THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 14, 1995 TAG: 9507140568
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
Australian Lee Eagleton, playing the Elizabeth Manor course for the first time, and former champion Tom McKnight shot 6-under-par 64s to share the first-round lead in the 39th annual Eastern Amateur on Thursday.
The 22-year-old Eagleton, from Melbourne and on his third visit to the United States, posted 32-32. McKnight, a 40-year-old Galax businessman who won the 1993 Eastern, shot 31-33.
Pushing the leaders are ACC champion Hank Kim and his North Carolina State teammate Press McPhaul, and Paul Carpenter of UNC-Charlotte. They stand four shots back at 2-under 68.
Kim, from Jonesboro, Ga., was playing in a threesome with McKnight and defending champion Steve Liebler, a hometowner who is junior golf director in North Carolina and battled his way to a 72.
Todd Lynch of Wake Forest, with a 69, was the only other player to break par.
Ten were at even par, including North-South champion Paul Simson.
Feeling too ill to play a practice round on Wednesday, Eagleton walked the course.
``I learned to try to stay out of the rough,'' he said with a smile. ``It's winter back home and the heat got to me yesterday, I suppose. But I knew I didn't want to be getting in that rough. It's really deep. We don't have anything like that at home.''
A 6-foot-1 righthander, Eagleton was in the first threesome off the back nine. He registered seven birdies.
His lone bogey came on No. 10, his first hole. ``I hit left of the green and it bounced away,'' he said. ``Then I missed a 5-foot putt for my par.
``Maybe it was a good thing and woke me up.''
He followed with three consecutive birdies, sinking a 22-foot downhill putt on No. 11 and setting up his next two with outstanding sand wedge shots. He dropped an 8-foot putt at the 12th and a 7-footer at the 13th.
On the 18th, another fine sand wedge shot placed him 10 feet from the pin and he rolled in the putt for birdie No. 4.
On the front side, Eagleton, who works at a Melbourne golf course pro shop, had birdies at Nos. 2, 6 and 9. At the second hole he made a 12-foot putt from the fringe. A 9-iron shot that was 4 feet from the cup produced another birdie at the sixth. On the ninth he was dead center on a 20-foot downhill putt.
``I missed hitting only five greens,'' said Eagleton, who is playing in his third tournament in this country. He finished fourth in the Dogwood Invitational and was 20th in the Rice-Planters.
Earlier this year he won the Tasmanian Open and the Riversdale Cup, one of Australia's top amateur tournaments.
He's hoping to be named to the Australia national team this year. He is one of six Australians seeking spots on that team who are now in this country playing in several tournaments.
McKnight, competing in his fifth Eastern and always a contender, also had his only bogey on the 10th hole. ``I had a really good tee shot but I three-putted,'' he said.
McKnight played the front side first and had birdies at Nos. 5, 6, 7 and 9. On the back he birdied 11, 12 and 13 and missed an 8-foot birdie putt at the 18th that would have given him the lead.
``That was the only disappointing thing in the whole round,'' said McKnight. ``It was an easy putt, straight uphill.
``But, with seven birdies in a nine-hole span, I can't complain.''
He canned a 25-footer on the 11th for that birdie after his approach shot scooted past the hole. He made a 16-foot putt on No. 5.
Misfortune struck Liebler, who had to take a 2-shot penalty for hitting the wrong ball at the 15th hole for a triple bogey.
``Whoever left that ball there had a good lie. I can't figure why they would have left a ball there,'' he quipped.
Liebler had three birdies. But he wasn't putting himself out of the title chase yet. ``I've been this far back before,'' said the two-time Eastern winner.
The 168-player field will be cut to the top 80 and ties after today's second round. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by Martin-Smith-Rodden, Staff
Australian Lee Eagleton had never played Elizabeth Manor before
shooting a 64 in thursday's opening round.
Color photo
Tom McKnight...
Photo by MARTIN SMITH-RODDEN, Staff
A happy Lee Eagleton gained a share of the lead with this birdie on
his final hole. It was his first round at Elizabeth Manor.
by CNB