One of the most difficult situations in tournament golf is holding the lead going to the final round, particularly for players who have never been in that position before.

Chris Nicol, an assistant professional at Towne Lake Hills, found himself in just that position after firing a sizzling 65 in the first round of the inaugural Championship at Berkeley Hills, a recent addition to the Georgia PGA tournament schedule.

Nicol, who has been competing in Georgia PGA Section events for only two years, has contended in both the Griffin Classic and Atlanta Open, and has enjoyed some success in team events, combining with fellow Towne Lake Hills assistant Bill Murchison to win the Pro-Pro Scramble earlier this year.

After a solid final round 71, Nicol held off a determined charge from veteran tour player Sonny Skinner of Sylvester, who pulled even with Nicol midway through the round. Skinner closed with a 67, matching the low round of the day, but it was not quite enough as he finished 2^nd at 7-under 137, one stroke behind Nicol’s winning total of 136. Nicol’s effort earned him the $2,100 winner’s check.

Two weeks prior to the event at Berkeley Hills, Nicol shot a 64 at Jennings Mill, former host of a Nationwide Tour event, to win an Assistants’ Division tournament, so his opening 65 did not come as a big shock to his fellow competitors.

Nicol entered the final round with a 4-stroke lead, as only one other player shot in the 60s the first day. Jimmy Harris, an assistant at Atlanta Athletic Club, shot a 69 highlighted by an ace on the par-3 11^th, but fell back the next day with a 79.

Even with a sizeable lead after his 65, Nicol anticipated a tough day ahead of him.

“I knew somebody was going to make a move, so I needed to get off to a solid start and not give them a chance,” Nicol said after securing his first individual victory in a Georgia PGA points event.

Nicol did just that, playing the first three holes in 1-under while most of his potential challengers were struggling early in the round.

The only two chasers not getting off to slow starts were Skinner and Russ Davis, who were playing in the pairing two groups in front of Nicol. Davis, the Director of Instruction at Cherokee CC and one of the Section’s top senior players, opened with a pair of birdies to get to 3-under for the tournament, but ran into a problem at the short but perilous par-5 third hole at Berkeley Hills, just as several other contenders did.

Davis hit his second shot in the pond guarding the green and wound up with a double bogey, but shot himself back into contention when he closed out the front nine with four consecutive birdies. That got Davis within two strokes of Nicol’s lead, but his birdie run ended at the ninth. He carded eight pars and a lone birdie on the back nine, settling for a 67 to tie Skinner for low round of the day and finish 3^rd at 6-under 138.

Skinner began to make his move when he birdied the third hole with a deft chip, and added three more birdies on the outgoing nine, capped by an excellent tee shot on the tough par-3 eighth. Like Davis, Skinner shot 4-under 32 on the opening nine, and was only one shot off Nicol’s lead as he made the turn.

A birdie from close range at the short, par-3 11^th briefly pulled Skinner even with Nicol, but Nicol moved back in front when he chipped it close at the par-5 10^th and nearly jarred his tee shot on the 11^th for a second straight birdie.

Skinner again pulled into a tie for the lead when he pitched it close at the par-5 15^th for birdie while Nicol three-putted the 13^th for his second bogey of the day. But Skinner got himself “out of position” on the slick 16^th green and three-putted for the second time on the back nine, taking his only bogey of the round. He also three-putted the 10^th for par after hitting the green in two.

Following an errant tee shot on the 18^th, Skinner had to scramble for a par to remain one shot off the lead, but Nicol parred in after the bogey at 13 to preserve his slim advantage.

“I feel good about the way I played,” Skinner said. “I just didn’t make all my putts, but I played good enough to shoot five-under. I hit the ball really good except for two holes, and I got through them with pars by getting up and down.”

Skinner, who was in the midst of a heavy tournament schedule consisting mainly of Nationwide Tour events, particularly regretted the second of his two three-putts on the back nine.

“That might have been the fastest putt on the course,” he said of the one at 16. “I didn’t handle it good.”

Just as damaging was the miss at 10, which took a hard turn after crossing the lip of the cup.

Nicol also suffered a pair of three-putts, but made no other mistakes despite the heat he felt from Skinner’s challenge. He admitted playing more conservatively with the lead, but said that wasn’t the main reason he shot 71 after the opening 65.

“I was on the wrong side of the hole today,” he said, referring to Berkeley Hills’ fast, sloping greens that provide the major defense for a course that measures under 6,700 yards from the back tees.

The key to Nicol’s 65 was his dominance of Berkeley Hills’ par 5s. He played them in 5-under in the opening round, highlighted by an eagle on the downhill third hole that propelled him to a 3-under start after three holes. He closed out the round with birdies on the three of the last four holes, beginning with one at the par-5 15^th.

Nicol was a modest 2-under on the par 5s in the second round, carding his birdies on 3 and 10, both of which he played cautiously, hitting irons off the tee. He almost flew his 4-iron approach on the third into trouble, catching the back lip of the back bunker to keep from possibly rolling into the hazard over the green. A nice bunker shot produced a birdie, and he added a second at the 10^th after again hitting 3-iron to keep his tee shot in the narrow fairway.

Playing as well as he did in the final round to preserve his will provide “a big confidence boost,” Nicol said. “Sleeping on that big a lead is nerve-wracking. I proved I was able to keep it going and not lose my focus.”

Nicol’s first start in a Section points event came in the 2008 Griffin Classic, where he tied for 8^th. He was 12^th in that tournament last year, and also had strong showings in the Atlanta Open (T3), Georgia Open (T11) and the Assistants’ Championship (2^nd). He played well in the Atlanta Open again this year, tying for 7^th, and is among a group of young assistants who have begun to make an impact in section events in the past year or two, joining Seth McCain, David Potts and Michael Parrott, as players who have either won Section events or made strong runs at victory.

Tim Weinhart remained first in the points standings, finishing 4^th at 141 with scores of 70-71. Mel Mendenhall of Columbus took low amateur honors and tied for 5^th at 143, closing with a 69 that included six birdies. Also tying for fifth were Atlanta instructors Craig Stevens and Jason Bruce.

Parrott also shot 69 in the final round and was among a group tied for 8^th at 144. Also shooting even par for the tournament were Gary Cressend, Brian Corn, Stephen Keppler, Michael Pavao and Berkeley Hills assistant Jason Smith, who shot 70 after being 4-under in the final round with four holes to play. Cressend, an assistant at Augusta CC, was also 4-under on his round after four straight birdies from holes 8 to 11.

The first-year tournament was well received by the participants, with the field including almost every top player in the Section, as well as a healthy group of amateur entrants. The condition of the course was outstanding, with the greens drawing much of the praise despite the damage they inflicted to the scorecards of some of the Georgia PGA’s better players.

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