Eleven Are Through to U.S. Amateur Final Qualifying
Alton, IL - It was a beautiful day at Spencer T. Olin Golf Course for the U.S. Amateur Local Qualifier. Temperatures were in the mid to upper 80s with sunny skies. A full field of 120 players signed up to test their hand in the hopes of moving on to the final stage of qualifying for the U.S. Amateur. The field was split into a morning and afternoon wave going off of holes 1 and 10. Play began at 7:30am. Players were vying for eleven qualifying spots and two alternate spots.
The morning wave took off and once all players were through nine holes, the leaderboard was tight. Tyler McNeive of Overland Park, KS came out with a bang, making eagle on the first hole. A bogey free front nine had McNeive make the turn at the top of the board at three-under par. With even par on the back, McNeive finished the day at three-under (-3) par and had to wait to see if he could be matched. Alexander Hogan of Leawood, KS sat in second after nine holes at two-under par. A rough back nine sent Hogan back down to one-over (+1) par, which would leave him just below the cut line.
Mateo Rascon of Burlington, IA, Mac Buckley of Greenwood Village, CO, Leo Wessel of Indianapolis, IN, Cooper Solberg of Memphis, TN, and Bennett Warren of Olathe, KS all made the turn at one-under par. Rascon fought for it on the back and was able to get to two-under (-2) par. Wessel was able to pull out another birdie on the back nine to join Rascon at two-under (-2) par. Buckley and Solberg did their best, but eventually dropped back to one-over (+1) par and just outside of the cut line. Warren made par on all but one hole, which left him to end the day at even (E) par and to wait to see if his score would be good enough to get in.
Edward Scott of Lemont, IL made the turn this morning at even par. Scott then started the back nine with a birdie followed by an eagle to finish the day at one-under (-1) par. Rob O’Regan of Northbrook, IL ended his first nine two-over par. With a comeback on the second nine, O'Regan entered the clubhouse at one-under (-1) par. Veikka Viskari of Columbia, MO sat one-over par after nine holes, but was able to shoot a bogey-free second nine to finish one-under (-1) par. Winburne Hughes of Memphis, TN kept his game even through his first nine. Hughes then pulled out two birdies in his last four holes to come in at two-under (-2) par.
The players from the morning wave then had to sit and wait it out to see if their scores would be good enough to move on. Anson Munzlinger of Columbia, MO made the turn at even par. Munzlinger pulled together three birdies on the back nine to end the day at two-under (-2) par. Connor Hamm of Macomb, IL played with Munzlinger and was one-over par after nine. With three birdies, Hamm moved up to one-under (-1) par and just in the projected cut line. Jake Marriott of Naples, FL shot even par through nine holes. Marriott made the turn and came back to the clubhouse with a total of one-under (-1) par. Jackson Overton of Indianola, IA was one-under through nine holes and added another in his last nine to finish the day at two-under (-2) par.
In the final few groups of the day, Henry Robards of Ponte Vedra Beach, FL was one-under at the turn. Holding on on the back nine, Robards ended the round at one-under (-1) par, which was looking like the number to be within the cut for a playoff. Spencer Turtz of Charlotte, NC was two-under after nine holes. Turtz had a tough final nine until the last two holes where he made birdie, followed by a hole out from the fairway for eagle on the final hole to end at two-under (-2) par. Owen Swearingen of Nevada, MO went off in the final group of the day and was even par at the end of his first nine holes. A bogey-free second nine with two birdies, squeezed Swearingen into securing a qualifying spot at two-under (-2) par.
The six players tied at one-under par were faced with a playoff for three qualifying spots. Edward Scott, Rob O’Regan, Veikka Viskari, Connor Hamm, Jake Marriott, and Henry Robards all set off down Hole 10 to playoff for a place in Final Qualifying. Viskari and Marriott each made birdie to claim the first two spots on the first playoff hole. Robards journey would end on the tenth green with a bogey. Then it left three for one spot. Next up would be Hole 11. Hamm made par, but it was not enough to continue forward in the playoff, making him the second alternate. The final two would turn to Hole 17, where O’Regan would make bogey to claim the final qualifying spot. Scott had a brutal lip-out for bogey that left him as the first alternate.
When all was said and done, one-under (-1) par or better was good enough to move on to final qualifying. Tyler McNieve is the qualifying medalist at three-under (-3) par. Firmly securing their spot at two-under (-2) par are Mateo Rascon, Leo Wessel, Winburne Hughes, Anson Munzlinger, Jackson Overton, Owen Swearingen, and Spencer Turtz. Earning their place through a playoff at one-under (-1) par are Jake Marriott, Veikka Viskari, and Rob O’Regan. Edward Scott will be the first alternate and Connor Hamm will be the second alternate.