BYU senior David Timmins (Conner Penfold photo)
David Timmins fired 68 on day two of the Trans-Miss Amateur Championship, helping him maintain a one-shot lead at Denver Country Club as the field is cut to the top 54 and ties heading to Friday.
The BYU golfer from Sandy, Utah, who just completed his senior season, eagled the par-5 13th to get to 10 under but bogeyed the final par-3 of the day — the 220-yard 17th. His narrow margin paces a trio of players tied for second place, including recent Dogwood Invitational winner
Carson Bacha. Also at 8 under are 20-year-old Australian
Harrison Crowe and Colorado State junior
Connor Jones.
"The course played different this afternoon than it did yesterday," Timmins told the Trans-Miss Golf Association. "It got blowing pretty hard out there. I felt like I hit the ball fine, I just didn't hit it as good as I did yesterday."
The biggest run of the day was made by 17-year-old Australian
Jeffrey Guan, who went from potentially missing the cut into the top-10 with a 7-under-par 63 to match Timmins' first-round performance. The pair now share Denver Country Club's competitive course record.
With a bogey-free round on Thursday, the native of Sydney is now tied for ninth with four others including 2022 NCAA Stockton Regional individual medalist
Carson Lundell — a teammate of Timmins at BYU.
The second best score on Thursday went to last month's Southwestern Amateur champion
Davis Bryant of Aurora, Colorado. The Colorado State fifth-year senior birdied four of his last seven holes en route to a 64 and a spot in solo fifth place, two behind Timmins.
Thursday's cut came at even-par 140, with 59 players in total moving on to Friday and Saturday's final rounds. Ten players are tied in 50th place.
Joe Neuheisel and
Samuel Jones were the only two mid-amateur players to finish 36 holes at even-par or better, with Neuheisel putting together back-to-back under-par rounds of 69 and 67 to sit five back in a tie for 14th place. Jones, a native of New Zealand, signed for 69 on Wednesday and 71 on Thursday to make the cut on the number.
Round 1 Recap
Brigham Young University senior
David Timmins used an eagle on his first hole of the day to jumpstart an eventual 63 at Denver Country Club. He leads by a stroke over
Jiri Zuksa after day one at the Trans-Miss Amateur Championship.
Timmins, a native of Sandy, Utah, made two at the par-4 10th, then promptly bogeyed the next hole. Though it would be the last blemish on his scorecard for the remainder of the day as the fifth-year senior would string together six birdies on the nearly 7,000-yard par 70 just outside downtown Denver, Colorado.
"I stuck to my game plan that I devised during my practice round and remained diligent in my club selection off the tee," Timmons told the Trans-Miss Golf Association.
Zuksa, a rising senior at Louisville, also worked an eagle into his first round but did so later in the day. His 3 at the par-5 13th highlighted a wild inward nine that included just two pars and resulted in a 29.
The native of Czech Republic was part of the afternoon wave that dealt with Denver's typical summer weather pattern. Thunderstorms rolled off the Front Range leading to lightning in the area that delayed play on two separate occasions.
One group failed to finish before dark and will be out at 7:30 a.m. to complete their final hole. The second round will begin with tee times at 8:00 a.m.
Six players are tied for third at 5 under, including recent Dogwood Invitational winner
Carson Bacha.
Denver local and Colorado State junior
Connor Jones posted 29 on the front side — his back nine — leading to a 5-under 65 and a spot amongst the half dozen players tied for third.
The top mid-amateur performer on day one among 11 total in the 144-player field was
Jay Livsey, a 41-year-old from Lakewood, Colorado. He carded a bogey-free 66 to lead the mid-am contingent by three over
Samuel Jones and
Joe Neuheisel. Livsey is in this year's field thanks to his victory last year at the Trans-Miss Mid-Master.
The field will be cut to the top 54 and ties following Thursday's second round Currently 47 players are in red figures and an additional 22 are at even-par 70.
Defending champion
Derek Hitchner is one of those 47 contestants under par after firing 69 on Wednesday. The Pepperdine golfer is six back and two within the cut line.
Denver Country Club, the oldest club west of the Mississippi, has hosted six previous Trans-Miss Championships throughout the club’s distinguished history, most recently in 2010 when Scott Pinckney won the tournament's first rendition since switching to a 72-hole stroke play event. More than 80 club members are volunteering for the event by providing host housing, spotting, and scoring for the championship.
ABOUT THE Trans-Miss Championship
The Trans-Miss is one of the oldest and
most storied golf tournaments in the United
States.
For 106 years the championship
was played in a match play format.
Past champions include Jack Nicklaus (1958
and 1959), Charles Coe (1947, 1949, 1952 and
1956), Deane Beman (1960), George Archer
(1963), Ben Crenshaw (1972), Gary Koch
(1973), Bob Tway (1978), Mark Brooks (1978)
and other professional tour notables. In
1987 the championship was changed to a mid-
amateur age requirement, and a senior division
was also added. Starting in 2010, the Trans-
Mississippi Championship, returned to its roots
as an
open amateur tournament, and immediately
established itself as a "must-play" among
top collegiate and mid-am players, while
changing to
a 72-hole stroke play format. The field size
starts at
144 players from Trans-
Mississippi Golf Association member clubs (or
players receiving a special invitation from the
Championship Committee). After 36 holes, a cut
is
made to the low 54 and ties who play the final
two
rounds.
View Complete Tournament Information