Peyton Shore holds first-round lead at Wyoming Open

“The ball goes a long way up here, and it gets to skipping a bit,” Shore said. “I was lost the first year. I was like a fish out of water. Now, I’m more comfortable, and I love it out here.”

Shore estimated that his shots travel about 8% farther at altitude than they do in rural western South Carolina.

“Making that adjustments was really important on wedge shots because you get so many of them out here,” he said. “You have to be comfortable with the altitude so you can hit the same wedge shot you would have back home. You have to control your irons and wedges, and I did that today. I hit a bunch of good wedge shots. I hit just about every green and gave myself a bunch of looks.”

Shore started his day on the back nine at Airport Golf Course, and made the turn at 2-under 36. He heated up immediately after making the turn, posting birdies on Hole Nos. 1 and 3 and an eagle on the par-4 Hole No. 2.

“I drove it really good and played pretty smart,” Shore said. “I missed a few putts I shouldn’t have, but I made some putts, too. There are a bunch of drive-able holes that you can take advantage of if you drive it well. If you get off with the driver, you can get really stuck under some trees.”

Tyler Severin is only playing in his fourth professional event since graduating from the University of Wyoming in May. Friday’s round was one to remember, as Severin carded a 6-under-par 64.

“The tee balls were solid, and my putter was pretty hot, as well,” Severin said. “I was missing in the right spots and still giving myself looks for birdie. I had a good escape early and was able to keep my round going.”

Severin carded birdies on four of his first six holes. That included a birdie save after his drive ended up underneath a tree. He bogeyed the par-3 Hole No. 7, but rebounded with a birdie on the next hole to make the turn at 4-under 30.

Severin closed with four birdies and two bogeys on the back nine.

“This kind of course fits my game because I hit my driver pretty straight most of the time,” said Severin, who studied business management at UW. “It suits my eye. There are only a couple holes that are weird for me, but I just have to work past those.

“Also, the greens are rolling fantastic. It is easy to make putts out when the greens are rolling good.”

The professionals had to play through a brief rain shower Friday afternoon. It slowed the greens a touch until the sun returned and dried them back out, Severin said.

Mitchell Schow of Ogden, Utah, notched a bogey-free round of 6-under 64. He said he kept the ball in the fairway, and went after Hole Nos. 1, 2, 5 and 8, which he considered the most drive-able.

“If you really get off to a hot start on the front nine, you won’t necessarily cruise in, but you’ll put yourself in position for a good round,” he said. “If you can’t keep it straight, the best you can hope for is par.

“I didn’t do anything too stupid, where I missed the green, had to chip out sideways or anything like that.”

This is Schow’s first trip to the Wyoming Open. He played in last week’s Laramie Open, and plans on playing in the Monday qualifier for the Korn Ferry Tour event in Berthoud, Colorado.

Andrew Arft of Casselberry, Florida, is making the same swing as Schow. He decided to play in the Wyoming Open after hearing so many good things about the tournament from friends back home.

Arft also carded a bogey-free 6-under 64 in his first competitive trip around Airport Golf Course. He was helped by birdieing three of his final five holes.

“I didn’t hit the ball great, but I kept the ball in front of me and made a couple great 8-footers,” Arft said. “This course has a lot of great birdie opportunities. I tried to keep it in the fairway, hit wedges close and not make any mistakes.”

Another young pro with Wyoming ties also found himself near the top of the leaderboard after the first round. Lander’s Trey Massey posted a 5-under 65, and is tied with Dominic Piccirillo of Las Vegas for fifth. Even though Massey’s round was bogey-free, it still had a couple hair-raising moments as he had to save par on the par-5 No. 14 and the par-3 No. 17.

“I hit a good shot on 14 that landed pin-high and went over,” Massey said. “It stopped right in front of a tree root, and all I could do was hit it to the middle of the green. I left myself a 10- or 12-foot putt and made it.

“On 17, I had a 10- or 15-footer that I made. Other than that, I didn’t make many mistakes. I tried to play simple golf and keep it in the fairway.”

This is Massey’s second time playing in the Wyoming Open as a professional. He posted a first-round 65 last year before going over in his second round.

“My game is in a lot better form this year,” said Massey, who played at Eastern Wyoming College in Torrington before transferring to NCAA Division III Greensboro (North Carolina) College. “I’m playing a lot better so, hopefully, I can keep it going.”

Defending champion Ben Geyer of Arbuckle, California, is tied for 10th at 3-under 67.