If Gates can hold on to his one-shot lead over the weekend, he will claim his maiden professional win in his first start on the Nationwide Tour.
He will also have done what few others have managed: won a tournament by leading from wire to wire.
Gates, a Florida-raised Texas resident, revelled in the scorching temperatures at The Hills to follow his first-round 65 with a 5-under-par 67.
He moved to 12-under-par to lead the $830,000 Open by one shot from fellow first-round leader Andrew Dodt (Australia), with American DJ Brigman two shots further back.
With conditions perfect and the forecast good, the field could make a run at the tournament record of 22-under-par, set by Niclas Fasth (Sweden) and Miles Tunnicliff (England) at Gulf Harbour in 2005.
Gates, who at 1.98m towers over diminutive caddy and girlfriend Lauren Johnson, made just one bogey yesterday and showed no sign of being over-awed by the occasion.
"I'm still playing well and hitting a lot of great shots," he said after his round. "I'm just kind of doing what I'm doing, and doing it well. There is no real weakness right now.
"I'm real excited and I'm learning as I go."
Gates said he was enjoying the friendly galleries in Arrowtown and the advice he was getting on key putts from Johnson, herself a useful golfer.
"The one she read on the last hole was perfect. She did well."
Gates felt he left a couple of shots out on the course.
"There were a couple of easy holes that I was disappointed not to birdie. If I can take advantage of a couple of opportunities at the weekend, I'll be happy."
The temperature gauge at The Hills climbed to at least 30degC yesterday.
Gates, who went to college at Texas A & M and still lives in the state, was not complaining.
"This is a nice day at home. I wouldn't say it was warm."
There could be a nice story over the weekend if Gates and former college room-mate Martin Piller finish strongly.
Piller, second in last year's Open, is tied for sixth, five shots off the lead.
"Martin didn't play at all the last semester his senior year. Then he had a great summer and made it through Q-school," Gates said. "He almost gave up and then he turned out to be amazing. For him to do what he's been doing has been good for us guys to watch.
"I'm still cheering for him but obviously, I want to win."
Other golfers in contention include a pair of Americans at 8-under, Darron Stiles and Kevin Chappell.
Stiles is the leading earner on the Nationwide Tour and a cancer survivor, while Chappell is a former recipient of the Nicklaus Award for the best college player in America.
There was major disappointment for New Zealand No 1 David Smail, who held a share of the lead after the first round.
He followed his 65 with a 2-over-par 74 that included five bogies, including the final two holes.
The round of the day was 6-under 66, posted by Chappell and Piller.
It was something of a surprise there were no 63s, 64s or 65s, given the conditions.
Prominent players to miss the cut included experienced Australians Craig Parry, Peter Lonard, Peter Senior and Stephen Leaney, Colombia's Manny Villegas and veteran American Skip Kendall.
Just five New Zealanders made the cut, with Dunedin's Mahal Pearce (even), Grant Waite (1-over), Michael Long (2-over) and Steve Alker (3-over) going home early.
Young Australian Matt Jager was the only amateur to make the cut.
There were 4478 fans through the gate yesterday, down 500 from last year.
