FORT WAYNE, IND. (August 5, 2010) -- After heavy rains canceled second-round play Tuesday, Oliver Schniederjans of Powder Springs, Ga., shot 3-under-par 69 Wednesday to take a three-stroke lead over Denny McCarthy of Burtonsville, Md., in the boys' division of the 35th Junior PGA Championship presented by Under Armour.
Schniederjans, one stroke back of the leader heading into the second round, continued his solid play amid rain-soaked fairways and slow greens at Sycamore Hills Golf Club in Fort Wayne, Ind. The inclement weather has forced the Championship to be shortened to 54 holes, with the final round scheduled for Thursday.
First round leader Justin Thomas of Goshen, Ky., who shot a second round 75, is five strokes back of Schniederjans and in a tie for third.
In the girls' division, Kyle Roig of Puerto Rico, who was tied for the first-round lead in the girls' division, fired a second round 72 and has a two stroke heading into the final round.
She leads Cassy Isagawa of Wailuku, Hawaii, Kristen Park of Buena Park, Calif., and Ginger Howard of Bradenton, Fla., who are tied for second at even par.
Schniederjans, who started with a bogey on his first hole, felt pressure early from players making a charge on the front nine.
"I bogeyed the first hole and Patrick [Rodgers] birdied the three of the first four," said Schneiderjans, who is playing in his first Junior PGA Championship. "We were tied for the tournament at that point. It shows you how a lead can go away in four holes."
Schniederjans found his swing on his back nine, carding three birdies to build a three-stroke cushion heading into the final round Thursday.
"I figured it all out with eight holes left and hit it really good from then on," said the 17-year-old. "I feel really comfortable with my game going into tomorrow and pleased to get a round in the 60's after a rough start."
McCarthy, who was seven strokes off the lead heading into the second round, fired a sizzling 66 to put him within striking distance of Schniederjans.
"I am going to have to go out tomorrow and be aggressive again to win," said McCarthy. "This field is tough and I have to expect everyone to play well, so I need to also."
In the girls' division, Roig, who is already competing in her fifth Junior PGA Championship, played her second consecutive solid round that was highlighted by birdies on her final two holes.
"I finished with two great birdies on 17 and 18," said Roig. "Those last two holes I really started getting my tempo back."
Howard, who carded an opening round 76, shot a second round 68, the low round of the Championship in the girls' division.
"I didn't feel comfortable coming into the tournament," said Howard. "The bent grass is so much different then where I came from in Florida."
I told myself to stop being nervous and face your fears. Everything went fine and I made lots of divots, something I did not do in the first round."
The shot of the day came from Georgia native Anders Albertson of Woodstock, Ga., who holed out at the par-5 15th hole for a rare double eagle. Albertson used a 5-wood from 221 yards for his second shot on the 507-yard hole.
"I hit a good drive down the left center and had 221 to the flag," said Albertson, a Georgia Tech commitment. "I hit it 220 and a half and it went in. People were clapping and cheering and I had to wait for them to say it went in before I knew for sure."
Albertson, who sits in a tie for 19th, was overwhelmed.
"It's one that you hope to get close but not really make," said Albertson. "I was flying."
The 54-hole tournament featured a 36-hole cut to the low 35 boys and 35 girls, including ties, following today's round. 36 boys made the cut at 4-over-par 148 and 354 girls made the cut at 155.
This year's field consists of past winners of the Championship, PGA Junior Series event champions, PGA Section winners, many of Polo Golf and Golfweek's top-ranked players, and selected national junior tournament winners.
Also at stake is a berth on the 2010 U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Team. The champion and runner-up in each division, provided they are a member of the 2011 or later graduating class, will be exempt to the Junior Ryder Cup, which will be conducted at the Gleneagles Hotel and Resort, Sept. 27-28, 2010, in Perthshire, Scotland.
View results for Boys Junior PGA
ABOUT THE
Boys Junior PGA
One of golf’s major championships for juniors, the
Boys
Junior PGA Championship is where the best in the
world get their start. Begun in 1976, at Walt Disney
World Resort in Orlando, the Championship has been
a
popular stop on the national junior circuit for many
of
today’s PGA touring professionals including Tiger
Woods, Phil Mickelson, and Pat Perez, who held the
record for 24 years until Akshay Bhatia shattered it
by
5 strokes in 2017. 72-hole, stroke-play
Championship, with a cut
after 36 holes to the low 70 plus ties. The Boys
Junior PGA
Championship is open to males who are no older
than 18 years of
age by the end of the tournament.
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