THREE SCOTS IN TOP 20 OF

ATLANTIC SUN COLLEGE

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP

Scots Duncan Stewart from Grantown on Spey, Russell Knox from Inverness and Fraserburgh’s Jordan Findlay were all in the top 20 as the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship went into Wednesday’s third and final round at The Golf Club at Sanctuary Cove, Waverly Golf Club in Georgia.
Stewart (pictured right) and Russell helped their college, Jacksonville University, Florida, to win this title last year and go on to the NCAA championships.
This is their final year at college in America and Russell’s parents and Duncan’s father have made the trip to watch their sons in action.
Stewart is in joint eighth position after scoring 77 and 73 for 150. Duncan had birdies at the sixth, seventh, 12th and 14th but a double-bogey 6 at the ninth was a costly mistake in halves of 38 and 35 over the par-71, 7,003yd course.
Duncan also bogeyed the third, fifth, 11th and 18th.
Jordan Findlay, in his second year at East Tennessee State, found his form at last with a par-match 71 – an improvement of 11 shots over his first round – and he is joint 12th position on 153.
Jordan, like Duncan Stewart, had a double-bogey 6 at the ninth in halves of 37 and 34. The Buchan teenager birdied the third, 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th but had bogeys at the 10th, 11th and 17th.
Russell Knox dropped back to a share of 19th place on 155, made up on rounds of 75 and 80. Russell had a pair of double bogey 6s, at the 11th and 17th in a birdie-less halves of 37 and 43.
East Tennessee State surged into a 10-shot lead in the team championship with four players in the top 12 after 36 holes.

WATERFORD PLAYER LEADS
Seamus Power from Waterford has had rounds of 73 and 67 to lead by three strokes on two-under-par 140.
He had a roller-coaster ride in the second round, which include a hole in one with a seven-iron at the 195yd short 13th hole. He also had birdies at the second, 11th, 12th, 15th and 18th for halves of 38 and 29.
Amazingly, Seamus’s outward half included two double bogeys – at the short fourth and ninth – and a single bogey at the eighth.
Team-mate Gareth Shaw from Lisburn, Northern Ireland is in fourth place with 73 and 72 for 145 and a third East Tennessee State team member, Walker Cup man Rhys Davies from South Wales (he was born in Edinburgh) climbing to a share of fifth place with 79 and 68 (35-33) for 147. Rhys birdied the sixth, 13th, 14th and 17th.
Another East Tennessee State player, Cian McNamara from Limerick is in joint 27th position in the field of 50 after rounds of 82 and 76 for 158.
Edinburgh’s Jamie Kennedy (Jacksonville) had a triple bogey 7 at the 11th in a second-round 81 for 160 and a share of 35th place.
LEADING INDIVIDUAL SCORES
Par 142 (2 x 71)
140 Seamus Power (East Tennessee State) 73 67.
143 Michael O’Neal (North Florida) 74 69.
Other GB&I players’ scores:
147 Rhys Davies (East Tennessee State) 79 68 (jt 5th).
150 Duncan Stewart (Jacksonville) 77 73 (jt 8th).
153 Jordan Findlay (Fraserburgh) 82 71 (jt 12th).
155 Russell Knox (Jacksonville) 75 80 (jt 19th).
158 Cian McNamara (East Tennessee State) 82 76 (jt 27th).
160 Jamie Kennedy (Jacksonville) 79 81 (jt 35th).
LEADING TEAM SCORES
585 East Tennessee State. 595 North Florida. 608 Gardner-Webb. 609 Campbell. 615 Jacksonville.