THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, July 9, 1996 TAG: 9607090361
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: 32 lines
Twenty-year-old Jason Brown, posting his lowest round of competitive golf ever, took the first-round lead in the First Flight Tournament at Elizabeth Manor Monday with a 3-under-par 67.
The 36-hole tourney concludes today with the low 12 scorers qualifying for the 40th annual Eastern Amateur Thursday.
Brown, from Kitty Hawk, shot 33 on the front nine and 34 on the back with five birdies and two bogeys.
``I was hitting my approach shots really good, not missing many greens and making my putts,'' said Brown, who was back in the pack with rounds of 77 and 83 last year in his first appearance in the First Flight.
Brown was one of only two players in the field of 187 to break par.
Bubba Bruce of Virginia Beach stands two shots back at 69 (33-36). Bruce had five birdies and four bogeys, running into a string of bogeys at the 14th, 15th and 16th.
Old Dominion University golf coach Murray Rudisill is third with a 71 (36-35). Three others are at 72 - Bob Natole of Kitty Hawk (35-37), Jamie Sims of Virginia Beach (36-36) and Robert Podmenik of Perkasie, Pa. (35-37), who bought a new set of clubs just before teeing off and was using them for the first time.
Defending champion George Kemp of Virginia Beach struggled to a 79 (36-43) and is looking up at 26 players.
Suffolk's George Fischer, who had a 78, registered an eagle on the 537-yard, par-5 18th. Using a 5-iron for his 232-yard second shot, he knocked it to within four feet of the flag and then sank the putt. by CNB