Golf Canada’s second regional junior golf championship of 2018 is set to take place from May 25-27 as the Future Links, driven by Acura Ontario Championship gets underway at Otter Creek Golf Club in Otterville, Ont.

With support from Golf Ontario, the Future Links, driven by Acura Ontario Championship is the second of six regional junior championships presented in partnership with Acura. The 54-hole stroke play tournament will begin with a practice round on May 24 before the tournament gets underway with round one on May 25.

Founded in 2008, Otter Creek Golf Club will be hosting its first ever Future Links Championship. Encompassing 300 acres and carved through the wooded valleys of Otter, Cedar and Spittler Creeks, the golf course meanders cleverly over former farmer’s fields and tobacco lands.

“Golf Ontario is pleased to present the 2018 Future Links, driven by Acura Ontario Championship in partnership with Golf Canada,” said John Lawrence, this week’s Tournament Director and Manager of Competitions at Golf Ontario.  “We look forward to seeing some of Canada’s premier junior players showcase their skills as they navigate the beautiful fairways at Otter Creek Golf Club.”

The field will consist of 87 junior golfers in the Junior Boys Division with the top six earning exemptions into the 2018 Canadian Junior Boys Championship on July 30-Aug. 2 at Medicine Hat Golf & Country Club in Medicine Hat, Alta. A tie for the sixth position will be decided by a playoff following the conclusion of play.

The Junior Girls Division will consist of 33 golfers with the top six (including ties) earning an exemption into the 2018 Canadian Junior Girls Championship on July 31- Aug. 3 at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen, B.C.

Four additional Future Links, driven by Acura Championships will span the country this summer.

• June 1-3 – Future Links, driven by Acura Western – High River, Alta. – Highwood Golf & Country Club.
• June 8-10 – Future Links, driven by Acura Québec – Lachute, Que. – Club de golf Lachute.
• June 15-17 – Future Links, driven by Acura Prairie – Portage la Prairie, Man. – Portage Golf Club.
• July 17-19 – Future Links, driven by Acura Atlantic – Port Blandford, Nfld. – Clare Golf & Country Club.

The 2018 Future Links, driven by Acura Pacific Championship took place on May 11-13, where Cole Wilson and Monet Chun earned medallist honours in their respective divisions. Additional information regarding the 2018 Future Links, driven by Acura Pacific Championship, including participants, start times and full results can be found here.

NOTABLES
Monet Chun of Richmond Hill, Ont.
The 17-year-old member of Team Canada’s Development Squad is ranked No. 2 on the Future Links, driven by Acura Junior Girls Order of Merit and comes in as the event’s defending champion. She would go on to place T4 at the 2017 Canadian Junior Girls Championship. Her recent win at the 2018 Future Links, driven by Acura Pacific Championship made for her third Future Links victory.

Alyssa DiMarcantonio of Maple, Ont.
Team Canada Development Squad’s youngest member, the 15-year-old made her breakout start when she finished fourth at the 2017 Ontario Women’s Amateur and T19 at the Canadian Women’s Amateur. At this same event in 2017, she finished T3.

Olivier Ménard of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Que.
The 18-year-old finished last year’s event in a tie for fourth. He is fresh off a win at the 2018 CJGA Quebec Junior Open at Hawkesbury Golf & Curling Club, which took place from May 5-6.

Louis-Alexandre Jobin-Colgan of Québec City, Que.
The 18-year-old finished T4 at this event last year and T3 at the 2017 Future Links, driven by Acura Québec Championship. In 2017, he also ranked No. 8 on the Future Links, driven by Acura Jr. Boys Order of Merit. 

Emily Zhu of Richmond Hill, Ont.
The 14-year-old is coming off a win at the Investors Group Junior Girls’ Spring Classic at Sleepy Hollow Country Club. Zhu finished last year’s Canadian Junior Girls Championship T4.

FAST FACTS
In 2018, Golf Canada is conducting its six regional Future Links, driven by Acura championships in conjunction with the Provincial Associations.

Top six finishers in the Boys Division earn exemptions into the 2018 Canadian Junior Boys Championship.

