James Furness leads after first round of Hawley Quier Memorial golf tournament
Aug. 12—James Furness had a special request after shooting the low round of the day, a 3-under 67, to take a two-shot lead after the first round of the Hawley Quier Memorial tournament at Moselem Springs Golf Club on Thursday. The 35 year-old from Pottstown wanted to thank his wife.
"A special thanks to Jenny for all the coaching," Furness said as he closed out his interview.
Her coaching paid off as Furness played bogey-free golf until No. 15, when he dropped a shot. Furness recovered and birdied the par-4 16th before making par on 17 and 18. He birdied the par-4 second, the par-5 seventh, and the par-3 13th.
Furness, who won the Berks County Public Links Championship in 2016 and 2017, is heading into Friday's final round calm and composed despite the pressure of being the leader.
"I played well," Furness said. "I missed two greens, put it in the fairway, kept it in play and I made a couple putts. But yeah, I feel good and will try to do the same thing tomorrow.
"There's pressure for sure, but I'm just going to take it one shot at a time. Don't focus on the result and just focus on my swing and play each hole"
Ross Pilliod of Sinking Spring, a 25-year-old and the 2018 Memorial champ, is in second after a 69. Bill Schultz, 54, of Wyomissing, a four-time Berks Amateur champ, shot 70.
The three will tee off in the final group Friday at 11:10 a.m.
"I didn't really have too many expectations coming in today," Pilliod said. "I'm just trying to take it one shot at a time because I've had good rounds going on this summer and I think too much about the end result instead of just focusing on the process."
Pilliod birdied the par-4 fourth and bogeyed the par-4 sixth to make the turn at even par 35. On the back nine, he bogeyed No. 10 and made birdie on the par-4 11th and the par-3 13th.
When Pilliod won the tournament, he shot a record 3-under 137. Despite holding the mark for lowest final score, Pilliod said he is not focused on his score heading into the final round
"Just have fun and enjoy this," Pilliod said of his approach. "This is a beautiful golf course, (I'm) just trying to take it all in and not really not too concerned with the end result. I'm looking forward to playing tomorrow with Furness and Schultz.
"I was 3-under total (in 2018). It just shows you how tough the course can be. There's so many guys capable of shooting lower than that but the greens are the defense here."
Schultz was hovering around the top of the leaderboard for most of the day as one of the few golfers shooting at or below par. Schultz birdied 3, 8, 10 and 15, but bogeyed on 4 and 11 to carry a 2-under into the final two holes. He ran into some trouble on the par-4 17th and made double bogey before parring the par-4 18th.
"I played good and solid except for one bad swing on 17 that cost me two strokes," Schultz said. "It (Moselem Springs) always plays difficult to hit it to the right spot and it can get you in trouble out here easily."
Also in contention is 22-year-old Jonas Connor of Shillington and 26-year-old Brock Kovach of Wyomissing, who each shot a 1-over 71. Connor and Kovach will tee off in the penultimate group at 11 a.m. alongside Nat Gallen, who shot 72.
Connor, like Schultz, found himself in trouble on No. 17. After an almost flawless round that saw Connor go bogey free and shoot 2-under through the first 16 holes, he sliced left off his drive on No. 17 and was forced to take another tee shot. Connor finished the hole with a triple bogey before paring No. 18.
"I felt like I hit a lot of greens in regulation and a lot of good saves for par," Connor said. "Not a lot of birdies were dropping but (I) made some good progress. Just one bad hole. That's it and everything else was all right."
With confidence heading into the final round, Connor said he believes it's better to be a few strokes off the lead as it allows one to play more aggressively. He cited his friend Alex Seelig's come-from-behind win in last week's Berks County Golf Association Amateur Championship as evidence.
"I think it's honestly better being a little behind," Connor said. "(You can be) a little more aggressive, versus just trying to make pars and stay up top. One of my good buddies, Alex (Seelig), was in the same boat for the Berks Am where he was two or three behind going into the last day and was able to play aggressively and get it done. So maybe we'll see."
Kovach was the only golfer in the field to make a birdie on the challenging 18th, which forces players to make a difficult club selection hitting downhill off the tee due to the large water hazard that divides the fairway and the green. Playing the hole conservatively sets golfers up with a long approach shot over water.
After making birdie on par-4 second and shooting a 1-under 34 on the front nine, Kovach made bogey on 13, 14 and 15 before closing out strong on the final hole.
"It's a nice way to finish all the time," Kovach said. "Birdieing 18 gives you some momentum going to the next day."
