Winings banked winnings

By Ryan Pleggenkuhle, The Gazette

MARION - Andy Winings topped the field last summer in the Greater Cedar Rapids Open and went home with $20,000.

What did he do with his winnings?

“I put it in the bank,” Winings said with a chuckle. “I did buy myself a new fishing pole, but that didn't cost too much.”

Winings, of Brownsburg, Ind., is back in this year's GCRO and opened his title defense Friday with a 2-under par 70. Brock Mulder of Dallas, a Waterloo native, leads the field after a course-record 61 that featured nine birdies and an eagle.

Despite trailing this time by nine shots after 18 holes, Winings has fond memories of golf in Iowa.

Winings finished second here in 2009 after winning the Waterloo Open. He said he really enjoys playing in Iowa and appreciates his host family for letting him stay during tournaments each of the past three years.

“It's nice to come back and see people you know and have people rooting for you,” Winings said.

A two-time all-conference golfer at Kentucky, Winings turned pro right out of college. He said he was drawn to Iowa tournaments by a friend looking for a travel partner.

“My buddy said, ‘I'm going out here to play these Iowa tournaments. You want to come,?'” he said. “I said sure. And if it wasn't for that, I probably never would have come out here.”

Friday morning got off to a wet start for the field of 117 professional and 16 senior golfers at Hunters Ridge. An original rain delay of one hour was extended to three hours as rain continued to pour down.

“It didn't affect my mindset,” Winings said. “It affected my sleep, though. They didn't move it back to a three-hour delay until later on, so I was dozing back and forth for a while.”

The heat wasn't a factor for Winings, who has been playing in many tournaments in Southern states on the Hooters Tour.

“I was just playing in Texas three weeks ago,” he said. “I came up here and people are talking about how hot it is. It's a lot hotter down there, I can tell you that.”

Winings is 23rd on the Hooters money list this season with $27,149.

“I've had an OK year out there,” he said. “I've had a lot of top 20s and top 10s.”

He hopes to be playing in the Nationwide Tour or the PGA Tour in the near future. But if he is still playing the mini-tours, he said he'll always come back to play the GCRO.

“I like this event a lot,” he said.

[nggallery id=585]