Van Peursem leads Interstate Amateur
By Barry Poe Journal sports writer | Posted: Sunday, June 08, 2008
If J.D. Anderson is to capture a fourth straight Interstate Amateur Championship, he will have to come from behind in today's final round.
Anderson, a West Des Moines resident, shot 1-under-par 69 in hot and humid conditions Saturday at Two Rivers Golf Club, but trails Vern Van Peursem by two shots after the opening round of the 72nd staging of this grand event.
Van Peursem, a Sioux City resident and Hy-Vee Food Stores employee, trimmed three shots off par for a tidy 67 and leads Brad Van Roekel of Boyden, Iowa, by one shot. Anderson, Jeff Donaldson of Sioux City and Nick Dreckman of Le Mars each carded 69.
Three more players, including two-time former champion Todd Sapp, matched par with 70. Reigning River-Cade champion Nate Barbee, a University of Kansas golfer, and four-time River-Cade winner Al Pottebaum of Le Mars also carded 70.
Van Peursem, who started on the No. 10 tee, had it to 3-under with birdies on Nos. 11, 16 and 3, but made double bogey six on the always treacherous par-4 fourth when his tee shot found water. He regrouped, however, and made birdie on the par-3 eighth and another on the par-5 ninth to cap his 3-under round.
"I got kind of lucky on No. 3 when I got a good bounce off the side of the bunker and it rolled up to about 20 feet and I knocked it in for birdie," said Van Peursem. "I putted pretty well today and hit quite a few fairways and my misses didn't get me into a lot of trouble.
"This is fun and I hope I can keep it up, but even if I can't I sure enjoyed today. I just hope I can hang in there tomorrow."
Van Roekel, meanwhile, started his round on No. 1 and carded a birdie on the difficult par-3 third hole. He followed that with a birdie on the par-5 fifth to get to 2-under, but made bogey on the par-3 No. 6. Van Roekel got that stroke back with a birdie on No. 8, shooting 34 on the front nine before matching par with 34 on the back after making bogey on No. 16 and birdie on No. 18.
As for Anderson, who led wire-to-wire in this tournament last year, he got his round off to a fast start with a birdie on the first hole. The narrow 354-yard fourth hole also gave Anderson trouble, yielding a double bogey, but he closed the front nine with a birdie and shot even par. He then sandwiched birdies on No. 10 and 12 around a bogey on the par-3 12th for a 1-under 35 on the back.
"I had a lot of indecision on clubs early on today," said Anderson, who came up short on his second shot on the fourth, chipped above a difficult pin placement and three-putted for double bogey. "The main thing is, after the first day you don't want to shoot yourself out of it. I can definitely improve tomorrow.
"I'm kind of hoping for a windier day tomorrow to separate the field, because everybody can score on a course like this. I'll just have to be patient and a little more aggressive and see what happens."
Expect an exciting finish today as only seven strokes separate the top 22 players and ties. The field averaged 76.672 strokes per 18 holes.
Among a group at 71 are three-time champion Dan Freed and Troy Arends, the 2004 champ and the last person besides Anderson to win this tournament. Two-time winner Jim Anderson shot 72 while Bob Brummel, the 2001 champ, had a 74.
The top one-third of the field after the first 18 holes today will play an additional nine beginning at approximately 2:30 p.m. today. The forecast calls for a chance of thunderstorms and temperatures in the 70's.
A complete list of scores and today's tee times can be found on Sports Detail, page B4.
Anderson, a West Des Moines resident, shot 1-under-par 69 in hot and humid conditions Saturday at Two Rivers Golf Club, but trails Vern Van Peursem by two shots after the opening round of the 72nd staging of this grand event.
Van Peursem, a Sioux City resident and Hy-Vee Food Stores employee, trimmed three shots off par for a tidy 67 and leads Brad Van Roekel of Boyden, Iowa, by one shot. Anderson, Jeff Donaldson of Sioux City and Nick Dreckman of Le Mars each carded 69.
Three more players, including two-time former champion Todd Sapp, matched par with 70. Reigning River-Cade champion Nate Barbee, a University of Kansas golfer, and four-time River-Cade winner Al Pottebaum of Le Mars also carded 70.
Van Peursem, who started on the No. 10 tee, had it to 3-under with birdies on Nos. 11, 16 and 3, but made double bogey six on the always treacherous par-4 fourth when his tee shot found water. He regrouped, however, and made birdie on the par-3 eighth and another on the par-5 ninth to cap his 3-under round.
"I got kind of lucky on No. 3 when I got a good bounce off the side of the bunker and it rolled up to about 20 feet and I knocked it in for birdie," said Van Peursem. "I putted pretty well today and hit quite a few fairways and my misses didn't get me into a lot of trouble.
"This is fun and I hope I can keep it up, but even if I can't I sure enjoyed today. I just hope I can hang in there tomorrow."
Van Roekel, meanwhile, started his round on No. 1 and carded a birdie on the difficult par-3 third hole. He followed that with a birdie on the par-5 fifth to get to 2-under, but made bogey on the par-3 No. 6. Van Roekel got that stroke back with a birdie on No. 8, shooting 34 on the front nine before matching par with 34 on the back after making bogey on No. 16 and birdie on No. 18.
As for Anderson, who led wire-to-wire in this tournament last year, he got his round off to a fast start with a birdie on the first hole. The narrow 354-yard fourth hole also gave Anderson trouble, yielding a double bogey, but he closed the front nine with a birdie and shot even par. He then sandwiched birdies on No. 10 and 12 around a bogey on the par-3 12th for a 1-under 35 on the back.
"I had a lot of indecision on clubs early on today," said Anderson, who came up short on his second shot on the fourth, chipped above a difficult pin placement and three-putted for double bogey. "The main thing is, after the first day you don't want to shoot yourself out of it. I can definitely improve tomorrow.
"I'm kind of hoping for a windier day tomorrow to separate the field, because everybody can score on a course like this. I'll just have to be patient and a little more aggressive and see what happens."
Expect an exciting finish today as only seven strokes separate the top 22 players and ties. The field averaged 76.672 strokes per 18 holes.
Among a group at 71 are three-time champion Dan Freed and Troy Arends, the 2004 champ and the last person besides Anderson to win this tournament. Two-time winner Jim Anderson shot 72 while Bob Brummel, the 2001 champ, had a 74.
The top one-third of the field after the first 18 holes today will play an additional nine beginning at approximately 2:30 p.m. today. The forecast calls for a chance of thunderstorms and temperatures in the 70's.
A complete list of scores and today's tee times can be found on Sports Detail, page B4.
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