Round 1 Suspended Due to Darkenss at 89th Texas Senior Amateur pres. by Republic Aviation
Play was suspended Friday evening at 7:43 p.m. due to darkness during the opening round of the 89th Texas Senior Amateur presented by Republic Aviation at BraeBurn Country Club.
Buzz Baker of Richmond and Marcus Holm of Horseshoe Bay share the lead at 2-under 70. Baker overcame an early stumble with a strong finish, while Holm put together a steady round on the way to his 70. Holm opened his round on No. 10 and made the turn at 1-under 35, highlighted by birdies on Nos. 16 and 18. He continued his consistent play on the front nine, adding two more birdies on Nos. 1 and 7 to finish his opening round with a 1-under 35 and join Baker atop the leaderboard.
Baker opened his round with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 2 and 3 before settling in with four consecutive pars. He found his rhythm late on the front nine, making back-to-back birdies on Nos. 8 and 9 to make the turn at even-par 36. Baker carried that momentum to the back nine, opening with a birdie on No. 10 before adding another on No. 13. He then birdied Nos. 15 and 17 to reach 4-under with one hole remaining. A double-bogey on No. 18 brought him back to 2-under, but was still enough to put him in a tie for the lead.
One stroke behind Baker and Holm at 1-under 71 is a four-way tie for third between John Derrick of Waco, Andy Hydorn, David Leis of Houston, and John Schaefer of Plano. Derrick, a past champion of the Texas Senior Amateur, opened his round on No. 10 and finished at 1-under. He captured the championship in 2020 at Ridgewood Country Club. Hydorn enters the championship in strong form after being named the 2025 TGA Men’s Senior Player of the Year and winning both the 98th West Texas Amateur Senior Division and Senior Division of the 51st Texas Four-Ball presented by Republic Aviation. Schaefer also arrives at BraeBurn fresh off a victory in the Senior Division of the TGA Medalist Series Tournament of Champions.
Three players are tied for seventh at even-par 72, with Chris Germann of Dripping Springs, Doug Northcutt of Georgetown and Michael Jones of Richardson all within two strokes of the lead. Germann completed his opening round at even par, while Northcutt and Jones were among the players who began their rounds on the back nine and finished their first 18 holes at even par.
Five players are tied for 10th at 1-over 73, rounding out the top 10 at the conclusion of play suspended. Bob Jacobson of McKinney, Jeff Seger of Mansfield, Jerry Hudgins of Tyler, Greg Galasso of Dripping Springs and Michael Sullivan of Spring each finished one stroke over par. With only three strokes separating the top 10, the leaderboard remains tightly packed heading into Saturday’s completion of the opening round.
Weather played a factor throughout the opening round, as players were met with warm and humid conditions from the start of play. Temperatures were around 79 degrees when players teed off at 8 a.m., climbing to 89 degrees by noon as the humidity added to the heat. A line of thunderstorms moved through the Houston area in the afternoon, forcing a one-hour, 25-minute delay beginning at 2:25 p.m. Play resumed as conditions improved, but the combination of heat, humidity and the afternoon storms made for a challenging opening round. By 7 p.m., temperatures had fallen to approximately 84 degrees as the final groups continued their rounds before darkness ultimately suspended play.
Play will resume tomorrow morning. with players completing their opening rounds. Following the conclusion of Round 1, players will return to the course for the second round, with staggered tee times beginning at 8:00 a.m. at BraeBurn Country Club.
To view scores from Round 1, click here.