Top six finishers (including ties) in the Girls Division earn exemptions into the 2018 Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

Defending champion Monet Chun started the tournament two-shots back before dominating the final two rounds to earn her victory.

Christopher Vandette won the junior boys division after out-dueling Jeevan Sihota.

More information on the event can be found here.

ABOUT THE COURSE
Opened its doors to the public in 2008, the club will celebrate their 10th anniversary this year.

Designed by renowned Canadian golf course architect Dick Kirkpatrick.

More information on Otter Creek Golf Club can be found here.

To catch up with Todd Fanning is not unlike anyone else who may work in a non-descript office building. Your conversation gets interrupted by a group of people looking to use the meeting room for a conference call, and when asked how often he gets to play golf, the answer (“I don’t”) comes with a hearty chuckle.

But Fanning, who is a sales manager for a large equipment leasing company in Winnipeg, isn’t just that.

For years he chased a professional golf dream, playing on the Web.com Tour and making a few appearances at the RBC Canadian Open before rescinding his professional playing privileges and returning to regular job and a regular life.

That is, until last summer.

Fanning shot a 2-under-par 69 at the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship at Wascana Country Club to nip three-time champion Garrett Rank and 54-hole leader Steven Diack in a four-hole playoff a year ago this August.

He didn’t plan on playing a championship schedule in 2017, but when it was announced The Wascana would play host, he signed up to play the Manitoba Mid-Amateur to try to qualify (which he ended up winning), since his father lives in Regina and he had played Wascana a lot in his golfing life.

With the win at the Canadian Mid-Amateur, Fanning will make his fifth appearance at the RBC Canadian Open this summer when it returns to Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont.

“I’m just going to be the guy in the middle of the range and they’re going to say, ‘well who’s that?’ says Fanning. “It’s going to be quite funny.”

Self-deprecating humour aside, Fanning truly earned his spot in the RBC Canadian Open. He held off one of the furriest charges in the Canadian Mid-Amateur’s history, as Rank, who started the day eight shots back of Diack’s lead, shot a 5-under-par 66 to jump into a tie for the lead.

“It was the best nine holes of golf I’d ever seen,” Fanning says of Rank’s final nine holes, where she shot a 31.

“I just executed down the stretch. I almost won it in regulation. I had an eagle putt from the back fringe and thought it was going in, and I looked foolish when it didn’t. But out of the hundreds of people watching with 45 minutes to go, I don’t think anyone would have thought, other than my wife, that I would have won that tournament.”

But as per usual with golf, the most unpredictable of games, it was indeed Fanning who came out on top. He made a par on the fourth playoff hole, and when the 25-year-old Diack made a bogey, the championship was his.

He unleashed a Tiger Woods-esque fist pump and a little dance (“I don’t know what happened there… it was very bizarre,” he recalls with a laugh) and the accomplishment finally set in.

“I realized what happened. I was turning 50 and I get to play Glen Abbey again. All those thoughts raced through my mind,” he says.

Fanning says one of his good friends arrived in Regina from Winnipeg to watch the final round, and will have “quite a few” people out with him at Glen Abbey later this summer to celebrate his success.

At work, he says, it made for a great story. People would come up to him to say they watched the live-stream of the playoff (Golf Canada’s social media team played it out on Twitter, via Periscope) and his colleagues said he looked calm.

“I said it was because I have a great job and get to work with (them) so that was just fun for me,” says Fanning, laughing.

Before the RBC Canadian Open Fanning will return to defend his title at the Manitoba Mid-Amateur in early July, and says he will also play this year’s Canadian Mid-Amateur at Victoria Golf Club in August.

But he says what he’s most looking forward to this summer is another shot at Glen Abbey.

Fanning had the morning draw on Thursday in 1998, the last time he played there (he played the RBC Canadian Open at Royal Montreal in 2001 and at Angus Glen in 2002), and he managed to get off to a great start. He says he told his caddie he was having fun, but his caddie wasn’t.

“’Not yet, not until we got to the top of the leaderboard,’” Fanning recalls what his caddie told him.

