at the sixth, seventh and eighth holes. Lagergren got it it to
5-under for his round with birdies at the 12th and 14th
holes before finishing with a flourish, an eagle 2 at the 18th hole.
That gave him a sizzling back nine of 4-under 30.
Defending champion Billy Stewart, an instructor at The ACE
Club, posted a solid even-par 70 at Torresdale that left him in a tie for
fourth place with Ross Seaman of Manufacturers Golf & Country Club at
1-under 140.
Stewart had opened with a 1-under 70 at Riverton Tuesday.
Seaman added a 2-under 69 to his opening round of 1-over 71 at Torresdale.
Dustin Wallis of Dustin Wallis Golf and Travis Deibert of
Doylestown Country Club were tied for sixth as each landed on even-par 141.
Wallis added a 1-over 72 at Torresdale to his opening-round 69 at Riverton.
Deibert had one of the few sub-par rounds at Torresdale, a 2-under 68, in
Wednesday’s second round after opening with a 1-over 73 at Riverton.
A couple of three-time winners of the Philadelphia PGA
Professional Championship, Spring Ford Country Club head pro Rich Steinmetz and
the Country Club of York’s Terry Hertzog, headed a group of five players tied
for eighth place at 1-over 142.
Steinmetz added a 4-over 74 at Torresdale Wednesday to his
opening-round 68 at Riverton. Hertzog matched par at Torresdale with a 70
Wednesday after opening with a 1-over 72 at Riverton.
Rounding out the group tied at 1-over were Brian Kelly of
Bucknell Golf Club, Greg Farrow, the veteran head pro at Deerwood Country Club,
and Chris Krueger of Kings Creek Country Club.
Kelly, coming off a victory in the TaylorMade Classic last
week at Laurel Creek Country Club, added a 3-over 73 at Torresdale to his
opening-round 69 at Riverton. Farrow fired a 2-under 69 at Riverton after
posting a 73 at Torresdale Tuesday. Krueger added a 1-over 71 at Torresdale to
the even-par 71 he carded Tuesday at Riverton.
The 36-hole cut fell at 9-over 150 and 64 players will tee
it up for the final round Thursday at Torresdale.
No comments:
Post a Comment