Americans ran the top of the leaderboard last year at the Canadian Mid-Amateur, but no such luck in 2024 at Ontario's Carleton Golf and Country Club.
Joe Deraney, the 2023 winner and three-time champ, isn't in the field to defend, and last year's runner-up Ryan Terry of Nashville hasn't found his 2023 magic. Terry is lurking back in 14th place at 2-under, while the top-positioned American -- Chris Thayer of Golden, Colorado -- is a full 10 shots back in a tie for seventh with 2 Canadians.
It's Cam Burke, a reinstated amateur who played for Eastern Michigan University and has posted three rounds that look like something Tiger Woods would have put up in a major during his pride. It's Curke's tournament, and everyone else is along for the ride.
After starting with a 1-under 69 in the par 70 layout, Burke had to wait along with the rest of the field as the second round of the championship on Wednesday was delayed due to unplayable conditions caused by rain. As a result, round two resumed at 7:00 a.m. ET today.
That's where Burke separated himself, finishing in the morning with a 7-under 63 and following it up with a 3-under 67 in the afternoon, leaving his three main chasers -- Brooks Lancaster and Kyle Gordon, also Canadians -- in the dust.
Lancaster does lead the simultaneously played Mid-Master division by two shots over American Thayer, so they will have some fun battling it out for that trophy in the final round on Friday.
Burke, 37, was born in Kitchener, Ontario. After attending Eastern Michigan University, he won a title on the eGolf Tour (over Harold Varner III) and went on to earn his Web.com Tour card in 2014. He had little success on that tour and failed to retain his card, and returned to the amateur game via a reinstatement.