American dream: Trio share lead at British Open

RENO, Nev. — Ollie Schniederjans scored five points with a closing eagle to take a three-point lead Thursday in the Barracuda Championship, the PGA TOUR’s only modified Stableford scoring event. Schniederjans hit a 5-iron approach to 3 feet from 275 yards to set up the eagle on the par-5 18th at Montreux Golf and Country Club. “Eagles are huge in this format,” Schniederjans said. “So, it’s a little more nerve-wracking, 3-footer being three more points. It’s interesting you have putts that are worth more than others.” He finished with 17 points, also making six birdies. Players receive eight points for an albatross, five for eagle, two for birdie and zero for par. A point is subtracted for bogey, and three points are subtracted for double bogey or worse. Denny McCarthy was tied for the lead with a hole to play just before sunset, but lost three points with a double bogey on the par-4 ninth to drop into a tie for second with Aaron Baddeley. Robert Streb was fourth at 13 points, followed by Ryan Palmer and Hudson Swafford at 12, and John Merrick and Tyrone Van Aswegen at 11. The winner will earn a spot in the PGA Championship next week at Bellerive, if not already eligible. Schniederjans is using the event to stay sharp for the PGA. “Just my game is finally coming around,” Schniederjans said. “I really feel in control of my swing for the first time in a while. So, I felt really good coming in. And I kind of wanted to just get playing, because I felt like my stuff was finally in a place. Instead of taking a week off, I kind of wanted to get on a roll, play a little bit before the PGA and roll into next week with some rounds.” Chasing his first tour victory, he’s using his Georgia Tech education to crunch numbers on the high-altitude course. “It’s pretty simple math, but I think it helps,” Schniederjans said. “The wind makes it really tough. I factor in the flight that I’m going to hit, and I do the elevation first. And then I factor in the wind.” McCarthy, playing in the final group of the day off the 10th tee, eagled the par-5 13th and made five more birdies — three on par-5 holes — before the messy finish. The former Virginia player is 149th in the FedExCup standings in his first PGA TOUR season, with the top 125 advancing to playoffs and keeping their tour cards. Baddeley is 135th in the FedExCup race. “I’m not stressed, to be honest,” Baddeley said. “Whether you go to Web finals or whether you finish in the 126 to 150 category, you’re going to get starts and my game’s in a good spot. I’m not stressed. I’m at ease with whatever happens. Just got to go out and play and try and win a golf tournament.” Rod Pampling holed out for eagle from 123 yards on the par-4 14th to get to 15 points, then dropped six points on the final four holes with three bogeys and a closing triple bogey. Norman Xiong, the Nicklaus Award winner at the University of Oregon, scored eight points playing on a sponsor’s exemption. He missed the cuts in his other three PGA TOUR starts since turning pro. Defending champion Chris Stroud had seven points. Geoff Ogilvy, the 2014 winner, also was at seven points along with Hunter Mahan. David Duval, playing on a sponsor’s exemption, scored three points.

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Cameron Champ was born in a state best known for the glitz and glamour of Hollywood and the Silicon Valley’s innovative technology but as it turns out, he’s a country boy at heart. “It’s funny because I’m from California but I live in Texas and my friends always make fun of me because I drive a big truck and wear boots and Wranglers,â€� Champ explains with a shy smile. That truck is a lifted 2016 Chevy with a Duramax engine that Champ recently had rebuilt. Someday, he wants to be able to do all the work himself – he calls it his “escapeâ€� — but right now the PGA TOUR rookie is too busy winning golf tournaments to spend his days picking up a wrench and looking under the hood. Champ turned plenty of heads last week with a bevy of powerful drives that lifted him to victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship in only his second start on TOUR. But don’t look for him to splurge on a Ferrari or a Porsche any time soon. “I’m different,â€� Champ says. “I’d rather build something versus like guys going out and getting (a fancy car). “Obviously that’d be nice luxury to have but I’m more of like build an old classic like a ’69 Camaro or a ’78 Charger … or even an early 2000s decent car but then build up faster than those. I’m just that kind of guy.â€� Champ’s cousin Brian Wolf and a family friend he calls Uncle Tim who used to drag race fostered his interest in tinkering with cars. Several of his friends in the Lone Star State – Champ attended Texas A&M and has settled in San Antonio – like working on diesels, too. One thing he has noticed in working around cars is that there is always something better, bigger and faster on the horizon. “It’s almost like a cult in a sense,â€� Champ says with a grin. “Just because it’s like, they always want to do something. There’s always something wrong. Always something that you want to fix. “So, yeah, it’s been fun. It’s kind of like I said, my escape when I’m home. That’s kind of all I look forward to.â€� On the rare occasion these days when Champ is home in Texas he likes to study how engines go together. His cousin, who can take an engine apart and put it back together in a matter of days, is a valuable resource. “I’m still in that learning aspect of doing all that myself,â€� he explains. “When I’m home alone, I’ll just look up how to do things just to learn because I haven’t fully built an engine myself yet which is something I want to do one day.â€� Eventually, Champ plans to get a builder car that he can find ways to enhance. He finds the work “peacefulâ€� and says he’s always enjoyed putting things together, even as a child. “I just kind of finished mine and it’s more of a daily driver,â€� Champ says. “But I want something faster. That’s how everyone I know in the racing industry is the same way. So it’s just kind of like a second love besides golf.â€� Champ has seen videos of Uncle Tim drag racing, and he’s also been to Sonoma Raceway several times. He likes Formula One racing and will watch NASCAR events, although he’s not as much of a fan of that sport. Television shows like the Discovery Channel’s docu-reality series “Street Outlaws,â€� which offers an inside look at drag racing both on the road and behind the scenes in cities across the country, are also among Champ’s favorites. “So it’s just kind of all just added up,â€� Champ says simply. Down the road, the 23-year-old sees himself potentially collecting cars. The low-key rookie would just like to add to his bank account before making any big purchases, though. “It’s a very expensive hobby,â€� Champ explains. “So I say just starting slow with my own and just kind of go from there.â€� The way things are going right now, though, he might be able to add to his collection sooner rather than later.    

