Elkins takes six-shot lead into final round at Greenwood Invitational

Parker Elkins of Clarksville, Tennessee, turned in a second straight 7-under 65 Saturday at Greenwood Country Club and moved to 130 for 36 holes, opening a six-shot lead heading into Sunday’s final round of the 79th Greenwood Invitational. John Mark Mills of Pontotoc was next at 145 after rounds of 73 and 72, leaving the rest of the field to try to cut into a gap that had already grown beyond one bad stretch.

Elkins built the lead with the kind of round that keeps a tournament from staying ordinary. His back-to-back 65s included birdies and an eagle, and the total put him firmly in control of a championship that has long drawn serious amateur players to Greenwood. Mills stayed closest, but the opening round had already shown how wide the field reached, with Jake Kight of Louisville, Scott Kirk of McCarley and Sumpter Bass of Clarksdale all in the mix as the tournament began.

That depth has been part of the Invitational’s identity for decades. Greenwood Country Club opened in 1920 and has hosted the Greenwood Invitational every year since 1947. The club and AmateurGolf.com describe it as the oldest stroke-play tournament in Mississippi, a 54-hole championship limited to the first 160 paid male amateurs and flighted after 36 holes.

The field was smaller than a year ago, with 112 golfers signed up for the 2026 tournament after last year’s field was reported at 143. Even so, the leaderboard still carried names from across Mississippi and beyond, keeping Greenwood in its familiar summer role as a gathering point for competitive golf and the local calendar around the club.

Taylor McCullum of Pelham, Alabama, won the 78th Greenwood Invitational in 2025 with a three-day total of 197. He closed with a 68 and opened Sunday’s final round with a 31 on the front nine, but he did not return to defend the title in 2026, leaving the 79th edition without a repeat champion.

Greenwood Country Club has also hosted Mississippi Golf Association events including the Mississippi Men’s Amateur, Mississippi Men’s Senior Amateur, Mississippi Women’s Amateur, Mississippi Junior Amateur and Cup Matches. That history has helped keep the Invitational central to the Greenwood-Leflore area’s golf tradition, and Elkins carried the pressure into Sunday with a lead that invited a chase.