Tylke's 65 Puts Him Within Reach of Second MPGA Public Links Victory

August 18, 2018 | 4 min.

 
 
By Nick Hunter
nick@mngolf.org
 
 
  OTSEGO, Minn. – In search of a second title in three years, Maxwell Tylke fired a 7-under par 65 at Riverwood National Golf Course Saturday to take an early lead following the opening round of the 94th Minnesota Public Golf Association Public Links Championship.
 
With a clean scorecard consisting of seven birdies, Tylke will take a one-stroke victory over Caleb VanArragon to Sunday’s final round, looking for his first win since his Public Links playoff victory at over Danny Anderson at Loggers Trail Golf Club in 2016.
 
“I made a lot of putts early—the five or six foot range and really kicked it off on the first four holes with up-and-downs,” Tylke said Saturday. “My par-5’s today were perfect, but it didn’t feel like I was rolling until about the eighth hole.”
 
“I never got in trouble off the tee other than nine, which I got away with. If you don’t get in trouble off the tee here, you can really play the course. Most of these holes, if you’re a little off, you can lose your ball. Other than 17, I think I hit every putt inside of six feet.”
 
Tylke rolled in a short birdie putt from inside four feet on the opening hole Saturday to quickly move below par before a two-putt birdie at the par-5 fifth hole. Gaining momentum by sinking a 30-footer from the fringe at the seventh led to three straight birdies to finish his front nine at 5-under par.
 
Reaching both par-5’s in two on the back nine, Tylke carded a pair of two-putt birdies to finish the opening day of competition in sole possession of the lead at 7-under 65.
 
Tylke won the Minnesota PGA Junior Championship in 2011 and posted several near misses prior to his Public Links victory in 2016. Tylke and partner Alexandra Stewart cruised to the MGA Mixed Amateur Team Championship at Chaska Town Course in 2017. This season Tylke posted top-20 finishes at both the MGA State Amateur Championship and the Minnesota State Open.
 
VanArragon carded four birdies and one bogey on each of his nines Saturday to take the early clubhouse lead at 6-under par 66 before Tylke bettered him by a stroke several groups later.
“My driving wasn’t great today, but I was able to make up for it with some solid iron shots and good putts,” VanArragon said Saturday. “My putting was better than it has been in a long time.”
 
VanArragon started by rolling in his birdie look from 15 feet at the second hole before sinking a short birdie chance at the fourth, moving to 2-under for the tournament. After his 10 foot birdie at the sixth fell, VanArragon would get to 4-under when his downhill birdie putt from 20 feet at the par-4 seventh dropped, but he dropped a shot with a bogey at the eighth.
 
“By that point I realized I was having a really good putting day and started putting with a lot of confidence,” he said of his opening nine Saturday.
 
VanArragon sank his 15-footer for birdie at the 11th hole and added a 10-footer for birdie at the 12th to move to 5-under before taking a step back with a bogey at the 13th. He rebounded by two-putting for birdie at the 14th and got up-and-down for birdie from a greenside bunker on the final hole to card an opening round 66.
 
VanArragon, who will be a senior at Blaine High School this fall, began his summer by winning the State Junior Boys’ Championship at The Bridges before notching a fifth-place finish at the Minnesota PGA Junior Boys’ Championship. He placed 21st at the State Amateur at Hazeltine last month and 10th later in the week at the Minnesota State Open.
 
“I have had a pretty good season so far, but I did my best not to have any expectations coming into this tournament,” VanArragon said.
 
Tony Brown, winner in 2014, carded a 2-under par 70 Saturday and will begin Sunday’s final round in a tie for third place with Joel B. Johnson and Tim McKenney, five shots off the lead.
 
The 94th MPGA Public Links Championship continues Sunday when the final round gets underway at 7:30 a.m. at Riverwood National Golf Course.
 
 
 
THE 94TH MPGA PUBLIC LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP
RIVERWOOD NATIONAL GOLF CLUB
OTSEGO, MINN.
6,828 YARDS, PAR 72
 
 
SATURDAY’S FIRST ROUND RESULTS
1. Max Tylke, Links at Northfork, 31-34—65
2. Caleb VanArragon, Bunker Hills GC, 33-33—66 
T3. Tony Brown, Rush Creek GC, 36-34—70
T3. Joel B. Johnson, Links at Northfork, 35-35—70
T3. Tim McKenney, Baker Nat’l GC, 36-34—70
T6. Danny Anderson, Eagle Creek GC, 38-33—71
T6. Jonathan Hanner, Baker Nat’l GC, 35-36—71  
T6. Taylor Zack, Riverwood Nat’l GC, 36-35—71  
T9. Andy Jacobson, Eagle Creek GC, 36-36—72
T9. Nick Jarrett, Eastwood GC, 36-36—72
 
 
 

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