Connelly primes for PGA event
Austin Connelly’s last trip to these parts was suddenly cut short. And not in a bad way. The teenage birdie-machine was in Calgary for a training camp and media event with Golf Canada’s national amateur team last May, but one buzz of his cellphone sent him scrambling to the airport and back to his home base of Dallas for his PGA Tour debut.
“I got the call when I was here, that I was getting a last-minute sponsor exemption into the Byron Nelson,” Connelly said after Thursday’s opening round of the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada’s ATB Financial Classic at Country Hills.
“I think I jumped on a plane about three hours later. And then this week, I come to Calgary and I’m playing the John Deere Classic next week. So this will be the second time that I go from Calgary to a PGA Tour event, which is pretty neat.”
If Thursday’s spin is any indication, the 19-year-old is primed for what will be his sixth start on golf’s biggest stage. (He has survived the cut in three of them so far.)
Connelly mixed an eagle, six birdies and one bogey in his first crack at the Talons Course at Country Hills, firing a sizzling 7-under 65 to land in a three-way tie atop the leaderboard after the opening day of the fourround showdown.
Utah’s Joe Parkinson and Oklahoma’s Dillon Rust also shaved seven strokes off par in Thursday’s action, while the logjam at 6-under 66 is headlined by Washington’s Brock Mackenzie, who collected the trophy at the 2014 ATB Financial Classic at Sirocco.
The round that created the most buzz on the sunsoaked viewing deck at Country Hills was delivered by Scott Secord, a longtime member and past winner of both the junior and men’s club championship at the private hangout.
The 23-year-old Secord signed Thursday for a 67, tops among amateurs, second among Canucks — trailing only Connelly, a dual citizen — and tied for 12th overall in the 156-man field.
It’s a solid start for the local lad, who plans to soon turn professional and has a number in mind for what he’d consider a strong showing this week at the ATB Financial Classic.
“Because I’m still an amateur, I obviously don’t care about the money, because I’m not going to get any of it,” Secord said.
“So that part doesn’t affect me. But I think just the mental capacity to get to 15-under on this kind of course is huge, and that would be a good stepping stone for me for the future, so that shows I can do that on other courses, as well.
“Because that’s what it takes out here. These guys are shooting 5- or 6-under every day, no matter what. The winner is always around 20-under.”
Or lower.
Connelly turned pro last summer — fellow Dallas resident and occasional workout partner Jordan Spieth provided valuable input as he pondered the decision — and admitted after Thursday’s rip around Country Hills Talons that part of his learning curve this summer on the Mackenzie Tour has been worrying less about what is happening around him.
“I would say that when I first started playing out here this year, I put a bit too much stock into how low the guys were going. I thought about that too much,” Connelly said. “You feel like you have to birdie every hole when you see that 25-under wins an event. What I’ve kind of realized is if you come out and just play solid rounds of golf, shoot your 3- or 4-unders, by the end of the week, you’re really in good shape.
“And then the weeks that you hole some putts or hit a few close or have some fortunate things happen, those are the weeks that you have a chance to win.”
Perhaps this is one of those weeks for Connelly.
Next week, when he tees it up at TPC Deere Run, would work, too.
“I played my last PGA Tour event in March, and I feel like I’ve learned so much since then, and I feel like my game has progressed immensely,” Connelly said. “So I’m definitely excited to get to next week.”
Friday’s action at the ATB Financial Classic tees off at 7 a.m.