Theo Humphrey shot 6-under 63 Thursday (Vanderbilt U. photo)
RUMFORD, Rhode Island (June 22, 2017) -- Theo Humphrey went out early and put up a round of 6-under 63. With his tournament total of 10-under 36 in the clubhouse, it was up to the players to catch him.
Humphrey (ranked top-20 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com Player Rankings) has excelled in collegiate and amateur golf, wracking up a number of top-10 finishes in major events. He was a big part of the Vanderbilt team that made it to the semi-finals of the DI National Championship, and just today was selected third team All American. The Greenwich, Conn. resident has finished top-20 in the last two Northeast Amateurs, so knows the course and will look to break through over the weekend.
After posting the lowest score of the players who teed off late on a windy Wednesday, Humphrey welcomed the chance to play the same course under calm conditions today. The result? A likely 36-hole tournament scoring record of 10-under which are researchers are verifying as we speak.
"The most important thing was the first five holes I kind of hit the ball poorly," said Humphrey. "I made a couple of key 8-10 foot putts to really keep my round going. After that I started hitting it great, had a bunch of good looks and made a bunch of birdies."
That's the kind of patience that pays off on a course that's yielding birdies as Wannamoisett CC is this year.
First round leader Nick Voke of New Zealand, who shot the same number as Humphrey on Wednesday, hadn't even teed off when his 6-under put him four shots behind. He couldn't get anything going (3-over 72), and sits in 8th place in a group of four players at 3-under that also includes Scottie Scheffler. These guys are going to have to make up some serious ground on not only Humphrey, but the major movers of Thursday who included Collin Morikaw and Doug Ghim.
Ghim, the University of Texas standout, hasn't made a single bogey in the first to rounds. Coming off a 66 in round one, he tied Humphrey for round of the day with a 63 that included a holeout with a 9-iron on No. 9, a par four measuring some 453 yards!
Ghim's recent winning USA Palmer Cup teammate Collin Morikawa (Cal Berkeley) is right in the mix again this week, after losing the Sunnehanna Amateur in a playoff last week. He blistered the front nine with four birdies to shoot 30 on the par-34 before coming home in even par 35 for a 65 and tournament total of 9-under, tied for second with Ghim.
The Humphrey, Ghim, and Morikawa trio is four shots clear of the next competitors, Shintaro Ban and Doc Redman. But Friday is moving day at the Northeast Amateur, and if the weather holds we could again see some low numbers from any player in the top-10, so they can have a chance to play among the leaders on Saturday for the final round.
ABOUT THE
Northeast Amateur
The Northeast Amateur has a historic list of winners,
including Ben Crenshaw, Dustin Johnson, Collin
Morikawa, Luke
Donald,
Scott Hoch, John Cook, Hal Sutton, and David Duval.
It
has been annually held at the Donald Ross-designed
Wannamoisett Country Club since 1962. The event
is
limited to 90 elite players; there is a cut after 54
holes
and the entire tournament is played in twosomes.
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