Southport, NC – Jeremy Pope of Pawleys Island, SC carded a second-round 71 in the eGolf Tour's inaugural Championship at St. James Plantation on Thursday amidst blustery conditions and will carry a one-shot lead over 2010 leading money winner Jason Kokrak into Friday's third round.

The tournament is the first eGolf Tour event to be contested along the North Carolina coastline. With both the Founders and Reserve courses at St. James Plantation Golf Club serving as hosts over the first 36 holes, players played one round at each before the final two rounds move to the Founders course.

Jeremy PopePope, who opened his tournament with a 6-under 66 at the Founders Club on Wednesday, carried the overnight lead into Thursday's second round at the difficult Reserve Club course. With steady 15-20 mph winds featuring gusts up to 25 mph, scoring was at a premium on a course that would yield only one round in the 60s through two days of play.

A bogey-free 2-under 34 on the outward nine brought Pope to 8-under for the event and in clear control of the lead. With subtle winds in the early afternoon, scoring was relatively ideal for about two hours before the stern gusts would hit the greater Southport area. For Pope, just getting around the back nine proved to be a tough task.

"It was really tough out there," said Pope. "It was a struggle on the back. It took so long to prepare for every shot, it just wears you out."

Bogies at 10, 14 and 16 were slightly offset with birdies at the par-5 12th and the par-5 17th as Pope was able to take advantage of arguably the only holes on the closing nine that provided some bit of relief. An inward nine of 1-over 37 left Pope at 71 on the day and 7-under for the event, one shot clear of Kokrak.

"I drove it great all day and that helped a bunch. It was one of those days where you had to put it in the fairway and on the right part of the greens," said Pope. "Anything around par was a great round."

Pope has not won on any tour since the winter of 2008, and admittedly had to think for a few moments before recalling when that last win was. A former Nationwide Tour player, Pope is one of the more seasoned players on the eGolf Tour and has a calm demeanor that certainly helps in conditions more suited to links golf in Great Britain.

Jason KokrakFormer eGolf Tour winner Rich Hanna, temporarily sidelined with a wrist injury, is caddying for Pope this week and is helping his good friend to stay in the moment on each shot. With storms forecasted for Friday morning, patience could easily be a virtue as players await an uncertain beginning to third-round play.

"I'm looking forward to tomorrow's round. Hopefully the wind dies down a little bit," Pope said after his round. "It will be kind of like today, just preparing for the worst and hope for the best. You just have to wait and see what the weather gives you."

Kokrak, a former Xavier University standout and Warren, OH native, is alone in second at 6-under 138 for the tournament. The 2010 Cabarrus Classic champion has rounds of 68-70 and will look to use his prodigious length to put pressure on Pope early in the third round. Arguably the longest player on tour, Kokrak routinely turns par-5s into par-4s and eyes wedges where others fancy 7-irons.

As part of his win at the Cabarrus Classic, Kokrak earned an exemption into the Nationwide Tour's South Georgia Classic in Valdosta, GA on April 22-25, 2010. His only prior Nationwide Tour start came at the 2007 Legend Financial Group Classic, where he posted a T44 finish after carding rounds of 73-66-71-73—283. His only career PGA TOUR start came at the 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club, where he would miss the cut.

Tour rookie Tommy Rymer of Sarasota, FL and three-time Canadian Amateur champion Richard Scott of St. Simons Island, GA are tied for third at 4-under 140 through 36 holes.

For Rymer, a former Florida State University standout, a second-round 68 at the Founders Club turned out to be the round of the day. Starting on the back nine, the Minnesota native struggled early with a 1-over 37 before posting a blistering 5-under 31 on the front nine at the P.B. Dye-designed course. The highlight of his 31 was a four-birdie stretch from Nos. 4-8.

Scott, who starred in college on the NCAA Champion University of Georgia golf team, was the lone player to card a round in the 60s at the Reserve. A second-round 69 vaulted the soft-spoken Scott into contention on a course where the two-round average came out to 76.64.

The 36-hole cut fell at 5-over 149, with 77 players making it through to the final 36 holes of play. Round three play will begin at 8:00 AM at the Founders Club course, with players playing in threesomes off of Nos. 1 and 10. The tournament is open to the public and free of charge.