Kevin Carrigan continued his solid play at the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, carding a 3-under 68 on Wednesday at Blackhawk Golf Club.

The defending champion fired a 4-under 31 to open his second round but stumbled with two late bogeys on over his final three holes to finish at 11-under 131 for the championship.

“I left several out there on the front,” Carrigan said. “I think the only two greens I missed today were No. 16 and No. 18 where I made bogey.”

The Victoria, B.C., native set a new competitive course record yesterday at Blackhawk with a 8-under 63 and currently leads by four strokes over David Bartman of Los Angeles, Calif. Despite not making as many putts as he’d like, Carrigan said he has a ton of confidence in his swing this week.

“I’m not making much and it’s frustrating because every shot I hit is on my line,” he continued. “I’m just not getting the putts to go, I burned probably six or seven edges today but my swing feels great.”

Team Canada’s Garrett Rank carded the round of the day at Blackhawk after a 7-under 64. The Elmira, Ont., native fired a 5-under 30 on the front-nine after an eagle on the par-5 4th hole and added a second after pitching in from 30 yards on the par-4 9th.

“I should have been way lower,” Rank said. “I three-putted No. 18 and missed a short three-footer on five.”

Playing alongside Carrigan, Rank was gunning for the new course record after getting it to 8-under through 14 holes but lost momentum after a bogey on the par-5 15th.

“I was playing so good that on No. 15 I hit it a little left off the tee and instead of laying up and hitting a wedge close like I was all day I tried to hit the green,” he said. “I turned it into a bogey and I shouldn’t be making bogeys on that hole.”

California’s David Bartman carded a 3-under 68 to grab solo second at 7-under 135, while Rank sits in third at 6-under 136. Dave Bunker of Woodbridge, Ont., Michael Rutgers of Windsor, Ont., and Calgary’s Dustin Yeager sit in a tie for fourth at 5-under.

Bartman currently holds a two-stroke lead in the Mid Master (40+) division over Bunker who fired a 6-under 65 on Wednesday.

In the Inter-Provincial team competition, Team Ontario’s Tyler McDannold of Brooklin, Ont., Michael Rutgers of Windsor, Ont., and Darren Shaw of Stoney Creek, Ont., captured the R. Bruce Forbes trophy after a firing a 3-under 139 second round. The squad finished at 3-under 281 for the championship, eight strokes ahead of Nova Scotia’s Trevor Chow of Hammonds Plains, N.S., Glenn Robinson of Middle Sackville, N.S., and Greg Black of Halifax, N.S.

Kevin Carrigan opened up his title defence at the Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship by firing a 8-under 63 on Tuesday at Blackhawk Golf Club.

The Victoria native carded three eagles and a closing nine 29 to set a new competitive course record at Blackhawk, after opening the day with an unplayable on the par-4 10th. Carrigan quickly rebounded with a birdie on the par-5 11th and rolled in his first eagle of the day on the par-5 15th hole.

“I took an unplayable on my first hole, didn’t seem like much of a round until I guess I made the second eagle, 3-under to 5-under I was hitting it well,” Carrigan said.

As the reigning Canadian Mid-Amateur champion, Carrigan lit up Blackhawk’s par-5’s playing them in 7-under par with three eagles on a windy afternoon.

“If you’re hitting it good, it doesn’t feel windy,” he continued. “I mis-clubbed a couple of times but never got myself into trouble, I didn’t really miss many shots.”

California’s David Bartman, trails Carrigan by four strokes after an opening round 4-under 67. Bartman’s round was highlighted by an eagle on the par-5 4th hole and leaves him three strokes ahead of Raymond Oh of Richmond, Ont., in the race for the Mid-Master (40+) title.

“I just kept it in play and took advantage of the par-5’s,” Bartman said. “If I did miss a green, my short game was solid.”

Michael Rutgers of Windsor, Ont., sits in solo third after a 3-under 68, while Calgary’s Dustin Yeager opened with a 2-under 69 to grab a share of fourth place. Chris Moore of Vancouver and Oh currently sit in a tie for fifth at 1-under.

Saskatchewan’s Kris Carley recorded the shot of the day after holing a 255-yard hybrid on the par-5 7th hole for an albatross. The albatross was his second of the season and third double-eagle of his career.

In the Inter-Provincial team competition, Team Ontario’s Tyler McDannold of Brooklin, Ont., Michael Rutgers of Windsor, Ont., and Darren Shaw of Stoney Creek, Ont., combined to card a even-par 142 opening round. The squad currently leads by four strokes over Nova Scotia’s Trevor Chow of Hammonds Plains, N.S., Glenn Robinson of Middle Sackville, N.S., and Greg Black of Halifax, N.S., heading into the final round of Inter-Provincial competition.