Jones takes one-stroke lead into final round at amateur

To say that Drew Jones has been here before is a massive understatement.

The golfer from Shilo Country Club has knocked on the door plenty of times, and he’s got a full collection of runner-up finishes to show for it.

But as the Brandon product steps to the first tee on Wednesday at Southwood Golf and Country Club, Jones enters the final round of the Nott Autocorp Men’s Amateur Championship as the clubhouse leader, holding a one-stroke lead over clubmate and friend Evan Nachtigall.

“It’s funny, I have all of my second-place medals and always look at them,” said Jones, who carded a second consecutive round of 3-under 69 to move to minus-six for the tournament. “I always try to think ‘what did I learn from this one, what did I learn from that one?’ Last year, it was just to slow down a little. There was some very easy and basic stuff that just went over top of my head, strategy-wise. All of those little things add up to strokes. So, hit the smart shot.”

Jones is looking to draw on the experience of going toe-to-toe with eventual four-time men’s amateur champion Braxton Kuntz in the final round of last year’s event at Rossmere — when Jones took a one-shot lead on the 16th hole before finding himself in tree trouble off the tee on the 17th.

While the final result wasn’t what he was looking for last July, Jones took time to assess what transpired and is more prepared to handle the emotions this time around.

“I was amped up after a birdie to take the lead — and didn’t take a chance to calm down and settle and just stick to my normal process — and it cost me the tournament, pretty much,” said Jones. “I feel like you need to have those experiences to get comfortable in it. A switch flipped the last couple of years, where I feel really comfortable in the last pairing, with people watching. That’s an important switch to flip. I’ve been on the other end, where I’m scared to make mistakes in front of people.

“I’m hoping I’ll be able to have that switch turned on, that I feel really confident in my own game under the gun (Wednesday).”

Don’t understimate the importance of being able to feel comfortable — and under control — when the pressure gets turned up.

“I hope that I play well,” said Jones. “What I can control is my attitude and my emotions and my process. I will stick with that — and hopefully, my golf game shows up. I would love to win. We’ll see what happens.”

The highlight of Jones’ round on Tuesday was a chip-in for eagle on the par-5 fourth hole from about 25 feet.

“I left myself in a good spot right underneath the hole and it was at a perfect pace and just dropped in on its last roll,” said Jones, who is a physical education teacher in Brandon. “That was pretty sweet.”

Jones and Nachtigall are regular golf partners and while the familiarity should help both players soak in the moment, to say that it’s just another round at the home club isn’t entirely accurate either.

“I don’t think me and Drew have ever played together in a tournament round, so that will be a first,” said Nachtigall. “It will mean more than the average round at home. It’s going to be awesome. He’s a hell of a player and a hell of a guy.

“It’s so cliché and everyone says that it’s a regular round. You’ve still got to understand that it’s the last day and every decision you make is crucial. When you’re playing a regular round at home, some of that decision-making is kind of a blur and you’re kind of going through the motions — and there can’t be any of that.”

Jones is also looking forward to being in a group with a close friend as he chases that elusive title.

“We’re staying together, we play a ton and practise a ton together. That will help both of us both feel a little more comfortable,” said Jones. “There will be tons of chatter.”

Jones, who was in an eight-way tie for top spot after the opening round, did his best to judge the wind as well.

“There’s an old saying, the wind doesn’t mess with a ball well struck. There’s no faking it in the mind. You’ve got to hit it good,” said Jones. “It was a tough challenge, but we’re all from the Prairies, it’s been a really windy year and most of us are used to playing on some windy days — otherwise you just won’t be playing much.”

Just three players — Jones, Nachtigall and Josiah Tong of Calgary — managed to shoot rounds in red numbers on Tuesday, as blustery winds reached close to 40 km/h, a sharp contrast from the benign conditions players faced during the opening round of the event.

“It was night and day. (Monday), there were so many shots where you’re looking at the flag and it’s like playing indoor golf,” said Nachtigall. “See the number and hit the number. Today, it was kind of a guessing game, you could say. I feel like today (the course) played five shots harder.”

Nachtigall is also chasing his first provincial championship.

“I don’t have any silver medals like (Jones) does, but I’ve played in some big events and played solid,” said Nachtigall. “For me, it’s just about my decision-making under pressure. I tend to try to do too much with the golf ball sometimes and try to be perfect. So, it’s about keeping it simple.”

Tong sits alone in third place at 4-under after shooting 71, while Ryan Blair of Elmhurst is solo fourth at 1-under, with Todd Fanning of Niakwa, Payne Wood of St. Boniface and Thomas Scott of Glendale all tied for fifth spot at even-par 144.

Andrew Hodgson of Southwood made the biggest move of the day, carding an even-par 72 to jump up into a tie for 28th spot.

The field was cut to the top-55 players and ties after two rounds, with the leaders set to tee off at 9:50 a.m.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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