The best golfing talent in the state of Indiana has been demonstrating why it’s the best this week at Prairie View Golf Club.
The club is hosting the Indiana Open Championship, which began Monday. Of the 74 players that made the cut after Tuesday’s second round, 23 of them are below par. The tournament concludes today with the third round.
Thomas Lewis, a state champion for Westfield High School and a junior-to-be at Purdue, had an exceptional round on Tuesday, shooting a five-under par 67. That included six birdies. Lewis started the event with a one-under 71 on Monday, putting him at six under for the tournament and in a tie for second place.
Lewis is tied with Fort Wayne’s Patrick Allgeier for second. Brian Maurer of Williamsburg is the leader: He followed up an even-par performance on Monday with a seven-under round on Tuesday. Maurer had seven birdies and made par on the other holes.
Lewis, Maurer and Allgeier will be the last group to tee off in today’s final round, going off the first tee at 11:36 a.m.
Fishers’ Andy Winings is tied for fifth place with a four-under par 140. Winings made six birdies in his Monday first round of 68, then shot even par on Tuesday.
Another Fishers golfer, Johnny Watts, is tied for 10th with a three-under 141. Watts, a 2014 Hamilton Southeastern and 2018 Ball State graduate, went under par both days, shooting 71 on Monday and 70 on Tuesday. Watts made an eagle on the 13th hole during the second round. He totaled five birdies in the first round and three in the second round.
Austin Vukovits and Brad Fellers both carded two-under par 142s. Vukovits, from Fishers, recently graduated from Cathedral and is committed to Mississippi State. He totaled four birdies in the first round and three in the second round. Fellers, a founder of the Golf School of Indiana and a PGA pro since 1997, also had four birdies on Monday, and three more on Tuesday.
Carmel’s Jake Brown, who just completed his redshirt junior season at Indiana University, is at one-under par 143. Brown shot a 68 in his first round, with four birdies and the rest of the holes all par. Brown made two more birdies in the second round.
The third round begins at 8 a.m. today.
RESULTS (Top 70 and all ties make the cut)
T2. Thomas Lewis, Westfield, 71-67=138, T5. Andy Winings, Fishers, 68-72=140, T10. Johnny Watts, Fishers, 71-70=141, T14. Austin Vukovits, Fishers, 71-71=142; Brad Fellers, Prairie View, 70-72=142, T20. Jake Brown, Carmel, 68-75=143, T29. Brad Gehl, Carmel, 74-71=145; Eric Steger, Fishers, 71-74=145, T35. Mike O’Toole, Noblesville, 72-74=146; Michael Asbell, Woodland Country Club, 73-73=146; Graham McAree, Fishers, 69-77=146, T50. Max Niehans, Carmel, 76-73=149; Alan Schulte, Fishers, 75-74=149; Brad Mays, Pebble Brook GC, 75-74=149; Jonathan Enfield, Westfield, 74-75=149; Jeff Doty, Carmel, 70-79=149; Chase Berry, Carmel, 77-72=149, T62. Andrew Lewis, Westfield, 74-76=150.
ABOVE: Thomas Lewis, a Westfield graduate and junior-to-be at Purdue University, will be in the final group for the third round of the Indiana Open Championship today at Prairie View Golf Club. Lewis is tied for second at six-under par after the first two rounds. (Richie Hall)
Fishers’ Graham McAree (left) and Eric Steger walk off the 18th green after finishing the second round. McAree was a star for Hamilton Southeastern and the University of Indianapolis, while Steger is a Noblesville and Ball State graduate and has played professionally over the last several years. (Richie Hall)