52nd Senior Amateur Championship – Day 1

Fieger, D. Brown top leaderboard; 18 holes remain

The GAP Senior Amateur means everything to Chris Fieger, Sr. and it shows.

Fieger, who in four Senior Amateur career starts has two wins and two seconds, displayed a steely resolve Tuesday at a challenging Steel Club (par 72, 6,414 yards). He opened the 52^nd Senior Amateur Championship with a 2-under 70. He was one of two players to break par.

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“I know the best seniors in Philadelphia are playing in it. I know I have to play hard. Usually the golf courses are set up difficult enough and I hit the ball long enough to where I think I have a little bit of advantage,” said Fieger, who won the 2019 and 2020 Senior Amateur. “I am always going to play in the GAP Senior until I can’t physically play in it. It’s the biggest tournament [for me] outside the USGA Senior. It’s the biggest tournament we have in the area.”

The second and final round begins at 8 a.m. Wednesday. The cut to the low 70 players and ties landed at 83 (11 over) with 71 advancing. This was the first year a cut was instituted.

Fieger, 59, of Denver, Pa., is known for his prodigious drives. In today’s opening round, it was a spot-on iron game that provided the difference. Fieger said he didn’t miss a green, though, a couple of his approaches stopped in the fringe.

Fieger’s card contained three birdies and one bogey blemish – on No. 5 (par 5, 510 yards) – due to a three-putt. He answered that 6 on No. 8 (par 3, 140 yards) with a 30-foot birdie putt straight up-the-hill. Five straight pars followed before Fieger birdied the back-to-back par 5s. On No. 14 (par 5, 513 yards), Fieger’s second shot stopped 40 yards short of the green. He chipped his third to five feet and made the putt. On No. 15 (par 5, 489 yards), Fieger displayed the aforementioned power. He lifted a 6-iron from 189 yards to the putting surface 40 feet from the cup and subsequently two-putted for birdie. Fieger closed with three more pars.

“I hit the ball really well today. I never really got into trouble,” said Fieger. “My game’s been a little up and down this year. I’ve been hitting the ball pretty solid.”

Lurking a stroke back is Dan Brown of Manada Golf Club.

Brown burst onto the GAP scene earlier in the season with a co-medalist showing in the Brewer Cup. That was his GAP debut. He later fell in the opening round of match play. He finds himself in the mix again.

“It was the first time playing the golf course. I hit it pretty well but I didn’t make as many putts as I would have liked,” said Brown, 56, of Cleona, Pa. “Overall, a pretty solid driving day. I let the par 5s get away a little bit. I had a lot of good looks into the par 5s but didn’t capitalize. I had 210 [yards], 225 [yards] and 180 [yards] in and tucked each second shot short-sided. I couldn’t get up-and-down either time.”

NOTES–The two rounds of the Senior Amateur Championship conclude the season-long Senior Silver Cross Award. The Senior Silver Cross is awarded to the player with the lowest aggregate score in the Francis B. Warner Cup (Gross), Frank H. Chapman Cup (Gross) and Senior Amateur.

Bill Burke of Galloway National Golf Club, Chris Storck of LedgeRock Golf Club and David West of Philadelphia Publinks Golf Association entered the day in a three-way tie for the lead and remain that way with one round to go.

GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The Association’s 330 Member Clubs and 90,000 individual members are spread across Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.