Fanning hit a 6-iron into the par-3 7th and knocked in the birdie putt, so he got to 4-under par on his round and got to the top of the leaderboard in the morning. He went on to miss the cut, however, and will be thinking about that when he goes back.

But the fact that he gets to go back at all is the most exciting thing of all.

Fanning says there’s nothing on his radar to come to Oakville prior to July to get in a practice round, but he will arrive on site a little earlier than most to ‘cram for the exam,’ he says.

When he played Glen Abbey in the late-90s the golf course setup was different, but there’s nothing that will catch him off guard, as he watches the tournament on television and sees what the current course looks like. He admits he’ll be behind in his preparation, but is looking forward to watch should be a fun week.

“I have a full-time job so I don’t expect to go out there and contend and be in the last group on Sunday, but to me it’s all about family,” he says, as his 17-year-old son will be his caddie for the week. “My whole family is coming. My children never got a chance to see me compete as a professional, and now I have three of them and they’re all going to be there. It’s going to be a really fun time for them.”

STILLWATER, Oklahoma – Ohio State standout Jaclyn Lee recorded a 4-under 284 to end the 2018 NCAA Championship in a tie for fifth, the best individual finish in Buckeye history.

Lee, a member of the Team Canada Women’s National Amateur Squad, went into the final day one-stroke behind the lead after recording a 6-under 66 during the third round.

The Calgary, Alta. product kicked off the final round with back-to-back birdies on the first two holes, scoring 1-under 35 across the front-nine.

After 13 holes, the 21-year-old was at the top of the leaderboard. Bogeys at 15 and 16 and a double bogey at 17, however, dropped her from first position. After closing with a birdie from the greenside bunker on 18, Lee finished four-strokes behind the tournament medallist Jennifer Kupcho.

Post-round reaction from @JaclynLee57#GoBuckspic.twitter.com/H0mfnabOdJ

— Ohio State W Golf (@OhioState_WGOLF) May 22, 2018

Kupcho, the reigning Canadian Women’s Amateur champion, posted 8-under 280 to capture the title and become the first Wake Forest woman to win an NCAA golf title. The reigning Canadian Women’s Amateur champion overcame two bogeys and a double bogey across the front-nine with five birdies over her final eight holes.

Congrats to reigning Canadian Women’s Amateur champion Jennifer Kupcho on capturing the #NCAAGolf title ????

She’ll be back to defend her #CDNWAm title this summer @MDGC1922 from July 24-27 pic.twitter.com/xoQHBLna8l

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) May 22, 2018

Lee’s stellar junior season with Ohio State saw her winning three individual tournament titles, including a record-tying performance at the Big Ten Women’s Championship and an overall scoring average of 71.14, the lowest in Buckeye history. She will have another chance at winning the NCAA next year in her final collegiate season.

I can’t thank everyone enough for all the support this past week at #NCAAGolf ☺️ it always puts a smile on my face to see people following along. I appreciate it more than you know! Even though I didn’t finish the way I wanted to, I played my heart out there today #GoBucks ❤️

— Jaclyn Lee (@JaclynLee57) May 22, 2018

Lee’s fellow Team Canada member Maddie Szeryk closed out her outstanding collegiate career with a tie for 17th after scoring a 2-over 290. The Texas A&M Senior won four tournaments in her collegiate career and leaves with career records for stroke average, birdies, eagles and rounds played. She set the NCAA career record with 91 rounds of even-par or better and an SEC record with 32 Top-10 finishes.

Full tournament results can be found here.

Having recorded some impressive results, Monet Chun is proving herself to be a promising and talented young golfer with a bright future ahead.

Among the highlights for the second-year member of the Team Canada’s Development Squad are three victories at Future Links, driven by Acura Championships: Quebec, Ontario and Pacific, winning this past May by a two-stroke margin.

Other highlights of her impressive 2017 season include a win at the Investors Group Junior Girl’s Spring Classic, a top-10 finish at the prestigious Porter Cup along with a 3rd and 4th place finish at the Junior Orange Bowl and Canada Summer Games, respectively.

