Lindberg Jumps atop Leaderboard Saturday
IRVING – Mark Lindberg of Irving shoots 5-under, 65 in Round 2 and leads the 87th Texas Senior Amateur. His eight birdies during the round helped him climb three spots as he carries a two-stroke lead into Sunday’s Final Round.
“I really hit the driver well and only missed a couple fairways,” said Lindberg following his round. “I hit my irons really solid and was inside 10 feet on all eight of my birdies.”
Lindberg was cruising until a triple-bogey on the par-4 12th dropped him back to even-par on the day and into a tie for the lead. He battled back, playing his last six holes in 2-under.
“I had a 7-iron from 170 on 15 and hit it to two and a half feet,” said Lindberg. “Same thing on 17, hit a perfect 9-iron to 10 feet and made the putt down the hill.”
The Texas Senior Amateur boasts a strong list of past champions, including Texas Golf Hall of Famers Don Addington, Bill Penn, Mike Booker and John Grace. Lindberg will look to join the likes of fellow Texas Senior golfers to win the Frank M. Lewis Trophy and will get a chance to do it where other golfing legends captured victories of their own.
The TPC Course at The Nelson Golf & Sports Club has hosted many championships, including the PGA Tour’s Byron Nelson Championship from 1994 through 2017. Champions of the event during that time include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Scott Verplank, Vijay Singh, Adam Scott and Jason Day. This course will provide a true test to Lindberg and those chasing him.
Dallas’ Neal Barfield sits alone in second place after back-to-back rounds of even-par, 70. Barfield was one stroke back after his birdie on the par-5 16th but dropped back to even-par following his bogey on the 18th. His steady play has him in the last group alongside Lindberg.
Past Champion Sandy Pierce will round out the final group. Pierce shot 1-under 69 on Saturday, finishing with four birdies in his final five holes, closing with birdie on each of his last three holes. The 2022 Texas Senior Amateur champion sits five strokes back of the lead at 3-over-par.
Randy Lance of Spring and Mike Booker of Houston are tied for fourth heading into the final round. The duo sits at 4-over-par, 144 following two rounds and will play with Round 1 co-leader Andrew Hydorn in the penultimate group on Sunday.
Trophy Club’s David Johnson sits in seventh place at 6-over, while New Braunfels’ Terrence Miskell and Austin’s John McClure are tied for eighth at 7-over. Larry Corson, Kurt Martin and Jim Campbell are tied for 10th at 8-over.
This is the first time The Nelson Golf & Sports Club is hosting the Texas Senior Amateur. The TPC Course boasts a tough par-70 layout, spanning 6,403 yards in the second round, with elevated greens that have undulating surfaces. The tight fairways and small greens elevate the importance of hitting the ball in the right places.
The winds picked up on Saturday, gusting up to 25 miles per hour throughout the day. Temperatures started in the 60s and crept up to the upper 80s on the sunny afternoon.
The field was cut following the second round with 55 players continuing at 15-over-par. The players were repaired according to score and Final Round tee times will begin at 7:30 am off the No. 1 tee on Sunday.
For more information on the 87th Texas Senior Amateur and to see all the scores from Saturday, click here.