Scott Harvey (Kernersville, N.C.) shot a 2-under 68 to take the first-round lead along with
Matthew Van Zandt (Houston, Texas) at the 97th Crump Cup at Pine Valley (N.J.) Golf Club.
Harvey, the 2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, aced the 10th hole and ended up playing the back-nine par 3s in three shots after making birdie at the 14th. In an "only at Pine Valley" twist, he played the four par 3s 3 under while bogeying both of the par 5s.
Van Zandt, a former Carlton Woods Invitational winner, also shot 35-33 but did it in a more conventional fashion, with four birdies and two bogeys.
Normally Harvey's would be the shot of the day, and maybe the tournament, but
Charles Waddell (Kenilworth, Ill.) did something even rarer -- he aced what is probably the hardest hole on the course, the epic 5th. Waddell got it to 5 under before losing four shots on the final four holes, but he is still in good shape to make the top 16 for match play at 1 under.
Two-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
Stewart Hagestad (Newport Beach, Calif.) is in fourth after a round of 1-over 71.
The afternoon players teed off in a downpour as the morning rounds were finishing, but skies eventually cleared and play continued as scheduled.
After Friday's play, the low 16 players will advance to the championship flight for four rounds of match play over the weekend. Currently, there are seven players tied for 15th place at 4 over par.
In the Senior division, the 2014 Crump Cup champion and 2015 U.S. Senior Amateur winner
Chip Lutz (Reading, Pa.) may have had the feat of the day despite all the hole-in-one heroics -- the 67-year-old beat his age at Pine Valley.
His 4-under 66 gave Lutz a commanding six-shot lead. Defending senior champ and Walker Cup captain
Mike McCoy (W. Des Moines, Iowa) is among those inside the top 8 who would advance to the senior championship match play bracket.
The second round of stroke play will be played Friday, after which 48 mid-amateurs will advance to three match play flights, and 16 seniors will advance to two match play flights. Two rounds of matches will be played Saturday and Sunday. AmateurGolf.com's
Sean Melia will be on the grounds at Pine Valley to cover the final matches on Sunday afternoon.
Related:
ABOUT THE Crump Cup
The George A. Crump Memorial Tournament --
named
for the
hotelier and course architect most famous for
building
Pine Valley -- is arguably the premier mid-
amateur
event in the United States. The invitational field
is
made of of top players from around the United
States
and the UK. The format for the four days is two
rounds
of stroke play qualifying, followed by four
rounds
of
match play. Players are flighted according to
their
qualifying position, and a separate Senior flight
includes three of those flights. Jay Sigel has won
the
event the most times, with nine victories
between
1975 and 1993.
Normally, the public is invited to attend the Sunday
final matches but that tradition has been suspended.
View Complete Tournament Information