2024 NADLER GOLF CARS ILLINOIS PGA PROFESSIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP LEADERBOARD
ELGIN, Ill. – August 26, 2024 – The 101st Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Championship got underway at Elgin Country Club today. This year marks the first time the Championship is being held at Elgin Country Club in the event’s history.
The venue change did not shake things up on the leaderboard, as 14-time Champion, Mike Small (University of Illinois) took a familiar spot atop the leaderboard after carding an open round 5-under-par 67.
“It was a good start,” said Small. “The course is in such great shape. The greens are unbelievable. If you hit the ball in the fairway you can attack some of the pins. If you are in the trees, which I was a lot, you have to play out and kind of scramble, but if you take care of the par-5s out here you can shoot a low number.”
In a word, Small’s round could be described as solid as he carded three birdies on each side with just one bogey on his front nine (Elgin Country Club’s back nine). A birdie on the par-5 eighth hole, which played as the easiest hole on the golf course today, gave Small the outright lead in the morning wave. Despite good rounds from others, no one was able to catch Small.
“I just have to keep playing my game,” said Small. “I hit a lot of good shots. I hit some shots that I still need to get better at, but I just have to keep getting better every day and keep doing what I’m doing.”
The lead is only one as the 2024 Bernardi Player of the Year points leader, Andy Svoboda (Butler National Golf Club), 2022 Illinois PGA Professional Champion, Brain Carroll (The Hawk Country Club), and Matthew Rion (Briarwood Country Club) carded matching rounds of 4-under-par 68.
Svoboda was the co-leader for most of the morning during round one. He got off to a dream start birdieing the par-5 10th hole, and the drivable par-4 11th hole to quickly move to 2-under-par. He dropped a shot on the par-4 13th hole but made an eagle on the par-5 14th hole (the only eagle recorded on this hole in round one) and moved to 3-under-par. A birdie on the par-4 18th hole moved Svoboda to 4-under-par for the tournament and he remained a co-leader of the Championship.
Svoboda took the outright lead as he moved to 6-under-par through 12 holes but hit a couple of bumps on the way into the clubhouse and recorded bogeys on the sixth and eighth holes to fall back to 4-under-par and one off the lead.
“I played well. I got off to a hot start,” said Svoboda. “I think I was 3-under through five holes. The golf course played well. I’ve never played here before so I was just trying to figure it out. The greens are in great shape. It was a fabulous day out there and I played really well. I made a couple of mistakes coming in but played well overall.”
Carroll’s opening round was back and forth as he carded the second most birdies of the day, but trails by one stroke. He started his round on the back nine and birdied his first hole (the 10th hole), but he bogeyed the 12th hole and the 15th hole to fall back to 1-over-par for the round. Carroll then rattled off four birdies in five holes on Nos. 16, 17, one, and two to get himself back into the mix. He made his third bogey of the day on the par-4 third hole but finished with birdies on the sixth and eighth holes to conclude his first round at 4-under-par and one off the lead.
Rion also carded a solid round, only making one bogey in his opening 18 holes. He was bogey-free on his front nine (the back nine at Elgin Country Club) and added birdies on holes 10 and 17. He then got into a tie for the lead at 4-under-par with birdies on two and four. He dropped a stroke with his only bogey of the day on the par-3 sixth hole before making a birdie on the par-5 eighth hole to get into a tie for second heading into round two.
Chris French (Aldeen Golf Club), and 2012 Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Champion, Steve Orrick (Bloomington Country Club) are tied for fifth and two strokes off the lead after carding rounds of 3-under-par 69.
French was 4-under-par on his front nine (the back nine at Elgin Country Club). The highlight of his round came on the 12th hole when he made an eagle on the par-4, a hole that only had 11 birdies recorded on it all day, French was the only player in the field to make an eagle on this hole. He then made three consecutive birdies on holes 16, 17, and 18 to close out his front nine. French got to 5-under-par with a birdie on the second hole but struggled on his way into the clubhouse making two bogeys to fall back to 3-under-par.
Orrick looked like he might take command of the tournament as he came out and eagled his first hole (the 10th hole), and added birdies on the 14th and 17th holes as he made the turn at 4-under-par. He seemed to run out of steam on his back nine (the front nine at Elgin Country Club) as he carded bogeys on the first and the fourth holes. He finished his day with a birdie on five, a bogey on six, and his last birdie of the day came on the par-5 eighth hole to finish at 3-under-par.
Kevin Flack (Mauh-Nah-Tee-See Country Club), 2019 Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Champion, Travis Johns (Medinah Country Club), and Curtis Malm (Aurora Country Club) are T7 and three strokes off the lead heading into round one after carding rounds of 2-under-par 70.
Rounding out the top 10 is Eric Hoff (Bryn Mawr Country Club), Jeff Kellen (North Shore Country Club), Roy Biancalana (The Hawk Country Club), Matt Slowinski (Hinsdale Golf Club), and 2021 Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Champion, Andy Mickelson (Mistwood Golf Club) who are all 1-under-par after the opening round.
Sitting just five strokes off the lead is Chris Green (Glen View Club), 2011 Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Champion, Frank Hohenadel (Mistwood Golf Club), and Travis Hall (White Deer Run).
The top nine finishers at the 2024 Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Championship will qualify for the 2025 PGA Professional Championship. These spots do not include Jeff Kellen, Mike Small, or Andy Svoboda, who are already exempt into the 2025 PGA Professional Championship. The second round of the Nadler Golf Cars Illinois PGA Professional Championship will be played tomorrow at Elgin Country Club. Tee times will begin at 8:00 a.m. Following the conclusion of round two the field will be cut to the low 50 players and ties.
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