Prairie View Golf Course in Carmel welcomed back 31 amateurs and 41 professionals Wednesday for the third round of the Indiana PGA Argosy Casino/Grant Communications Open Championship. The 72 players who made the cut at 153 after 36 holes of stroke play returned to the competition for two more days to try to catch leader Brett Melton of Country Oaks Golf Course.

Melton started out the week with a three shot lead over the field, increased it to four after day two and pulled away from the field in the third round to hold a six shot lead heading into the final round. “It is nice to have a six shot lead, but I can’t just sit back. I have to still go play one more round and keep doing what I’m doing,” he said.

What he has been doing is playing all-around solid golf. “My strength is in my driving and putting. Irons usually aren’t my strength, but they are this week,” said Melton. He drove it in the fairway consistently and hit all but three greens in the third round of play. If all of his birdie putts had dropped, instead of stopping an inch or two away, he would have only extended his already large lead. “Today was a typical round of the week; all three rounds were pretty typical, except the first day I made more putts,” he said.

Three past champions are tied in second place and know what it takes to claim the top spot, but they have a lot of ground to cover tomorrow. Jeff Cook of Carmel shot his best round of the tournament so far Wednesday, 70, to try to get back in contention. He is fighting for his fifth title, and his other four victories came in 1986, ’88, ’89, and ’92. Crooked Lake Golf Course’s Bill Schumaker is also in second and has wins from 1978, ’82, and ’87. The most recent past champion in contention is Jamie Broce of Clayton who won back-to-back championships in 2002 and 2003. If Melton can hold these fellow-professionals off, he will take his first Indiana PGA Open Championship win.

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Final Round Pairings

Professionals claimed the top three places as contenders for the Indiana PGA Argosy Casino/Grant Communications Open Championship after the opening 36 holes of stroke play. Brett Melton of Country Oaks Golf Course shot a 2-under-par 70 in the second round to total 136 and extend his lead to four shots over second place Chris Baker of Brownstown. Bill Schumaker of Crooked Lake Golf Course and Fred Mattingly of Dick’s Sporting Goods finished tied in third at 142.

After two days of play at Prairie View Golf Course in Carmel, the original field of 156 players was cut to the low 70 scores and ties. The 72 competitors who shot 153 or better made the cut and continue play Wednesday morning at 7:30 a.m.

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With a 6-under-par 66 at Prairie View Golf Course in Carmel, Brett Melton of Country Oaks Golf Course leads the Indiana PGA Argosy Casino/Grant Communications Open Championship by three shots. Except for two missed shots at holes 6 and 15, both par 3’s, every part of Melton’s game was on. Despite the two undesirable shots, he saved par both times, and never carded a score over par all day.

Melton won the season opener Tournament Series at Meridian Hills Country Club in April to start the Indiana PGA year strong, but has only found himself in the top five once since then. However, some momentum has built recently and this could be his week to reclaim the leaderboard. “I have been playing well the past couple of weeks, and it carried over to today,” he said. He just came off a win at his home club at the Country Oaks Classic, and the energy carried over to his significant lead after the opening round. Melton is a former Canadian Tour player and is seeking his first Indiana Open championship.

Amateur Skip Runnels of Richmond and Jeff Sanders of Sultan's Run Golf Course are tied in second at 69 with Prairie View G.C. PGA Professional John DalCorobbo.

Second round tee times begin at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, and the field will be cut to low 70 and ties after 36 holes of stroke play.

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