Christiansen and Vinar ead after Round 1 at 117th Texas Amateur presented by Hytera US
Austen Christiansen of Houston and Kendrick Vinar of Richardson grabbed the early advantage at the 117th Texas Amateur presented by Hytera US, both carding a 3-under 68 to lead a deep and talented field after Round 1 at Spanish Oaks Golf Club.
Teeing off on No. 1 in the morning, Christiansen wasted little time making his presence known, carding birdies on three of his first four holes. A bogey on No. 5 slowed the momentum briefly, and another on No. 9 brought him back to 1-under at the turn.
The back nine is where Christiansen separated himself. He played steady, disciplined golf and struck at the right moments — birdieing Nos. 15 and 17 while parring every other hole to post a 68 and put the pressure on the rest of the field.
Teeing off in one of the final groups of the day, Vinar was dialed in from the start, carding birdies on Nos. 6 and 8 for a clean front nine. He kept the momentum rolling into the back nine, picking up birdies on Nos. 11 and 14. Back-to-back double bogeys on Nos. 15 and 16 threatened to unravel the round for the 41st Texas Mid-Amateur champion, but Vinar answered emphatically — closing with consecutive birdies on Nos. 17 and 18 to salvage a strong finish.
Eleven players sit tied for third, all at 2-under 69: Austin Randall of Prosper, John Beringer of San Antonio, Trenton Mierl of Austin, Byungho Lee of Plano, 25th Byron Nelson Junior Championship winner and University of Texas golfer Brooks Simmons, multi-time North Four-Ball champion Ryan Zamorano, 11th U.S. Four-Ball Amateur qualifier Logan Boatner of Kingwood, Baylor University senior Jonas Appel, Nebraska golfer Nicholas Canales, Texas State golfer Rhett O’Rear and 116th Texas Amateur T5 finisher Andrew Paysse.
Further back but still in the hunt, a group of players rounds out the under-par contingent: Lucas Latimer of Rockwall, University of Texas golfer Adam Villanueva, Grant Feldman of Austin, Caleb Lumpkin of Houston, Marcus Jones of Argyle, Evan Rohde of Houston, Leyton Heibert of Idalou, Andrew Ferworn of Houston, Jackson Hymer of San Antonio, Grayson Petru of Tomball and J.J. Black of Dallas.
No. 12 proved to be the round’s great equalizer. The narrow par 3 plays 191 yards through a tree-lined corridor with a creek running from tee to green and bunkers guarding the front-left. Only six players made birdie on the hole, while 37 made bogey and 19 made double bogey or worse.
Spanish Oaks showed its full teeth Thursday. The challenging layout was made tougher by classic Texas summer conditions — temperatures in the high 70s and thick humidity greeted morning starters, before the sun broke through the overcast sky and pushed readings into the mid-to-upper 90s with a heat index well above 100 degrees. By the time the final putt dropped just before 9 p.m., temperatures had eased into the high 80s with the humidity relenting.
All 144 players return to Spanish Oaks Golf Club on Friday with one goal: make the 36-hole cut and earn a shot at the H.L. Edwards Trophy. The field will be trimmed to the low 54 players and ties before the weekend chase for the title begins in earnest.
Round 2 of the 117th Texas Amateur presented by Hytera US tees off at 7:15 a.m. off No. 1.
To view results from Round 1, click here. To learn more about the 117th Texas Amateur presented by Hytera US, click here.