BANGOR, Maine — Steven Burak became the first golfer from Fairfield University in Connecticut to qualify for the NCAA Tournament in 2013.
Now the Easton, Massachusetts, native would like to make his first visit to the Greater Bangor Open a memorable one by winning the 51st annual tournament at the Bangor Municipal Golf Course.
The 25-year-old Burak followed an opening round 65 with a 66 on Friday to move himself within one shot of the lead that is shared by Connecticut natives C.J. Swift of New Canaan and Jason Thresher of West Suffield. The final round is Saturday and there are 15 golfers within three shots of the lead.
Swift and Thresher are each at eight-under par 130 as Swift carded a 67 on Friday to go with Thursday’s 63 and Thresher fired a 64 to accompany his opening-round 66.
Swift played college golf at Marquette University in Milwaukee and was a 2014 All-Big East selection and Thresher is a former Northeast Conference Player of the Year and a PING All-Region choice at Bryant University in Rhode Island.
Swift had five birdies and three bogeys on Friday and Thresher had an eagle on the 526-yard fourth hole, five birdies and two bogeys.
Thresher won the Massachusetts Open for the second straight year last month at TGC at Sacconnesset in East Falmouth.
Andrew Duvall of Ogdensburg, New York, is also one shot back after registering a 67 to go with Thursday’s 64.
Three golfers are two shots back at 132: Ryan Gildersleeve of Clearwater, Florida, Brendan Lemp of Westerly, Rhode Island, and Blake Morris of Waterbury, Connecticut.
Lemp is a former All-Patriot League golfer at Loyola-Maryland and Morris played at the University of Mississippi.
There is a logjam of eight golfers who are three shots behind including Tommy Stirling of Gorham, Ellsworth’s Greg Martin, who was a former standout at Husson University in Bangor, and 1994 GBO winner Jason Widener of Greensboro, North Carolina, who is playing in the tourney for the first time since he won it.
Hampden native John Hickson, who won the GBO in 1997, is among three who are four back at 134 and 2009 titlist Marc Hurtubise of Chambly, Quebec, is among seven who are six back.
The cutoff was one-over-par 139.
“It went well. I got off to a better start today which was nice,” said Burak. “I kind of plodded along. I made a couple of longish, 20-foot putts. One saved par on the eighth and that was really big for me. I had made one for a birdie on seven. I had a little hiccup on the back nine [bogey on 11] but I kept it steady and hit a real nice bunker shot on 13 to within two to three feet and I made birdie. I cruised through and made a birdie on 18.
“This course is awesome. I hit my driver real well and because it is a shortish course, I can hit it into some spots where you normally wouldn’t if you didn’t have confidence in your driver,” added Burak, who had five birdies and two bogeys.
He said to win it on Saturday he is going to have to be “consistent and keep the big numbers off the card. I also want to get off to a good start.”
Some golfers engaged in some local activity after Thursday’s round.
Burak and travel partner Tim Carey, who missed the cut with a 144, went to Maine Military Supply in Holden and did some target shooting.
“We weren’t terrible. We hit the target. And we didn’t hurt ourselves,” grinned Burak.
Cody Paladino and fellow golfer John Jackopsic wound up playing nine holes at the Lucerne-in-Maine Golf Course in Dedham.
“We stay with a buddy out there so I’ve driven by it a lot. We decided to stop and play it. It was very cool. It’s so beautiful with the lake and the gorgeous hills. It is so Maine,” said Paladino, who is from Kensington, Connecticut and played at Baylor University in Texas.
Paladino is at 136 and Jackopsic is at 137.
Stirling said he hit the ball “great but I couldn’t make one putt until the very end. I finished with two birdies. I just couldn’t read the putts. I’ve got to make putts [on Saturday].”
Widener said he hit the ball “a little more solid today than I did yesterday” and feels he is in a “good spot” at three shots back heading into the final round.