Looking back on her humble beginnings, the Richmond Hill, Ont. native says she got started at the age of five with the encouragement of her mom, Elena.

“My mom looked for a sport with limited possibilities of injuries. I started taking lessons once a week and participated in my first tournament at the age of seven,” she recalled.

Growing up, Chun would dabble in other sports—but after committing herself to golf at the age of 10, she has not looked back.

“I played other sports like volleyball and basketball for fun, but never competitively,” she pointed out.

“I realized I wanted to play at a high level since I was 10. Playing at an international golf event made me want to continue to play at that level and I want to compete with the best players.”

After a number of runner up finishes, Chun’s first big victory came at the 2015 Ontario Junior Girls’ Match Play championship where she defeated Alyssa Getty 5 & 4 in the championship match. In 2016, Chun would win the Golf Quebec Junior Spring Open and finish in a tie for second at the Ontario Women’s Amateur.

Having spent some time working with Chun, 2007 Ontario Women’s Amateur champion, coach Rebecca Lee-Bentham sees a lot of potential in the young golfer.

“I see a lot of myself in Monet because I can see that she’s really disciplined and works really hard; and is really dedicated to getting better each day,” said Lee Bentham, a retired LPGA pro and current PGA of Canada Class “A” coach.

“She’s consistent off the tee and has a good long game and her short game is sound also,” added Lee-Bentham. “Overall, she’s very talented and has a promising future ahead.”

The 17-year-old golfer is quick to credit her mom and her dad, Peter, for their unconditional support over the years.

“I would not be able to play the sport without the support of my parents and their dedication in driving me to practices and taking me to tournaments. I think their commitment to my game has been a key factor to my improvement over the years,” said Chun.

She is also quick to credit her time on the women’s development squad for her progression as a player.

“The program has helped improve not only my techniques, but has helped me improve physical strength and my mental game,” she said.

Currently Chun is part of the first group of golfers who have relocated to Bear Mountain Resort in Victoria, B.C. as part of the revamped development squad program.

The change in program structure and commitment to a centralized training environment over four and a half months of the year are designed to better support emerging talents as part of Golf Canada’s next generation strategy.

“The training facility in Victoria is well equipped and suited for our practices. I think it is a great idea for the team to be centralized in Victoria,” said Chun.

“It will help to improve my game since I will be receiving better support, more time with the coaches, better weather and facilities, and programs that fit our needs including schooling.”

The Richmond Hill, Ont. native was chosen to represent Canada—for the second year in a row—at the World Junior Girls Championship this past September in Ottawa.

“The field has many strong players and I was able to meet new people from all over the world. Being able to take part in a team is a different experience to other competition which I think makes the World Junior Girls Championship a wonderful experience. Also, I was able to get to know my new teammates better. It was a fun tournament,” said Chun about the event which was held at the Marshes Golf Club.

Looking ahead, the talented and promising young golfer is clear on both her short and long-term goals.

“My goals over the next year are to play consistently during (and outside) of tournaments; and commit to a school in the States,” said Chun.

“And my goals over the next five years is to win a national title, play in the NCAA representing a college team, and play in an LPGA Tour event.”

The Great Canadian East-West Contest is back for 2018, giving one lucky draw winner the golf trip of a lifetime to one of Canada’s most renowned golf courses. This year will include an all-expenses-paid trip for two to either Bear Mountain Golf & Country Club in B.C., or Kingswood Golf & Country Club in N.B.

The winner is drawn from all score entries posted by Golf Canada members from April 1 – Oct. 31, 2018. Each additional score posted counts for an additional entry. In addition to the golf, the winner will receive:

• Two nights accommodation at hotel near chosen golf course
• Round trip airfare (with either Delta or WestJet)
• Three-day car rental (with National/Enterprise)
• One hour lesson and one round of golf with the PGA of Canada professional
• $500 spending money

In 2017, the Great Canadian East-West Contest came to an end Oct. 31, with North Vancouver’s Patrick Lloyd winning the draw amongst over 7 million scores posted by Golf Canada members.

