Rose leads WCMA after two rounds

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on July 7, 2012 11:35 PM

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Second chances come along very rarely on the golf course.

Clark Rose has a golden second chance today in the final round of the Wayne County Men's Amateur.

Rose grabbed a one-shot lead after the second round of the three-day event and will carry the advantage into the final round at Walnut Creek Country Club. Rose is in first place with a 140 total that included a 72 on Saturday at Lane Tree Golf Club.

Rose led the field after two days in 2011, but watched as Lionel Sutton charged from behind to capture the title.

A pack of three golfers will be in pursuit this year. Bradley Jones, Jeremy Joyner and Dustin Smith each find themselves one shot back.

"I wanted to stay in contention through two days and I accomplished that," Joyner said. "Anything can happen in the final round, so now the goal is go out and put up a solid number and give myself a chance to win."

Dane Jones stands alone in fourth place in the open division two shots back.

In the senior division, defending champion Tim Rose holds a three-shot lead over Tony Barrow going into Sunday. Rose put up 145 over the first two days to Barrow's 148. A group of three players sit four strokes off the lead.

Defending champion John Zambelli will lead the super senior division at the tee today. Zambelli has a two-day total of 142. Howard Tyndall trails by two strokes.

"I think the first two days were pretty tough on a lot of guys," tournament organizer Parker King said. "The courses were a challenge for sure and the heat was tough to battle both afternoons."

Mother Nature did not do the field any favors. Temperatures soared into the triple digits and the sun baked fairways made frequent water breaks a necessity.

In the open division the first-day lead was shared by Bradley Jones, Rose and Smith. Each player carded a round of 68 at Southern Wayne Country Club. Dane Jones fired a 70, the final round under par in the open division. Sutton and Joyner each shot even par 71.

In the senior division, Rose shot 70 to open play. He held a three-stroke lead entering play at Lane Tree. Barrow and David Gardner each carded a round of 73 at SWCC.

Tyndall recorded the round of the day with a 67 to lead the super senior division in Dudley. Bo Hughes sat in second after round one and Zambelli was third just three shots back.