Aaron Wise fires 8-under 62, takes lead at Air Capital Classic

After playing a practice round at Crestview Country Club in preparation for the Air Capital Classic, Aaron Wise discovered his style of play was a perfect fit for the par 70 course.

So it wasn’t a surprise to Wise when he fired an opening-round 8-under 62 to take the early lead on Thursday. It was one shot off the tournament record – five golfers have carded a 61 in the 28-year history of the tournament.

Seth Reeves was alone in second, two strokes back after a round of 64. Six golfers shot 65. Play was suspended as threatening weather approached shortly before 7 p.m. Thursday with 15 golfers still on the course. Friday’s second round will begin at 7 a.m.

“I went out there with a good game plan and this course suits my game,” Wise said. “I feel like I can hit a lot of drivers around here, which gives me an advantage over the people who can’t. I hit it pretty well and put myself in some good spots and it all added up to a good score.”

Wise, who won the 2016 NCAA individual championship at Oregon, capitalized on his early-morning tee time to take advantage of playing most of his round before strong winds and soaring temperatures kicked in by noon.

Starting on the No. 1 tee, Wise birdied the first three holes Thursday.

“It’s something that you have to do out of the gate,” Wise said. “The first three holes are pretty gettable, so that gave me a lot of confidence. I didn’t have to press the rest of the round.”

The lone mistake of the round came on the par 3 No. 5, Wise’s only bogey of the day. When Wise made the turn, he caught fire by making the course shorter with his long drives off the tee. He birdied Nos. 10 and 11, then followed with another birdie on No. 14.

The highlight of his round came on the par 4 No. 15. Once again Wise smashed his drive close to 300 yards and left himself with a short wedge shot to the green. He drilled his 90-yard approach shot past the hole on the back of the green, then sucked it all the way back until it dropped in the hole for an eagle.

“That’s definitely a bonus, something you’re not expecting,” said Wise, who closed with a 5-under 30 on the back-nine. “It was a good reward for a good shot.”

Entering this week’s tournament, Wise ranked 35th on the Web.com Tour money list. The top 25 at season’s end earn PGA Tour cards next year. A strong finish this weekend could move Wise into the top 10.

He missed the cut at his previous two tournaments, the BMW Charity Pro-Am on May 21 and the Rust-Oleum Championship last weekend. His best finish this season is a third-place showing at the Louisiana Open on March 26.

“(Earlier this season) I decided to work on some things with my coach and make it less timing-based,” Wise said. “Obviously you’re going to go through growing pains with that and I did. But I’m OK with that because I knew it would come around and it slowly is. Today was a good day to build off that and gain some confidence.”

After firing his lowest round of the tour this year, Wise is confident headed into the final three days of the tournament.

“A few of the courses we play don’t allow us to hit many drivers and this one does,” Wise said. “It’s a tight squeeze on some, but you can still hit it. I’m playing aggressively off the tee and I think that’s giving me an advantage coming into greens with more chances for birdie. The course was fairly gettable today, but I know it will get harder as the week goes on.”

This story was originally published June 15, 2017 at 7:09 PM with the headline "Aaron Wise fires 8-under 62, takes lead at Air Capital Classic."