He didn’t have his best stuff, but Austin Krahn has the lead and that is all that really matters to the 17-year-old Christina Lake product as he attempts to repeat as B.C. Junior Boys champion.
Krahn fired a two-under 70 in Thursday’s third round at Quilchena Golf & Country Club and heads into the final round of the 72-hole event with a three-shot lead.
“Honestly, I hit it terrible the whole day today,” said Krahn, who sits at 11-under par through three rounds. “It was a grind out there and I am really happy with the score. I fought really hard and made some really clutch putts at the end to just get something good out of it. It was a tough day all around, but we did okay.”
A chip-in eagle on the par 5 14th hole didn’t hurt, either. “That is pretty much what saved the round,” Krahn said. “We were kind of spiralling out of control there and I hit a five-iron just short of the green and chipped it from about 20 yards. I hit that chip just where I wanted to, it hit the pin and went in.”
Krahn’s closest pursuers are Kelowna’s Oakley Mayner and Manpreet Lahl of Nanaimo, who are both at eight-under. Mayner used a spectacular eagle on the par 5 18th hole to salvage a one-under 71.
Mayner definitely was not thinking eagle when he tugged his drive into the left rough on No. 18. “I got up there and there were four trees in the way, but I saw a little gap that pointed right to the pin,” he said.
“I was one-over at the time, so I had made the decision that I had to go for the green. I pulled out my three-wood, hit a little stinger, hit it prefect, and it rolled up right next to the green. I had about 20 feet left and I rolled the putt in. That felt good.”
The big-hitting Lahl had an up-and-down round of one-over 73. “It was a pretty roller-coaster round today, but we’re on to the next one now,” said Lahl, who is heading to the University of B.C. this fall.
Lahl hit a couple of massive tee shots during his round. He had 127 yards into the green on the 465-yard par 4 ninth hole and 168 yards to the back pin on the 506-yard par 5 18th.
Krahn’s three-shot lead is one more than he had last year when he won the B.C. Junior Boys at Gallagher’s Canyon in Kelowna. “We have a little bit more of a cushion, but it’s still golf,” Krahn said. “You know you’re not going to be able to cruise through it. You have to be ready to battle.”
Two other players are within reach of the lead. Nanoose Bay’s Brett Stouffer and Maxim McKenzire of Chilliwack are tied for fourth at seven-under. Stouffer, who was celebrating his 18th birthday, shot his second straight four-under 68 to move into contention.
“It was more solid today,” Stouffer said. “Yesterday I made a couple of birdies late and made a bomb on 18. Today was more solid until I three-jacked it on 18. There were some slick pin positions out there, I was just playing well and putting well. It was a pretty good day.”
Like Lahl, Stouffer is heading to UBC this fall to begin his collegiate golf career. UBC coach Chris Macdonald, who walked the course during the third round, is delighted to see his recruits playing so well.
“It is so encouraging,” Macdonald said. “I think we knew where Manny was and where his development was. It’s really nice to see Brett having one of the best weeks of his life out here and getting momentum for university. It’s really exciting to see.
“And it’s not just these two boys, but Tim Hachey (of Osoyoos) and Hunter Auramenko (of Campbell River). We have really prioritized keeping the top B.C. players at UBC and they are staying and we are excited about that.”
Hachey is tied for 11th through three rounds, while Auramenko is tied for 51st.
The top three players after Friday’s final round will represent British Columbia in the inter-provincial team competition at the Canadian Junior Boys Championship, which is being played Aug. 12-15 in Bathurst, N.B.
Click HERE for complete second round scoring.
CHIP SHOTS: A two-man better-ball competition is also being contested this week at Quilchena. The Kelowna duo of Mayner and Finley Dober are at 26-under and have a five-shot lead.