Two amateur and a pro will feature in their first ever PGA Tour event when the Bermuda Championship of Golf gets underway at the Port Royal Golf Course on October 31st.
Michael Sims, Jarryd Dillas and 15-year old Kenny Leseur all qualified at the conclusion of the Bermuda Open Championship Qualifier.
Leseur has become the second youngest person to Qualify for a PGA Tour Event. The three golfers will join veteran Dwayne Pearman on October 31st, taking the total Bermudians in the field to four.
With swirling 25 mph winds whipping across the Southampton course, overnight leader Sims shot a final round 80. After opening with five straight pars, Sims’ dropped his first shot of the day at hole six. The slide continued until he birdied the downhill-downwind eleventh hole. The final round score of 80, coupled with a first-round 67 was good enough to finish the 36-hole event at 5-over. Sims’ round consisted of 1 Birdie, 9 Pars, 6 Bogeys, and 2 Double Bogeys.
Fellow qualifier, amateur Jarryd Dillas who played in the final pairing alongside Michael Sims and Camiko Smith, shot a final-round 79. Dillas jumped into the overall lead after nine holes, before dropping shots across the back nine in the high winds and finishing the tournament at 5-over par, after an opening-round 68.
Starting the day in third place, Smith began his second round strongly posting an even-par front nine. A missed shot to the right on the long, downhill par-3 thirteen produced a Double Bogey. He continued with a par on fourteen, before hitting trouble with a Triple Bogey on the fifteenth. The score on 15 all but put an end to his hopes of qualifying yet posting a Double Bogey on the par-3 sixteenth ended his charge.
The low round of the day belonged to Leseur, posting a final round 73. Playing two groups ahead of the leaders, Leseur managed the testing conditions on his home course, posting the best score of the day in the clubhouse. A mature display that defies his young age, Leseur’s scorecard was a model of consistency over a tough Port Royal layout. Going out in the front nine he posted 7 Pars, 1 Birdie and 1 Bogey. His only blemish over the opening nine holes was a single bogey on the par-four sixth hole.
Leseur combined a superb ball-striking round with a sublime short game, producing arguably the best shot of the day, if not the tournament. Finding himself right of the par-three sixteenth hole, Leseur hit a fantastic 40-yard blind pitch to within a couple of feet before making the putt to save par on the signature par-3 hole. The second round 73 and first round 74 ensured Leseur will be on the first tee October 31st for Bermuda’s first-ever PGA TOUR event.
The four local alternate spots for the 2019 Bermuda Championship will be Daniel Augustus, Smith, Scott Roy, and Andrew Trott.
