Jonathan Bale widens lead at Terra Cotta Invitational

April 15, 2023 | by Jim Young of AmateurGolf.com

Jonathan Bale

The Welshman will take a four-shot lead into Sunday's final round at Naples National Golf Club

An even par round of 72 was all Jonathan Bale needed to double his lead after two rounds of the Terra Cotta Invitational being held at Naples (Fla.) National Golf Club.

After a brilliant opening round of 65 on Friday, the 35-year-old from Baton Rouge, La. shared the first-round lead with Cal commit and 2022 AJGA Player of the Year Eric Lee, two strokes clear of William Jennings, the 43rd-rated player in the AJGA rankings.

While Lee skyrocketed to an 81 on Saturday, Bale played steady if not spectacular golf to post an even par 72 which left him at 7-under at the 36-hole mark of the tournament, good for a four-stroke lead over Quentin Debove and Jennings.

Bale, who was born and raised in Wales and grew up just minutes from the famous Royal Porthcawl Golf Club, offset a pair of bogeys with two birdies on holes No. 4 and 11. A three-shot cushion turned to two after an unfortunate bogey on the par-5 18th.

The low round of the day belonged to P.J. Maybank, who had six birdies on his card en route to a 4-under 68. Maybank, who won the Azalea Amateur a few weeks ago, climbed 22 spots up the leaderboard into a tie for fourth place with mid-amateur Mark Costanza, who was the runner-up to Stewart Hagestad at the 2021 U.S. Mid-Amateur.

At 2-under 142, both golfers are five back of Bale heading into Sunday's final round.

Bale will be paired with Debove and Jennings for tomorrow's final round.

Results: Terra Cotta Invitational

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Quentin Debove	, France	500	72-69-72=213
T2	Bryan Kim	Brookeville, MD	400	75-69-70=214
T2	P.J. Maybank	Cheboygan, MI	400	74-68-72=214
T2	Jonathan Bale	, Wales	400	65-72-77=214
T5	Henry Guan	Dallas, TX	300	74-70-71=215

View full results for Terra Cotta Invitational

About the Terra Cotta Invitational

Jonathan Bale widens lead at Terra Cotta Invitational

54-hole stroke play tournament with no cut. Caddies are required. A Sponsor/Contestant tournament is held before the event. The Terra Cotta is an invitational. However, they do encourage applications and players can submit their golf resume for consi...