As the winner, Lloyd was given the choice of a golf vacation for two in 2018 to the Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Club (also in B.C.) or The Links at Crowbush Cove in Morell, P.E.I.

Lloyd, a member of Seymour Golf & Country Club in North Vancouver, B.C., will head east to Crowbush Cove alongside wife Linda this summer.

Click here for contest details.

DALLAS – Aaron Wise strolled up the 18th fairway in the fading twilight, lifting his hat over his head a couple of times as the thinned-out crowd cheered what would soon be his first PGA Tour victory at the AT&T Byron Nelson.

The 21-year-old rookie pulled away from Marc Leishman at the turn after a four-hour rain delay to start the final round at the new Trinity Forest course Sunday. Then it was just a race to finish before nightfall so he wouldn’t have to wait at least another 12 hours to celebrate.

Wise shattered the Nelson record at 23 under, shooting a 6-under 65 to beat Leishman by three strokes as both became the first to finish the Nelson at 20 under or better. Leishman, who shared the third-round lead with Wise after leading the first two days, shot 68.

The treeless links-style par-71 layout, a few miles south of downtown Dallas, was defenceless with softer fairways and greens and no wind once the morning storms passed.

The Nelson celebrated its 50th anniversary with a return to Dallas after 35 years at the TPC Four Seasons in suburban Irving. Rory Sabbatini set the previous record on that par-70 layout at 19-under 261 in 2009.

“It’s everything I’ve dreamed of,” said Wise, who won once each on the Web.com and Canadian tours. “I felt like when it rained today I was really going to tear the course up just because it allowed me to hit driver, which is my strength. I got a lot of short irons in my hand and was able to make a lot birdies.”

Branden Grace matched his career-best 62 from last year’s British Open _ which was the lowest round ever in a major and finished at 19 under with J.J. Spaun and Keith Mitchell, who had matching 63s.

Hometown star Jordan Spieth again couldn’t improve on his best Nelson finish from his first start as a 16-year-old amateur in 2010. The three-time major winner, and highest-ranked player in the field at No. 3, shot 67 to finish at 11 under. Spieth tied for 21st.

Instead, Spieth has been joined by another 21-and-under winner, with Wise cruising a month shy of his 22nd birthday and two weeks after the 2016 NCAA individual champion at Oregon tied for second at the Wells Fargo Championship, two shots behind Jason Day.

Spieth doesn’t have a top 10 finish in eight Nelson appearances, the most of any tournament for him.

“Felt like I played better than I scored,” Spieth said. “Typically when you say that, it just means putts didn’t go in.”

Mitchell, also a rookie seeking his first win, and Ryan Blaum had matching 30s on the front nine, with both playing the last six holes on that side in 5 under. But Wise had five birdies over those six holes, and added one on the 10th while Leishman bogeyed.

His lead suddenly at four shots, Wise cruised from there without another par _ and didn’t need one. Blaum’s run of five straight birdies ended with a bogey at 10, one of three on the back nine for him. He shot 66 and finished at 16 under with Kevin Na (68) and Jimmy Walker (67).

Leishman set a 36-hole Nelson record that was previously shared by Tiger Woods because of calm wind the first two rounds. A blustery Saturday brought scores up, but Trinity Forest was even more benign for the final round than it was the first two without its firm fairways and greens.

“Springtime in Texas, this is very rare to have three days with no wind,” Spieth said. “This course typically plays like (Saturday). That’s what you’re looking at normally three out of the four days here.”

Adam Scott shot 65 to finish tied for ninth at 15 under but was projected to finish just outside the top 60 needed to avoid sectional qualifying for the U.S. Open. The 2013 Masters champion hasn’t missed a major since 2001.

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Brooke Henderson made a late run at the Kingsmill Championship on Sunday, missing out on a three-person playoff by one stroke . The Smiths Falls, Ont., native finished the rain-shortened event at 13 under par to collect a fourth place finish.

“I just had a lot of great energy today. I started off with three birdies right off the start. Felt like I could really go low today, which is a great feeling,” said Henderson. “I came up a little bit short this week, but just to be in the hunt again and to feel that kind of adrenaline and to see my name at the top of leaderboard, it’s always a lot of fun.”

