As Marcus Manley blasted long-iron power fades into the hazy sky at the University of Maryland Golf Course, it was hard to disagree with his caddie.
“Best ball-striker out here, write that down,” said Abimbola Olakanye.
Preparing to play his first round on the Nationwide Tour, Manley was doing it just five miles from where he and Olakanye went to high school – High Point.
Manley, a player on the Hooters Tour who now lives in Florida, decided to return home this week to try to qualify for the Melwood Prince George’s County Open. To his surprise, Manley shot a 69 Tuesday at Little Bennett, then survived a seven-man playoff for the final four available slots.
“I brought my ‘B’ game, turned out my ‘B’ game was good enough,” said Manley.
With lots of attention paid to four former University of Maryland players in the field, Manley entered the Melwood under the radar, but that ended quickly when he moved up the leader board in the rain-delayed opening round. Manley shot a 3-under-par 32 on his first nine holes Thursday, before fading on the back nine. His double bogey on the par-four 9th hole left him with an even par 71, and a chance to make the cut headed into today’s second round.
“I’m hoping to make the cut, but really, I have no expectations,” said Manley, 25. “This is my first time up here.”
After winning a Prince George’s County title in high school, Manley spent two years at Saint Augustine’s College in Raleigh, N.C. He returned to the Washington area, caddying at Congressional along with his former high school teammate, Olakanye, before moving to Florida to work at a golf course in the Orlando suburbs and pursue a professional career.
“I got the itch about a year and a half ago,” said Manley. “I decided this is what I wanted to try.”
