77th Illinois Open Championship Leaderboard
NORTH BARRINGTON, Ill. – August 12, 2026 – 2024 Illinois Open champion Charlie Nikitas (Glenview, Ill.) sits atop the leaderboard following 36 holes of the 77th Illinois Open Championship, as the second round concluded Wednesday morning after play was suspended due to darkness Tuesday evening.
Nikitas followed his opening-round course record of 63 with another 9-under-par 63 in the second round to reach 18-under-par 126 for the championship. His 36-hole total broke the Illinois Open’s previous 36-hole scoring record of 14-under par, set by David Cooke in 2015 en route to his first Illinois Open victory, and also bettered the championship’s 54-hole scoring record for the moment.
Nikitas recorded 10 birdies against just one bogey in the second round. He made five birdies on his opening nine to turn in 5-under-par 31, then added five more on the back nine. His lone dropped shot came at the par-5 12th before he responded with birdies on Nos. 13 and 14 and added two more at Nos. 16 and 18 for a 4-under-par 32 coming home.
“I played nice, kind of kept it rolling from Monday,” said Nikitas. “I was pretty prepared to be patient after a day where the hole looked really big, and I got a lot of good numbers. Sometimes you get tested early, but I made a birdie on three and just kind of kept going. It felt nice to keep my foot on the gas and give myself a little bit of a cushion going into the final round.”
Nikitas is looking to join the exclusive group of multiple winners of this event. A victory this afternoon would make him the 16th multi-winner of this Championship.
“I think that would be cool,” said Nikitas.“ Winning in general is fun, and this is obviously one of my favorite tournaments of the year. The people are great, the setup is awesome, and it’s always good to see everyone here once a year. It would definitely be cool.”
Four shots behind Nikitas and tied for second at 14-under-par 130 are Pierce Grieve (Lake Forest, Ill.) and Michael Davan (Zionsville, Ind.).
Grieve matched the course record set by Nikitas and Davan on Monday with a bogey-free, 9-under-par 63 of his own. Starting on the back nine, Grieve caught fire early, carding seven birdies to turn in 7-under-par 29. He birdied Nos. 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 18 before adding two more birdies on the front nine for a 2-under-par 34 coming home, climbing into a tie for second.
“Yesterday was kind of a sprint,” said Grieve. “I saw that Charlie (Nikitas) had a big lead and was continuing to make birdies, so I was just trying to go out, attack pins and make putts. I felt like if I could hit my numbers and control my spin, I could make birdies.”
“Obviously, there are some pins that are three or four paces off the edge where you don’t really want to be too aggressive, but there are plenty of birdies out there. And today is another sprint, with finishing at least nine holes this morning and then going back out for another 18 this afternoon with the Illinois Open Championship on the line.”
Davan, who shared the first-round lead with Nikitas after both opened the championship with course-record 63s, posted a 5-under-par 67 in the second round. He made seven birdies against two bogeys and will enter the final round four shots off the lead.
“I played pretty solid,” said Davan. “I can’t complain about the way I’ve played. I hit some really good shots. I got a little squirrely out there today, but I was able to gather myself and hit some good shots coming in, which definitely helped. Charlie’s (Nikitas) a great player, so I’m just going to continue to do what I’m doing and see what happens.”
Luke Gannon (Monticello, Ill.) sits alone in fourth at 13-under-par 131 following a 5-under-par 67 in the second round. Gannon made six birdies against one bogey, including three birdies over his final six holes.
“Yesterday, I hit it pretty well pretty much all day,” said Gannon. “I honestly felt like I played better than I did in the first round. I just missed probably six putts inside of seven to nine feet, so the putter wasn’t great, but I still played solid and had a nice finish this morning.
Gannon has finished inside the top of this event twice in his career. He will look to convert this time around into his first Illinois Open victory.
“I just hope Charlie (Nikitas) doesn’t shoot another 9-under again. He’s playing great, so I’m just going to keep doing the same things I’ve been doing and whatever happens, happens.”
Amateurs Pablo Castro (Palatine, Ill.) and DuJuan Snyman (Champaign, Ill.) are tied for fifth at 12-under-par 132.
Castro, who completed his second round Tuesday afternoon following the weather delay, fired a 7-under-par 65 to climb two spots on the leaderboard. At the time he finished, Castro held the clubhouse lead.
Castro carded eight birdies against just one bogey during his second round. After opening with three consecutive pars, he birdied Nos. 4, 5, 7 and 8 before his lone bogey came at the par-5 ninth, sending him out in 3-under-par 33. He continued his climb on the back nine with birdies at Nos. 12, 14, 15 and 17 for a 4-under-par 32 coming home.
Castro also has a unique connection to the Illinois PGA, serving as an Illinois PGA Foundation GolfWorks Illinois intern at The Grove Country Club. GolfWorks Illinois provides high school and college students with hands-on experience in the golf industry through summer employment at local golf facilities.
Snyman joined Castro at 12-under after a second-round 4-under-par 68. He turned in 2-under-par 34 and matched that score on the back nine, recording five birdies against one bogey for the round.
“It was quite a long wait,” said Snyman. “I was a little doubtful that we were even going to get out yesterday, so I was just sitting in the hotel room waiting for updates. I tried to stay focused, and I knew what I did yesterday was really good, but I needed to back it up with a nice, steady round today. I felt like I did that pretty well with a 4-under 68.”
Synam and Castro are both looking to become the first amateur to win this event since Patrick Flavin in 2017.
“I’m just trying to stick to my process, stay locked in on my targets, manage my breathing and let whatever happens, happens,” said Synam.
Timmy Crawford (Arlington Heights, Ill.) and Tommy Kuhl (Morton, Ill.) are tied for seventh at 10-under par, eight shots behind Nikitas. Crawford dropped one spot on the leaderboard following a 3-under-par 69 in the second round, while Kuhl fell four spots after posting a 2-under-par 70.
Adian Lafferty (Downers Grove, Ill.) is alone in ninth after backing up a strong opening round with a 4-under-par 68. He enters the final round at 9-under-par, nine shots off the lead.
A five-player group at 7-under par is tied for 10th, 11 shots behind Nikitas. The group includes Daniel Hudson (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Danny Fisher (Lake Forest, Ill.), Tee-K Kelly (Wheaton, Ill.), Patrick Adler (Winnetka, Ill.) and David Perkins (Morton, Ill.).
The final round of the 77th Illinois Open Championship will begin this afternoon at 12:30 p.m. Final round updates will be provided on ipga.com, or you can follow along live on the Illinois PGA social media channels.
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The Illinois Section of the PGA of America is a professional organization serving the men and women golf professionals in northern and central Illinois who are the recognized experts in growing, teaching and managing the game of golf. The Illinois PGA is responsible for the administration of competitive golf tournaments, educational opportunities, support programs and growth of the game initiatives. With over 840 members and apprentices, the Illinois PGA is one of the 41 regional Sections that comprise the PGA of America. The mission of the Illinois PGA Foundation is to improve lives and positively impact communities through the game of golf. For more information about the Illinois PGA and the Illinois PGA Foundation, please visit www.ipga.com and join us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
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