Henderson made it interesting down the stretch with three consecutive birdies in her last four holes, making a charge at the leaders.

“Yeah, it was pretty awesome. I just felt like — I was in the groove, and I felt like I could make birdies and I could make a charge, so I’m really happy I was able to do that,” added Henderson.

Highlights from @BrookeHenderson’s final-round 65 at the @KingsmillLPGA ??? pic.twitter.com/4kSBOW7M1n

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) May 21, 2018

Ariya Jutanugarn arrived at Kingsmill Championship with no expectations, and it was a strategy that paid off handsomely.

The 22-year-old Thai star birdied the second hole of a playoff Sunday to win the LPGA Tour event for the second time in three years.

“I’m going to say I didn’t expect anything this week because I think I have been playing … very good like the last few tournaments and I’m still not winning the tournaments,” she said. “So show up this week, I just tell myself I’m not going to expect anything. I’m going to really focus on the things under my control and make sure I’m going to have good commitment every shot.”

“When I’m thinking about winning, I never win,” Jutanugarn said. She became the 12th winner in as many events on the tour this season.

Jutanugarn closed with a 5-under 66 to match Nasa Hataoka (67) and In Gee Chun (68) at 14-under 199.

Jutanugarn and Hataoka both birdied the first extra hole, with Chun dropping out. The 19-year-old Hataoka putted first on the second extra hole and missed badly from just off the back of the 18th green before Jutanugarn rolled in a 15-footer for her eighth career victory.

“I couldn’t believe I played in a playoff in such an early stage in my career,” Hataoka said. “I’m just going to try to keep going for the rest of the year.”

Jutanugarn’s older sister, Moriya, won the HUGEL-JTBC Championship in Los Angeles in April for her first LPGA Tour victory

Jutanugarn started the day two shots behind Chun and used a stretch of five birdies in six holes to build a two-shot lead before making bogey at the par-5 15th,, one of the easiest holes on the course.

“After that I got a little bit mad, but my caddie just told me … we can’t go back and change anything,” she said. “All we can do is just what we have now. Try to hit a good shot.”

Hataoka, playing with Chun in the final threesome, birdied No. 15 to join Jutanugarn at 14 under, and Chun made a long birdie putt on the par-3 17th to also get to 14 under.

It was the eighth top 10 finish of the season for Jutanugarn, the only player on the women’s tour to have made the cut in every event she’s played.

It was the fourth playoff in the history of the tournament.

The tournament was cut from 72 holes to 54 when rain washed out play Saturday.

Megan Khang was fifth after her third straight 67.

Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., finished at 3 under, while Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., was at 1 over.

.@BrookeHenderson on her 4th place finish at the @KingsmillLPGA ???? pic.twitter.com/M0oUeV0w3p

— CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) May 21, 2018

KEMPTVILLE, Ont. – National Amateur Squad member Josh Whalen claimed third at the 2018 Flagstick Open Champion at eQuinelle Golf Club this weekend.

22-year-old Whalen, who earned top spot in the men’s National Order of Merit in 2017, started the final round in fourth after scoring an even-par 72 on Saturday.

Though the final round began with dark clouds, the sun eventually shone as the Napanee, Ont. native shot eight birdies across the 36-hole event. He finished the tournament with a 4-under, one-stroke shy of co-leads Noah Steele and Robert Mustard.

Two-time defending champion Steele went into the final round at the top of the leaderboard. The 20-year-old carded a 5-under 67 in round one, with Mustard only one-stroke behind. The two players battled throughout the final round for the lead, ending 36 holes tied at 5-under. A two-way playoff would decide the result.

Mustard, a native of Brockville, Ont., ultimately defeated Steele with a 20-foot birdie for the one-hole playoff victory.

Full results can be found here.

DALLAS – The wind finally blew on the new Trinity Forest course at the AT&T Byron Nelson.

Aaron Wise wasn’t rattled, not even by a bogey that dropped him into a tie for the lead on the final hole Saturday. Now the 21-year-old PGA Tour rookie is ready for another run at his first victory.

