Wheeler, Hunter share lead after Round Two of the 43rd Texas Mid-Amateur presented by Hytera US

Christopher Wheeler of Lewisville, a past Texas Mid-Amateur champion, climbed 12 spots up the leaderboard with a 6-under 65 on Saturday to join John Hunter of The Woodlands atop the standings at the 43rd Texas Mid-Amateur presented by Hytera US. The two are tied at 6-under 136 at Wichita Falls Country Club heading into Sunday’s final round.

Wheeler, who opened the championship with an even-par 71, played his first five holes in par on Saturday before getting hot. He made birdies on Nos. 6 and 7, added another at No. 9 and turned in 3-under 32. After a bogey on the par-5 10th, his only one of the day, Wheeler answered with an eagle-2 on No. 12. He then picked up birdies on Nos. 15 and 18 to finish his 65. The birdie at the last carried some redemption, as Wheeler had closed Friday’s round with a double-bogey 6 on the same hole.

Hunter, who shared second place after Round One, matched his opening 68 on Saturday but got there in a very different way. His Friday round was a wild one, with eight birdies offset by three bogeys and a double bogey at No. 9. Saturday was far cleaner.

The front nine was a grind. Hunter played Nos. 1 through 5 in even par, then bogeyed the par-5 sixth, the same hole that cost him a shot on Friday, and made the turn at 1-over 36.

The back nine was where he took over. Hunter birdied the par-5 10th to get back to even, then added a second birdie at the par-4 12th. He saved his best for No. 15, making a 3 on the par-5 for eagle, and parred his way home to post a 4-under 32 on the inward nine. Over 36 holes, Hunter has made 10 birdies and an eagle.

One shot back at 5-under 137 are Will Holcomb of Crockett and Jack Cersosimo of Round Rock, who each shot 2-under 69 on Saturday after opening with 68.

Holcomb followed a Round One that started with a bogey on No. 1 by playing Saturday without a mistake. He made par on each of his first four holes before a birdie on the par-4 fifth, then made the turn at 1-under 34 with a par on the par-5 sixth. He added another birdie on No. 15 and parred every other hole for a bogey-free 69. It was a steadier day than Friday, when he made four birdies on Nos. 6, 12, 14 and 15 to overcome the opening bogey.

Cersosimo started his round with a birdie on No. 1 and added birdies on Nos. 5 and 6, offset by bogeys on Nos. 4 and 8, to turn in 1-under 34. He made birdies on Nos. 10 and 12 on the back nine and had a bogey on No. 18 for a 2-under 69.

Round One leader Alex Clouse of Midland followed his opening 67 with an even-par 71 and slid from first to fifth place at 4-under 138, two shots off the lead.

Tied for sixth at 3-under 139 are defending champion Kade Stewart of Tomball, Coy Dobson of Austin and Zach Atkinson of Colleyville. All three shot 69 on Saturday and moved up one spot.

Five players share ninth at 2-under 140: Brett Callas of Houston, Rob Couture of Celina, Matt Cowan of Burnet, Tye Grissom of Austin and Austin Cotton of Austin. Callas and Cotton each moved up 17 spots with rounds of 68. Grissom, who sat in a tie for second after Round One, fell seven spots after a 72.

Paul McNamara of Plano, Brad Mason of Dallas, Charlie Holland of Dallas and past champion Colby Harwell of San Antonio are tied for 14th at 1-under 141.

Four past champions remain within five shots of the lead heading into the final round: Wheeler, Stewart, Couture and Harwell.

Saturday’s second round played under mostly cloudy skies at Wichita Falls Country Club, with temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s, a few degrees cooler than Friday’s opening round. Rain welcomed the morning wave with a light mist that continued throughout most o the morning. Sunday’s final round is expected to be warmer, with a high near 77 degrees and little to no rain.

After Saturday’s round, the field was cut to 55 players.

To see results from Round Two, click here. To learn more about Hytera US, click here. To learn more about the 43rd Texas Mid-Amateur presented by Hytera US, click here.