DeSchutter roars into the top 15 on day two of NJCAA Championships
Newton, KS-Don't look now, but Anthony DeSchutter is making some serious noise.
On Wednesday, the sophomore tied Wallace State's Keith Hunter for the low round of the tournament with a 67, jumping 45 spots to get into All-American and National Championship contention at 2-under while his team sits tied for 17th at the 14-over par.
"If a few things go our way, we are right back in it," Head Coach, Phil Terpstra said. "Anthony is right in the mix, and it is not out of the question for him to finish in the top five."
DeSchutter was so good in round two that even two bogeys on the back nine didn't put a dent into an already impressive scorecard. His highlight of the day: an eagle on No. 2, a tough 570-yard par 5 that he navigated with extreme precision. The second-year star made it onto the green in two, then converted a 10-foot eagle putt, which was followed by an emphatic fist pump.
"There wasn't really a lot of separation yesterday from the top guys to the players who were in the middle of the pack," DeSchutter said. "Everyone has an opportunity if they can keep their scores low."
After parring three and four, DeSchutter made birdie on the par-4, 365-yard fifth hole. He added another on the ninth, bringing him to 3-under on the front. He then tallied birdies on 10, 15, 16, and 18 to finish at 5-under. He's just four shots back of Hunter and Indian Hills' Gaspar Glaudas for the lead.
"Some of our guys struggled on the back nine again, but Anthony was great all day," Tersptra added.
Joshua Balson-Scales, who is tied for 42nd at 2-over par, was strong through the first five holes. He birdied No. 4 and No. 5 but then bogeyed three of the next four holes to push him to 2-over through the front nine. He bounced back with a birdie putt on 10 but missed a chance at par on 11. He birdied 16 and bogeyed 17 to finish the day 2-over. He's plus-2 for the tournament.
Meantime as he did on Tuesday, Tiaan Diedericks finished 3-over, bringing him to plus-6 for the Championships and a tie for 76th place. He made par on 14 of the 18 holes with his only mistake coming on No. 4, a tough par-5 that he two-putted.
Jackson Koksal, who shot 2-over in round one, was a bit shaky after a solid start on Wednesday. He birdied two of the first five holes, but a double on eight made him 2-over on the front. He bogeyed 10, 14; then two-putted 15. He added one more birdie on 16 to bring him to 6-over for the day. His teammate Akarachai Sakunlee shot 78 and is 11-over for the tournament.
"Now let's see what these guys can do on Thursday," Terpstra explained. "We will find a lot of things out tomorrow."
Indian Hills holds the top spot at 14-under par.
Garden City will tee off at 9:10 a.m. on Thursday.