Wise shot a 3-under 68 to pull even with Marc Leishman, four shots ahead of Matt Jones and Kevin Na going into the final round.

It’s not the first time Wise has been in this position, though. Two weeks ago, he finished tied for second at the Wells Fargo Championship, two shots behind Jason Day.

Besides, Wise has won at every level – including the 2016 NCAA individual title while helping Oregon win the team championship just before turning pro. He was the first player in eight years to pull that NCAA double.

“There’s a little more pressure on it because there’s more people and it’s a bigger scene, but I felt like I did a great job of handling all that at Quail Hollow,” Wise said. “Being my second chance at it, I feel like it’s only going to be better than that.”

Leishman shot 69 after setting a 36-hole tournament record previously shared by Tiger Woods. The 34-year-old Australian had a career-best 61 in the opening round.

Hometown star Jordan Spieth couldn’t make a move from eight shots back, shooting par 71 and falling 10 strokes behind.

Wind gusted above 25 mph at times after two rounds of calmer conditions and lower scores on the treeless, links-style layout a few miles south of downtown Dallas. The Nelson spent the previous 35 years at a more conventional venue in suburban Irving.

One illustration of the struggle came late with the strong crosswind at the par-4 18th, where five of the top six on the leaderboard had bogey or worse.

Na (69) and Jones (68) had to settle for 13 under. Jimmy Walker shot 70 with a double bogey on the final hole that dropped him to 12 under, with Brian Gay, who bogeyed 18 for a 72.

Nick Taylor (69) is the top Canadian at 7 under. Corey Conners (73) is 2 under.

Wise played in more wind than Leishman and most of the other leaders Friday when it kicked up in the afternoon, and still said Saturday’s conditions were significantly different. And he still said it was fun.

“I love playing really firm golf courses because it brings a lot of thinking in,” Wise said. “I didn’t have quite as many drivers as I had the last couple of days because it was firmer.”

With one notable exception: his 402-yard drive on the downwind par-4 ninth. All Wise had left was a flip wedge on the 504-yard hole, and he made the 11-foot putt.

“It’s pretty cool to be able to make decisions like that and kind of use my advantage, which is my driving when I can,” he said. “But you still got to play safe. This course has enough teeth where you can’t just bomb driver everywhere.”

Spieth was hoping for the teeth on one of his home courses, but couldn’t take advantage of his experience with it. The Dallas native even admitted he’s still struggling to figure out the greens.

The 24-year-old had three birdies and three bogeys and is in danger of going another year without surpassing his best Nelson finish – a tie for 16th when he was a 16-year-old high school junior in 2010.

“I finish 16th tomorrow and people are going to say, ‘What’s wrong?”’ said Spieth, a three-time major winner. “It’s funny how expectations change. But certainly my own do as well.”

Wise said the difference with strong wind on the course co-designed by Ben Crenshaw showed up quickly when his tee shot on the par-3 second hole ended up 30 yards right of his target.

For Leishman, it was the long ninth hole when he hit a 3-wood to try to land short of a fairway bunker 340 yards away but “went straight in it.”

“That’s a bit of getting used to,” the three-time tour winner said. “Normally I can’t hit my driver anywhere close to that.”

After 41 scores of 66 or better in the first two rounds, there were just two Saturday. Charles Howell III shot a 65 for the lowest and only bogey-free round of the day.

“It’s a lot different,” Jones said. “This is what the course is built for.”

Leishman, who still has a chance to be a wire-to-wire Nelson winner two years after Sergio Garcia did it, retook the lead with birdies at Nos. 14 and 15. Wise answered at 16 and 17 before his three-putt at 18.

“He’s a solid player for I heard this morning he’s only 21. I didn’t realize that,” Leishman said. “I guess I was in high school before he was born. You hear guys talk about that all the time, but I’ve never said that, I think.”

The Aussie will be dueling Sunday with the youngster, born in South Africa but raised in the United States.

“It’s easy for me to get ahead of myself,” Wise said. “I’m getting some great experience for a kid this young. It’s only going to serve me well down the road.”