Often a contender, Griffin Barela shoots 64 to take 2-stroke lead at halfway point of CGA Amateur
By Gary Baines – 7/16/2021
Griffin Barela of Metro Denver eClub has made himself a fixture on the leaderboards at CGA Amateurs in recent years.
The golfer from Lakewood — and the University of Wisconsin — has posted four top-11 finishes in the championship over the past four years, with two third places, a sixth and an 11th over that period.
And, sure enough, he’s back in 2021. Barela fired a 6-under-par 64 on Friday at the Country Club of Colorado in Colorado Springs — the low round of the tournament by four strokes — to grab a two-strokelead in the CGA Amateur, which dates back to the 1930s.
Barela, who was paired with the man who owns the course record for the Country Club of Colorado (62), made seven birdies and one bogey on Friday, leaving him at 5-under-par 135 at the midway point of the 72-hole event. He birdied his first three holes of the day and the last two.
First-round leader Parker Edens, a former pro who plays out of Collindale Golf Course, sits in second place at 137 after carding a bogey-free 69 on Friday. The Colorado State University men’s golf assistant coach made 17 pars and one birdie in round 2.
Two-time CGA Amateur champion Colin Prater from Cherokee Ridge Golf Course in Colorado Springs is another stroke back at 138 after his second straight 69. Prater, a mid-amateur player (25 and older) like Edens, made three birdies and two bogeys on Friday.
The five players tied for fourth place sit seven strokes out of the lead. That group includes 2014 CGA Player of the Year Michael Harrington from Garden of the Gods Club in Colorado Springs (68 Friday), Nicholas Sheedy of Denver Country Club (69), University of Denver golfer Connor Jones of The Ranch Country Club (71), Austin Duffy of Metro Denver eClub (72) and Adam Neville of Metro Denver eClub (73).
The field was cut from 84 to the low 40 players and ties after 36 holes, with the 44 golfers at 151 or better advancing to the weekend. The CGA Amateur will continue through Sunday.
This year marks the first time since 1983 that a Colorado Springs course has hosted the CGA Amateur. The Amateur dates back to at least 1933. Past champions include several players who have gone on to win on the PGA Tour, including Hale Irwin (Amateur champ in 1963, ’64 and ’65), Bob Byman (1971, ’72 and ’73) and Steve Jones (1981).
For all the scores from Country Club of Colorado, CLICK HERE.