McCall Leads Round 1 of the East Side Amateur
Madison, IL - It was a beautiful day at Gateway National Golf Links for the 23rd East Side Amateur Championship. The day started out with overcast skies, but once the clouds broke it was blue skies and sunshine for the competitors. The East Side Amateur features three divisions this year: open, senior, and super senior. The open division played to 6,912 yards, the seniors played to 6,419 yards, and the super seniors played to 6,154 yards. There were 126 total players in today’s field.
The race is close in the open division. Conner McCall of Vandalia Country Club finds himself at the top following the first round. It was a slow start for McCall with one bogey and eight pars on the front. On the back nine was when he started getting into the swing of things, carding four birdies to come in at two-under (-2) par. Thomas Wuennenberg of Tapawingo National Golf Club sits just one back. Wuennenberg had four birdies across his round, but the most important came on the 18th to close out his round at one-under (-1) par. Four players finished the day at even (E) par. Those include Brian Cooper of Sunset Hills Country Club, David Schilp Jr. of Bogey Hills Country Club, Bubba Chapman of Bellerive Country Club, and Zachary Pranger of Meadowbrook Country Club. Schilp had the most remarkable round of the four which included an eagle on Hole 9 and then was bogey free on the back nine with two birdies. Five golfers are still within striking distance at one-over (+1) par.
In the senior division, players kept a tight contention throughout the day. Brian Hall of Persimmon Woods Golf Club ended the round on top at just even (E) par. Hall started the day two-under through three holes and completed the front nine bogey free. There was a rocky start to the back nine, but Hall ended on a high note to get back to even par with a birdie on the last. Buddy Allen of Sugar Creek Golf Club sits two shots behind the lead. Allen battled his way around the course and was able to steady his game to finish out with pars after a birdie on the 12th. Allen finished the day at two-over (+2) par. Not far behind is a four-way tie at three-over (+3) par. Brandon Auld of the USGA/MetAmateur GC, Tony Nolfo of the Metropolitan eClub, Paul Neeman of Persimmon Woods Golf Club, and John Todd of Lake Forest Country Club all sit tied for third going into the final round.
The super senior division is a new addition in 2026. These golfers aged 65 and up fought hard. Jim Dunn of Norwood Hills Country Club was one hole shy of a bogey free front nine. Dunn did card one birdie during his round and finished the day on top of the leaderboard at four-over (+4) par. Following behind Dunn is Robert Trittler of Persimmon Woods Golf Club at seven-over (+7) par. In a tie for third is Kevin Giese of the Metropolitan eClub and Barry Yehling of Gateway National Golf Club at eight-over (+8) par.
With the scores close after the first round, things are sure to heat up in Round 2 as players make a run for the crystal. Current leaders after round one are Conner McCall in the open division, Brian Hall in the senior division, and Jim Dunn in the super senior division.