Tom Lewis of Bonney Lake, Wash. fired a 5-under par 67 to take the first round lead at the 30th Washington State Senior Men's Amateur; while Gudmund Lindbjerg of Port Moody, B.C. leads the 9th Super Senior Men's Amateur after opening with a 2-under par 70.
Both championships are being held concurrently at Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Wash. They each are 54 holes of stroke play and are conducted by the Washington State Golf Association (WSGA).
Lewis leads by one shot over Pete Higgins of Mercer Island, Wash., but there are eight players within four shots of Lewis heading into tomorrow's second round. Tied for fourth, just three shots back of Lewis, is defending champion Bob Burton of Everett, Wash., having shot a 2-under par 70.
Tied for sixth, four shots back, is Keith Crimp of Ellensburg, Wash. Crimp had finished runner-up last year, and won this title in 2010.
Lewis' round was nothing special for a while. He was even-par after 12 holes, but then went 5-under on his final six holes. An eagle three on the narrow uphill par-5 15th hole propelled his momentum to the top of the leaderboard.
In the Super Senior Men's Amateur, Lindbjerg birdied two of the last three holes to leapfrog into the lead. Lindbjerg is looking for his second title in this championship, having won it in 2014. He finished tied for third last year.
Ron Garland of Bozeman, Mont. sits one shot back of Lindbjerg. Garland had won the 2015 Pacific Northwest Super Senior Men's Amateur.
Click here for pairings and more information about the Senior Men's Amateur Championship, and here for the Super Senior Men's Amateur Championship.
Follow the championships on Twitter at the handles @WSGA1922 and @WSGAChampions for live updates and news and use the hashtags #WSGASrMensAm and #WSGASupSrMensAm.
A Dan Hixson design, Wine Valley Golf Club has been the site of numerous state and regional championships, including this year's PNGA Men's Amateur and regional qualifier for the Washington State Amateur.
