MI’s Gillis T1 At Halfway Point Of Champions Q School

Gillis, Branshaw Tied at Halfway Point of Q-School Finals
Four players within two strokes of co-leaders

Lutz, Florida – Halfway through the final stage of the PGA TOUR Champions Q School, Pontiac’s Tom Gillis remains tied for the lead at -8.

Gillis shot a 2 under 69 in the second round and a 6 under 65 in the first.

Joining Gillis is David Branshaw, who was the medalist at the Buckhorn Springs First Stage Qualifier last month in Valrico, Florida.

Gillis, who carded 2-under 69 at TPC Tampa Bay on Wednesday, eagled the par-5 12th for the second consecutive day after making one in his opening-round 65 on Tuesday.

“I’ve hit two hybrids in there from the fairway,” Gillis said of Hole No. 12. “Yesterday I hit one to about 4 feet and today 20 feet – and made both putts. That hole has been good to me.”

Gillis added: “I made a couple dumb mistakes after we made that eagle. We got up to 9-under and then made two bogeys, so that’s frustrating. You have no choice this week. You have to let it go and move on. If you don’t, it’s going to kill you. It’s a grind, just like it was all those years for Q-School on the PGA TOUR. It’s the same feeling.”

Gillis played 26 events on PGA TOUR Champions in 2020-21. 

Branshaw made one start on PGA TOUR Champions during the 2020-21 season, finishing T22 at the PURE Insurance Championship. The 52-year-old Branshaw advanced to Final Stage in 2019 where he finished T21. He owns two victories on the Korn Ferry Tour and spent three years playing on the PGA TOUR (2004, 2006, 2007).

Branshaw, who plays out of Tampa, Florida, carded 4-under 67, matching his score from the first round. After bogeying the par-3 second hole on Wednesday, Branshaw responded with a birdie on No. 3 and played bogey-free the rest of the round.

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.

Thursday’s third round will run from 8:30 – 10:53 a.m. (ET) off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees at TPC Tampa Bay.

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