Record Breaking Morning
Weldon Spring, MO - The morning wave for Round 1 of the Metropolitan Amateur has concluded. The first two groups going off of both Holes 1 and 10 had just begun their rounds when the weather siren went off, stopping play at 7:44am. After an hour and ten minute delay, play resumed at 8:55am. All starting times that had not already teed off were pushed back one hour and three minutes from their originally scheduled time. Clouds remained throughout the day, keeping the moisture in the air.
As players made their way around the course, scores went up and scores went down. One player however, never lost his touch. Sam Migdal of Norwood Hills Country Club set out, ready to make a statement. Through nine holes, Migdal was four-under (-4) par with zero bogeys on the card. Continuing to push on, Migdal pulled out another three birdies on the back nine, including one to close out his round on Hole 18. Migdal knew he had played well, but what he did not realize was he had just broken the MAGA Amateur Championship record for the lowest Round 1 Score with a score of seven-under (-7) par. Until today, the record was held by Jimmy Siegfried and Tyler Linenbroker at six-under par. In his post-round interview, Sam said his goal for the day was to “not make a bogey and hit as many greens as possible.” He was successful in doing that by having a bogey-free round and securing the top spot on the leaderboard with a four-stroke lead.
Following behind Migdal after the morning wave completed their rounds are defending champion Drew Pranger of Glen Echo Country Club, and Max Kreikemeier of Forest Hills Country Club. Pranger’s round started off rough, but he was able to bounce back with a bogey-free back nine to come in at three-under (-3) par. Kreikemeier started off strong with a birdie on the first hole and a bogey-free front nine. A few bogeys on the back nine left Kreikemeier tied with Pranger at three-under (-3) par. Coming in at two-under (-2) par are Drew Wielgus of the Metropolitan eClub, Jason White of Tapawingo National Golf Club, and Alex Ciaramitaro of the Metropolitan eClub, all tied for fourth.
Eleven players from the morning group finished Round 1 at even par or better. With low scores from strong players on the leaderboard, the afternoon wave knew they would have their work cut out for them. Due to the morning delay, the afternoon starting times were pushed back one hour and fifteen minutes from their originally scheduled time. Players are continuing to make their way around the course for the afternoon wave, while the morning players must wait to see where they stand going into Round 2.