Michigan’s Gillis Tied At Top After First Round of Champions Q School

Tom Gillis of Pontiac Tied With Rob Labritz After First Round of Q-School
Four players one stroke behind co-leaders

Lutz, Florida – Tom Gillis carded a 6-under 65 to share the first round lead with Rob Labritz in the final stage of the PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying Tournament. The Q-School is held at TPC Tampa Bay.

Gillis, a native of Pontiac, Michigan, played 26 events on PGA TOUR Champions in 2020-21. The Oakland Community College product eagled the par-5 12th hole in the first round and added five birdies before bogeying his penultimate hole, the par-4 eighth.

“I just need to put the pedal down,” Gillis said. “They are only giving five cards, so you’re going to have to play your tail off. It’s a really strong field.”

Labritz, a club professional at GlenArbor Golf Club in Bedford Hills, New York, birdied each of his first three holes before adding four more birdies, along with a bogey on No. 14. Labritz, who turned 50 on May 31, advanced to Final Stage by finishing runner-up at the First Stage Qualifier at Buckhorn Springs last month in Valrico, Florida.

Mario Tiziani, Esteban Toledo, Scott Dunlap and Guy Boros are T3 after each carding 5-under 66 on the par-71, 6,802-yard layout. The start of the first round was delayed by two hours due to fog.

Gillis had three top ten finishes in 2020: a t8 at the Mitsubishi Classic, and t10s at the Pure Insurance Championship and the Bridgestone Senior Players Championship.

At the end of four rounds, the top-5 finishers will be fully exempt into open, full-field events for PGA TOUR Champions in the 2022 season. In addition, players finishing sixth through 30th will be eligible to compete in open qualifiers on PGA TOUR Champions in 2022.

Tee times for Wednesday’s second round will run from 8:30 – 10:53 a.m. off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees at TPC Tampa Bay.