117th #GAPOpen: Round One

Pair of Philadelphia PGA Section pros lead at 4 under

YORK, Pa.–Two Philadelphia PGA Section professionals, at opposite ends of the success spectrum, are tied for the lead after Round One of the 117^th Open Championship at the Country Club of York (par 70, 6,612 yards). Teaching instructor Billy Stewart of Union League Liberty Hill, the 2018 Open Champion, and Hinckley, who is two years into his professional career and plays out of Wilmington Country Club, both carded 4-under-par 66s to top the 125-player field on an oppressive hot day in Central Pennsylvania.

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A total of 17 players finished at even par or better. The cut line fell at 5-over 75 with 70 players advancing to Day Two.

The second round begins at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday. Due to potential weather, a two-tee start will be utilized. The leaders tee off at 9:20 a.m.

Reigning Open champion Michael Little, Lookaway Golf Club’s professional, is tied for 18^th at 1 over.

Stewart, 37, of Devon, Pa., has hoisted some of the most prestigious titles in Philadelphia golf. A highly-decorated GAP Junior golfer, Stewart won the 2002 Philadelphia Amateur Championship at age 18. His professional successes are plenty, including wins in the Haverford Philadelphia PGA Classic (2013), William Hyndman, III Memorial Classic (2014), Philadelphia Assistant PGA Professional Championship (2014-15), Pennsylvania Golf Association Open Championship (2015) and Philadelphia PGA Section Professional Championship (2018).

However, the last few years have seen a Stewart drought. That 2018 Section title was his last win.

“My passion for the game is competing. I also love teaching. But at the end of the day, I like to compete and win tournaments so to finally get back into contention here after this round, if feels good,” said Stewart, who was the Open runner-up in 2013. “It’s been a little tricky the last few years. This is my favorite thing to do, compete. It feels great to be back in contention again.”

Hinckley turned professional in April 2019 after graduating from the University of Maryland with a degree in finance. He did not play at College Park, Md., but couldn’t resist the lure of the game. He served as an assistant at Bidermann Golf Club last year.

“I’m looking forward to [the final round] because I haven’t been in this positon too much. There will probably be some nerves on the first tee, they usually are. So [it’ll be] just about managing those nerves,” said Hinckley, who is moving to North Carolina and then Florida later this year for mini-tour opportunities. “My love for golf was the overriding factor [in turning professional]. And then with everything that happened last year with COVID, I decided to chase the [PGA TOUR] dream full-time.”

Hinckley learned to play the game at Kennett Square Golf & Country Club as a teenager and caddied at Applebrook Golf Club.

He had one college golf offer after graduating from Unionville High School, but decided to go academics first. Hinckley said the occasional transfer opportunity presented itself but nothing serious.

“I’d rather fail at something I like, than be successful at something I don’t like,” said Hinckley, 24, of Greenville, Del.

Stewart birdied three of the first four holes and four of the first seven. He bogeyed Nos. 9 (par 4, 471 yards) and 13 (par 4, 306 yards) but birded Nos. 14 (par 5, 525 yards) and 16 (par 4, 379 yards) to finish at 4 under. He left a 10-foot birdie putt on No. 18 (par 4, 384 yards) a roll short.

Hinckley, too, carded a bushelful of birdies as well (seven) but offset a few strokes with a bogey and a double bogey.

Although York has never played host to a GAP Major thus far, championships have been in its pedigree since opening in 1899.  The club has a multitude of Pennsylvania Golf Association events to its name, including last year’s R. Jay Sigel Match Play Championship, while also playing host to the 1999 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, the highlight of the club’s centennial season.

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 300 Member Clubs and 80,000 individual members are spread across the Eastern half of Pennsylvania and parts of Delaware, Maryland and New Jersey. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.