Maple Hill Open Drama Unfolds as Cut Looms Large
Date Published
The 2015 Maple Hill Open has reached its thrilling midpoint, with the top competitors battling it out on the challenging course at Leicester, Massachusetts. The event, part of the PDGA National Tour, attracted a strong field of 175 men and women from across the United States, Finland, and Sweden.
For many players, the third round was their last chance to make a statement before the cut. A total of 85 Open players and 20 Open Women's competitors were eliminated after the round, leaving only the top 72 Open players (plus ties) and the top 14 Open Women's players (plus ties) in contention for the title.
In the Open Women's division, Catrina Allen held a four-stroke lead after two rounds but struggled on the back nine. A double bogey on Hole 18 cost her the lead, and she finished the round eight strokes behind Paige Pierce. The 14 Open Women's players who made the cut will tee off tomorrow morning at 8:30am EDT.
Paige Pierce's impressive play earned her a four-stroke advantage over Catrina Allen, while Val Jenkins trails by nine strokes. Jessica Weese, Sarah Hokom, and Paige Bjerkaas are also in contention for the title, with the overall gap between third and sixth place being just five strokes.
In the Open division, Paul McBeth held a two-stroke lead after two rounds but struggled on the front nine of the final round. Ricky Wysocki took advantage of McBeth's struggles to take the lead, only to see it slip away as McBeth staged an impressive comeback.
McBeth birdied Hole 14 and then carded another birdie on Hole 15 to regain the lead. He held on to his position with a par on 16 and birdies on both 17 and 18. Ricky Wysocki finished the round just one stroke behind, setting up an exciting final day of competition.
The Open division's lead card will tee off tomorrow afternoon at 2:00pm, with thousands of fans expected to watch the live broadcast on SmashBoxxTV and follow the action through live scoring on pdgalive.com. The PDGA Facebook page and Twitter feed (@PDGA) will provide updates throughout the day.
This article was compiled from disc golf coverage with AI assistance. Source: pdga.com — https://www.pdga.com/pierce-moves-lead-mcbeth-holds-his-ground-heading-maple-hill-open-finals