3-Way Tie at the Top After Round 2 of the Metropolitan Amateur
Ladue, MO - It was a beautiful day for golf at Bellerive Country Club for the second round of the 34th Metropolitan Amateur Championship. Warm temperatures and a nice breeze helped make the day just right. Coming into Round 2, Chad Niezing of Meadowbrook Country Club held the lead at two-under (-2) par. Following just behind were Justin Bryant, Tom Buffington, and Drew Pranger at one-under (-1) par. The course was playing slightly more difficult today, especially with the strong breeze that made players think before every shot. Once again the morning wave began at 7:15am and the afternoon wave began at 12:30pm.
The morning wave of players began their day and it became evident how the course was playing. Though some started off strong, many found themselves in tough spots and grinding to keep their scores at bay. Bellerive came to play today. Drew Pranger of Glen Echo Country Club and Corey Choate of The Legends Country Club were the two that finished with the lowest scores in the clubhouse at one-over (+1) par. Choate began the day at even par and made four birdies across his round, but a few mishaps left him sitting at one-over par at the day’s end. Pranger started the day one-under par and fought to keep his scores close to even. A double-bogey on five and two bogeys on the back nine sent his scores backwards to one-over par. This however was enough to set both Pranger and Choate as the clubhouse leaders for Round2 with the afternoon wave still to play. The next best score from the morning came from Kennan Flemming of the Metropolitan eClub, who finished the day in solo fourth at three-over (+3) par. As for Round 1 leader, Chad Niezing, it was a rougher day on the course. Niezing would finish the day tied for seventh at five-over (+5) par.
The afternoon wave had the luxury of rest this morning and were able to see how the scores were stacking up before they began. Justin Bryant of St. Louis Country Club used this to help keep himself calm as he entered the second round. For a second day Holes 10 through 18 seemed to be where Bryant had to work to keep his round together. Bryant successfully made 4 birdies across his round today, but just hit some unlucky spots to finish the day two-over (+2) par. This score coupled with his round one score leaves him in a tie for the lead at one-over (+1) par with Pranger and Choate. The next best finisher of the afternoon wave was Sam Migdal of St. Louis Country Club. S Migdal finished the day at three-over par to sit in a tie for fifth at four-over (+4) par.
When all was said and done, and the sun set on Round 2, Corey Choate, Drew Pranger, and Justin Bryant were all tied at the top at one-over (+1) par. Kennan Flemming follows behind at three-over (+3) par, while Tom Buffington and Sam Migdal are tied for fifth at four-over (+4) par. The six sitting four back at five-over (+5) par are Skip Berkmeyer, Chad Niezing, Justin McCoy, Parker Lawrence, Max Kreikemeier, and Brad Carpenter.
Following the conclusion of Round 2, a cut was made to the low 40 players and ties. When the cut was made 41 players made the cut at a score of ten-over (+10) par or better. Play for the third and final round will begin at 7:00am with the final pairing starting at 10:20am. Come tomorrow afternoon, one will lift the Jim Tom Blair Trophy.