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By Chris Lang
VIRGINIA BEACH — David Jordan picked a heck of a day to post
the first competitive bogey-free round of his life.
A Glen Allen
resident and member at Willow Oaks Country Club, Jordan navigated windy
conditions at Cavalier Golf & Yacht Club to post a 4-under-par 65 Tuesday,
good for a four-stroke lead after one round of the 34th Virginia
State Golf Association Senior Stroke Play Championship.
The Senior Stroke
Play features players ages 50 and older. The second and final round is slated
for Wednesday, with all competitors going off at 10 a.m. in a shotgun start.
Stafford’s Chris
Robb (Augustine CC) returned an even-par 69 and stands alone in second, a
stroke clear of three competitors who posted 1-over 70s: Salem’s Jack Allara
(Hidden Valley CC), Martinsville’s Keith Decker (Chatmoss CC) and Williamsburg’s
Kent Erdahl (Two Rivers CC).
Jordan made three
birdies on the front and held his form on the tougher back nine Tuesday to
build his lead.
“I hit it well
today, and I caught some good breaks,” Jordan said. “I had a couple of mud
balls that I got lucky on. … I played in qualifying (Monday) and didn’t qualify
for the State Am, but I felt good about my swing. So I came here feeling good
today. I thought if I could just putt OK, I’d be good.”
Along with the four
birdies, Jordan made a pair of 15-foot par putts on the back to keep his
bogey-free round intact.
“That’s just a
phenomenal score,” Allara said. “Because it was playing really hard out there.”
Wind was the
biggest culprit, especially on the two closing holes that flank Linkhorn Bay.
“See those
whitecaps?” Allara joked. “I think I see a few guys surfing out there.”
The last five holes
played into the wind and played as the five most difficult holes on the course.
The par-4 16th played to a 5.03 stroke average, and the par-3 18th
finishing hole played to a 3.96 average. Robb was the only player to manage a
birdie on either hole, making one on No. 16, a big reason why he enters the
second round still within striking distance of Jordan.
Though this is a
new position for Jordan in a VSGA championship, he’s had some recent experience
with trying to hold a big lead heading into the second round of a event. He had
a five-stroke edge after one round of the Richmond Golf Association Senior
Championship last month before struggling to a second-round 75. He managed to
hold on for a three-shot victory, but if he learned anything from that
tournament, it’s not to get ahead of himself.
“I had a five-shot
lead there and I gave it back after seven holes, so hopefully I learned
something from that,” he said. “So I’m going to go out there and play it one
hole at a time, forget the lead, and just play the golf course and have a good
time.”
DETEMPLE OUT: Of note Tuesday, defending champion Pete
DeTemple (Old Hickory GC) withdrew after the first round, citing back soreness that
was exacerbated by walking at last week’s Maryland Amateur Championship (where
he advanced to the final) and at a U.S. Senior Open qualifier on Monday. He
said it tightened up about four holes into Tuesday’s round so he opted for rest
instead of grinding it out on Wednesday.
HOLE IN ONE: Yorktown’s Ronald Sullins, a member at The
Woodlands Golf Course, recorded an ace Tuesday on the par-3 11th
hole, using an 8 iron from 148 yards out.
MEMBER ADVANTAGE? Two members at Cavalier Golf & Yacht
Club posted respectable numbers on their home course to remain in the hunt.
Both Jeff Flax and Bill Williard returned 2-over 71s and will enter Wednesday
six shots back of Jordan.
Lang is the editor of Virginia Golfer magazine and the VSGA’s manager,
digital media.