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Full field list for Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship as of March 16. HOW THEY QUALIFIED Winners of the Arnold Palmer Inv. & the Memorial (Last 3 Years) Matt Every David Lingmerth Tournament Winner in Past Two Seasons Aaron Baddeley Greg Chalmers Fabián Gómez Emiliano Grillo Smylie Kaufman Graeme McDowell D.A. Points Career Money Exemption K.J. Choi Retief Goosen Sponsors Exemptions – Web.com Tour Finals Rafael Campos Augusto Núñez Sponsors Exemptions – Members not otherwise exempt Trevor Immelman Sponsors Exemptions – Unrestricted Paul Dunne Steve Han Dru Love Rhadames Pena George Riley Tony Romo Chris Wood Fabrizio Zanotti Designated Sponsor Exemption Guillermo Pumarol Santiago Rivas Julio Santos Hiram Silfa PGA Section Champion\Player of the Year Andrew Filbert Open Qualifying Ryan Brehm Vince India Tyler McCumber Zach Zaback Life Member Davis Love III Top 125 on Prior Season’s FedExCup Points List Robert Streb Kevin Tway Kelly Kraft Patrick Rodgers Harold Varner III Scott Piercy Michael Kim Martin Flores Richy Werenski Geoff Ogilvy Robert Garrigus Derek Fathauer Harris English Rory Sabbatini J.J. Henry Top Finishers from Web.com Tour Prior Season (reordered) Brandon Harkins Alex Cejka Tyler Duncan Brice Garnett Abraham Ancer Xinjun Zhang Seamus Power Stephan Jaeger Troy Merritt Corey Conners Andrew Putnam Shawn Stefani Adam Schenk Tom Lovelady Rob Oppenheim Lanto Griffin Bronson Burgoon Joel Dahmen Cameron Tringale Keith Mitchell Roberto Díaz Nate Lashley Ethan Tracy Jonathan Byrd Brett Stegmaier Matt Jones Sam Ryder Conrad Shindler Zecheng Dou Denny McCarthy Steve Wheatcroft Matt Atkins Kyle Thompson Andrew Yun 126 – 150 Prior Season’s FEC Points List (Reordered) J.T. Poston Ricky Barnes Johnson Wagner Trey Mullinax David Hearn Zac Blair Ben Crane Cameron Percy Daniel Summerhays Reorder Category – Cat. 34 thru 38 Hunter Mahan Eric Axley Brian Davis Ã�ngel Cabrera Ken Duke George McNeill Brendon de Jonge Tim Herron Stuart Appleby John Daly Omar Uresti John Rollins Beyond 150th on Prior Season’s FEC Points List Jim Furyk Jason Gore Andres Romero Dicky Pride Jason Bohn Carl Pettersson Mark Wilson John Merrick Robert Allenby Arjun Atwal Tommy Gainey Daniel Chopra Richard S Johnson Steven Bowditch D.J. Trahan Brendon Todd Parker McLachlin Michael Bradley Shaun Micheel Troy Matteson Marc Turnesa Chris Smith Dudley Hart Jonathan Kaye Len Mattiace Robert Gamez Past Champion Member Mike Weir Heath Slocum Cameron Beckman

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