Illinois Open: Bullington sees red ... numbers

    Writing from Glenview, Illinois
    Tuesday, July 22, 2014

    Brian Bullington came to The Glen Club this week with a plan.
    “Every day I’ve set a number for myself,” the Frankfort resident, a senior at Iowa in the fall, explained.
    For the first two days, he’s posted that number, and that’s good enough to hold the lead entering the final round of the 65th Illinois Open.
    Bullington’s 2-under-par 70 on Monday placed him four strokes behind leader Michael Davan. Now, after his 5-under 67 on Tuesday, Bullington’s aggregate of 7-under-par 137 earned him a one-stroke advantage on Oswego’s Travis Johns and two strokes on Bloomington’s Kyle English, Lake Forest’s Brad Hopfinger, and amateur Daniel Stringfellow of Roselle.
    Bullington didn’t have the look of a leader on his front nine. He was 1-over after eight holes, but birdied the 10th and 11th – the latter from 35 feet.
    “That kind of lit things up,” Bullington said.
    Three more birdies followed mid-round, and he finished things off with an 8-foot downhill slider for a bird at the par-5 18th to score 6-under 30 on the back nine. And never mind that it got windier with each completed hole. Bullington rode it like a Hawkeye.
    “It was a favoring wind,” Bullington decided. “For the tough holes coming in, they’re not really birdie holes.”
    Bullington’s had success elsewhere, but he’s been in the middle of the pack for his first two Illinois Open appearances. This third entry may turn out to be much more successful, and in a year when a fellow Hawkeye has also made noise.
    “Ray (Kroll) qualified for the John Deere Classic and won the state amateur,” Bullington said, hoping to write his own headlines.
    Kroll, from Naperville, is among those lurking. He’s in an elite group at 1-under 143, six back of his teammate, through 36 holes.
    But Bullington will have more likely challenges from Johns, who closed with an eagle for 6-under 66 by dropping a downhill 20-footer at the last, and English, the head pro at his parents’ course, Crestwicke Country Club, whose crafty 4-under 68 included a 35-foot eagle putt on the par-5 14th.
    “Right at the end I holed a bunch of putts,” said Johns, who teaches at Medinah. “Right before, I’d missed several 6-footers for birdies. But I believe it all evens out in the wash.”
    English was happy to be the first leader to finish, given how the wind was freshening at the time. It laid down a bit later, but English forged on through the breeze.
    “It didn’t change my game plan,” English said. “I was lucky to play this morning.”
    His location in Bloomington makes him one of the more distant competitors, but he’s not a stranger to his fellow competitors.
    “It’s a bit of a haul every time, but I play in every (Monday) stroke play,” English said.
    Three of the four knotted with Knoll in ninth place are former Illinois Open winners: four-time champion Mike Small, Eric Meierdierks and defender Joe Kinney. Small made the big move of the day with his 6-under 66, climbing from a tie for 88th into the deadlock for 10th. (Johns, in moving into second, only jumped 20 places.)
    To catch Bullington, Small still has to pass Libertyville’s Michael Schachner (4-under 140), and a duo at 2-under 142: 2012 champion Max Scodro of Chicago, and Hoopeston’s Michael Davan. The overnight leader skidded to a 76 on Tuesday.
    Proof that golf’s a family affair was reinforced with the performance of the Bauman clan. Daddy Doug, the 57-year-old pro at Biltmore, scored 2-under 70 to total 2-over 146, while sons Riley and Greg carded 73 for 147 and 76 for 148, respectively, all three making the cut to the low 50 players and ties.
    The cut fell at 5-over 149 and includes 57 players, with five former winners among the top 14 and ties. Twenty-five of those 57, beginning with Bullington, are amateurs.
    – Tim Cronin