Orlando International Amateur: Gifford up by 1 with 18 to play

Luke Gifford (Boca Raton, Fla.) is on top of the Orlando International Amateur leaderboard after rounds of 68-64 at Orange County National Golf Center in Winter Garden, Fla.

After opening with a bogey-free round on the Crooked Cat course, the University of South Florida sophomore rode 8 birdies and an eagle to an 7-under round at the Panther Course, getting him to 11 under par and one shot ahead of a pair of players with one round to go.

Gifford is no stranger to the winner's circle, having won the Dixie Amateur two years ago and getting his first college win at the Marquette/Erin Hills Intercollegiate earlier this fall.

He leads by one shot over a pair of Texans, University of Texas San Antonio freshman Luke Bott (Montgomery, Texas) and University of Texas Arlington sophomore Kyle Cox (Carrollton, Texas), who each finished 36 holes at 10 under par.

Three players are tied for fourth at 8 under par.

Scoring has been great through two rounds, with a whopping 44 players under par and another 17 at even. The cut to the low 72 players and ties fell at 1 over par.

A field of over 200 players representing more than 20 countries teed off on Saturday in the fifth playing of the Orlando International Amateur, which has found a sweet spot on the calendar between Christmas and the New Year.

The final round will be played on the Panther Lake course on Monday morning.