Circle weathers competition for spot

— Hardy’s Nathan Circle beat the heat and the field Thursday.

Circle shot a 9-under-par 135 over 36 holes in near-100-degree temperatures to earn the only available spot in local qualifying for the U.S. Amateur Public Links. He finished three strokes ahead of Fort Smith’s Ethan Adamson and four strokes ahead of Mountain Home’s Seth Sullivant.

Circle advances to the U.S. Amateur Public Links on July 12-17 at Bryan Park Golf and Conference Center in Greensboro, N.C. It is his first appearance in a United States Golf Association national event.

“It was hot, a little cramps. I’m surprised this fat old man made it. A lot of kids out here. But I enjoyed every bit of it,” Circle said. “I hit a lot of good shots and made a lot of good putts. I was just lucky enough to make it.”

Scores were low in the morning rounds with Fort Smith’s Ethan Adamson, Conway’s D.K. Kim and Benton’s Neil Phelps each shooting 4-under 68.

Three others - Mountain Home’s Richard Zimmerman, Gentry’s Bo Sarratt and Cabot’s John Goings - shot 3-under 69.

The heat forced three players to withdraw in the morning and three more to withdraw in the afternoon. That included Sarratt, who left without finishing his second 18.

Circle’s day didn’t begin with much flare.

He made par on the first 12 holes before finally breaking through with a birdie on the par-5 13th hole. But he gave it back with a bogey on the 14th.

Circle finished strong with birdies on the 16th and 18th holes to shoot 2-under 70.

“I got the first birdie and gave it right back. But I birdied two coming in,” Circle said.

Circle made a slight adjustment to his stance, moving closer to the ball. And it paid off.

He got hot along with the weather in the afternoon, making birdies on the first and third and an eagle on the seventh to shoot 32 on the front nine. That put him at 6 under for the day.

“I just moved in a little bit and started hitting everything right at the hole,” Circle said.

He moved to 7 under with a birdie on the 11th but got into some trouble on the 12th. But after hitting his tee shot into a hazard, lightning struck nearby and play was halted for 45 minutes. That allowed Circle to regroup. He got upand-down for par and made birdies on the 15th and 16th holes.

He thought he might still need one more stroke and was disappointed when he missed a birdie putt on the 18th hole. But his 33 on the back nine and 7-under 65 in the afternoon round was enough for the victory.

“I did not feel good. I had about a 10-footer and missed it on the high side,” Circle said. “I was disappointed it didn’t go in, but that’s golf.”U.S. Amateur Public Links qualifying

Sports, Pages 25 on 06/25/2010

Upcoming Events