Texas Amateur: With one round to play, Bret Gray owns a two stroke lead

June 17, 2023 | by AmateurGolf.com Staff

Bret Gray (Texas G.A. photo)

The 2022-23 WAC Player of the Year from Sam Houston State holds a 2-shot lead over Oklahoma sophomore Jase Summy

Eighteen holes separate San Antonio’s Bret Gray from etching his name into Texas golf history at The Clubs at Houston Oaks. After a second consecutive 4-under-par 67 on Saturday in the third round of the 114th Texas Amateur, the Sam Houston State junior holds a two-shot lead at 13-under 200 overall.

“Today was a grind,” said Gray, the 2022-23 Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year. “On the front nine, I made nine straight pars. I didn’t really get any putts to go in, but I made some good pars. On the back nine, the putter started to heat up, and I made a few putts coming in.”

Gray made five birdies on his back nine, including four on the final six holes. He recorded six top-10s for the Bearkats last season, topped off by a victory at the Bayou City Classic in February. Gray also won the All-American Intercollege in 2022 as a freshman. He said he’ll draw on those college wins for confidence during Sunday’s final round.

“The course set up the past two days definitely has felt like a college tournament,” Gray said. “The guys I’m playing with are guys I see in college events, so it has a college feel to it, for sure. One thing I can pull from is really taking it one shot at a time and making golf almost easy. Just hit the fairway, hit the green, and two-putt. If you make a putt, awesome. But just playing simple golf, and that’s how I’ve gotten my two wins. Hopefully we can get a third.”

To make that a reality, he’ll have to fend off Oklahoma sophomore Jase Summy from Keller one more time. Summy, also a collegiate winner, shot a 3-under 68 on Saturday. Through three rounds, he sits at 11-under 202, just two shots behind Gray.

“The round today was OK,” said Summy, who drained a 20-foot birdie on 18 to inch a little closer to Gray. “It was clean, not a lot of bogeys. I’m right there. I’ll have a good day tomorrow and see what happens.”

Gray and Summy two have separated themselves from the pack with their tremendous play. The next closest chasers are Baylor junior Luke Dossey and former TCU standout Travis Woolf, who are tied for third place at 5-under 208. Dossey posted the low round of the day, a stellar 5-under 66.

“I think I’ll need a little bit of help, but another day like today with more putts dropping and hopefully I’ll put myself in a position tomorrow,” Dossey said.

With Gray and Summy respectively eight- and six-shots clear of the field, Sunday might have a match play feel to it. The operative word there is “might,” because there a host of talented amateurs who could make things interesting before it’s over. That group includes Woolf, Dossey, and University of Houston redshirt junior Jacob Borow, who shot 2-under 69 on Saturday to climb into solo fifth place at 2-under 211.

Four more players are tied for sixth place at even-par 213, including Houston Oaks member Kade Stewart, 111th Texas Amateur champion Trey Bosco from Austin, Plano’s Ethan Fang, and Houston’s Jeffery Zatorski.

The National Weather Service’s Extreme Heat Warning remained in effect on Saturday for South Texas. A bit of cloud cover in the morning helped ease the effects of the heat, but it burned off by about 10 a.m. The heat index reached 100 degrees by noon, while the actual temperature hovering around 90 degrees.

Despite the soaring temperatures, all the players remaining in the field, as well as the Houston Oaks staff, the TGA Championships team, and the spectators enjoying the display of elite golf have been mindful to stay hydrated and soak up as much shade as possible. Thankfully, there have been no instances of anyone overheating this week.

Story courtesy Texas Golf Association

Results: Texas Amateur

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Bret Gray	Universal City, TX	300	66-67-67-73=273
2	Jase Summy	Keller, TX	200	70-64-68-71=273
3	Travis Woolf	Fort Worth, TX	100	70-69-69-72=280
4	Ethan Fang	Plano, TX	100	67-74-72-68=281
5	Luke Dossey	Austin, TX	100	69-73-66-74=282

View full results for Texas Amateur

About the Texas Amateur

Texas Amateur: With one round to play, Bret Gray owns a two stroke lead

72 hole medal play walking-only championship first played in 1906. At the completion of 36 holes the field is cut to the low 54 and ties plus all players within 10 strokes of the lead. 18-hole qualifying rounds are held throughout the state for playe...