Bay Regional: Payne puts an early hurt on the field
BERKELEY, Calif. (Aug. 4, 2012) -- Here is a rare stat for a round of golf at Tilden Park.
Four birdies, no bogeys, for round of 66. That's what Wes Payne of the University of California Berkeley did today to take a 5-stroke lead over defending champ Chris Moreno-Hunt and Pebble Beach high school sensation Michael Decker.
Payne was the only player to break par on the par 70, mostly foggy and hilly layout. Perhaps the most amazing part is the bogey-free part. It's simply not easy to get by Tilden's challenging par 3s, and occasionally tricky par 4s without making a mistake here or there.
Simply put by playing partner Jeff Hoffman:
"He didn't miss a shot the whole day."
Payne had to agree, making birdies on three relatively short par 4's - Nos. 5, 6, and 15 and making birdie at one of the two par 5s, the 13th. His play recently has been rounding into form, a tie for 18th at the NCGA Stroke Play and the low round of the day, a 67 at Roddy Ranch during Match Play qualifying. That kind of play has the Menlo Park resident ready to do something Adam Scott was not able to do, hold onto a substantial lead going into Sunday.
The other flights are tightly contested with 3 net scores under par, Kevin Smith of Martinez leads the way with a 67. The ladies have a two-way tie at 79, between defending champ Jennifer Brumbaugh and Erika Salinas.
ABOUT THE
amateurgolf.com 2012 Bay Regional Championship
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:
The Bay Regional is contested at 36 holes,
with no cut. All players play one round
Saturday and the final round on Sunday.
The entry fee has been reduced and we
expect an extra-strong field this year in this
historic NCGA point event which
amateurgolf.com began running in 2006.
HISTORY:
The Bay Regional is
truly one of the most historic events in the
San Francisco Bay Area. See "history" for more
information and past champions.
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