Ollie Schniederjans ties course record, takes lead at Air Capital Classic

Ollie Schniederjans is only 23 years old, but has played golf on big stages around the world.

So the Web.com Tour rookie’s assessment of his course-record tying 61 in Saturday’s third round of the 27th Air Capital Classic at Crestview Country Club was interesting to say the least.

“It’s probably the best round I’ve ever had,” said Schniederjans, who vaulted to a two-shot lead over Web.com Tour rookie JT Poston after 54 holes of the $625,000 event on Crestview’s North course.

Schniederjans, who played his first Web.com event at Crestview two summers ago after his junior season at Georgia Tech, will take a 14-under-par 196 total into Sunday’s final round. He will attempt to earn his first professional victory, playing with Poston and Brian Campbell.

Due to the threat of inclement weather, tournament officials will send golfers off in threesomes from the first and 10th tees beginning at 7:50 a.m. Sunday. The final tee times are set for 10.

Schniederjans, No. 14 on the Web.com’s season money list, hit the course more than three hours ahead of second-round co-leaders Poston and Ryan Brehm on Saturday. He reeled off nine birdies and nine pars to match the 61 shot by Gavin Coles in the second round of the 2006 tournament.

“I don’t think I had a par putt outside of two feet,” said Schniederjans, who tied for fifth in his previous appearance at Crestview. “I was in the game all day, asked myself good questions and had full acceptance of the result all day.

“It just led to me being freed up. I hit a lot of great shots and my putting stroke was on.”

It contrasted sharply with the rounds played by Poston and Brehm, who started the day tied for the lead at 11 under.

Poston, a 23-year-old from St. Simons Island, Ga., reeled off four birdies in his first seven holes. But he finished with six birdies and five bogeys in a 1-under 69 that left him in sole possession of second at 12 under.

“I’m perfectly fine with where I am,” said Poston, who finished third at the Rex Hospital Open in mid-May. “I like being in the final group so I can have an idea what Ollie is doing, and I can have a first-hand look at it.”

Brehm, a 30-year-old from Mount Pleasant, Mich., eagled the par-5 second and birdied the par-4 third. But he made three bogeys in a four-hole stretch en route to an even-par 70 that landed him in a group of six golfers tied for third at 11 under.

“It definitely toughened up,” said Brehm, who opened the tournament with rounds of 65 and 64. “But after the start that JT and got off to, I thought we were both going to be kind of off to the races.

“Before the turn, on 7, 8 and 9, you had some really hard crosswinds and it was tough to hold the fairways. It got tough. It really did.”

Schniederjans didn’t escape the winds that blew on a broiling hot day. But he didn’t mind them either.

“It actually helps on a lot of holes because it’s downwind on some of the holes where I like to hit driver,” he said.

Schniederjans, a former world No. 1 amateur, lost to Brad Fritsch in a tournament playoff in April. But with two other top-10 finishes, he is in the fast lane toward full-time status on the PGA Tour this fall.

He finished second in the NCAA Championships at Hutchinson’s Prairie Dunes before coming to Crestview with a sponsor’s exemption two years ago. In his first Air Capital Classic, he shot the lowest round by an amateur in tournament history – one that was surpassed Saturday by Cal sophomore Collin Morikaw’s 63.

Schniederjans, who has already played in a U.S. Open and British Open, also hit a hole in one on Crestview’s par-3 eighth in the final round of the 2014 tournament.

Given a second chance to evaluate Saturday’s performance in context to his already strong golfing resume, Schniederjans didn’t hedge.

“It’s hard to compare because of different situations,” Schniederjans said. “But I’ve never really played a round where I don’t make any mistakes. And today, I didn’t really make a mistake.”

This story was originally published June 25, 2016 at 6:48 PM with the headline "Ollie Schniederjans ties course record, takes lead at Air Capital Classic."