Under the mostly cloudy and occasionally rainy skies, one particular match was more than just a blip on the radar. In a test of endurance on the famed South Course at Oakland Hills Country Club, Trevor Gutschewski and Rich Wills battled for 23 grueling holes on “The Monster.”
Gutschewski, a Florida Gators commit, chomped his way to an early lead with three birdies, building a 4 up lead through eight holes against Wills, a future Clemson Tiger. Wills quickly fought his way back and finally evened the match with a clutch par save on 18 to force extra holes.
“He [Rich Wills] hit a ton of good shots on the back nine and brought himself back in it,” said Gutschewski. “I hit a bad drive in the bunker on 18 and made bogey, so we went to extra holes. I just figured, ‘win the next hole and you’re done.’”
On the 19th hole, Gutschewski was faced with his first of two do-or-die putts. With Wills in close after a flagged approach shot, Gutschewski stared down a 30-footer from off the green and drained it. Then on the 22nd hole, Wills stepped up and poured in a 15-footer for birdie, yet again putting the pressure solely on Gutschewski. The Omaha, Neb. native delivered, curling in a putt just inches inside Wills’ to keep himself afloat.
“I was just trying to stay in the moment and make it to the next hole,” said Gutschewski. “It’s always nice to see those drop and to know you’re still alive.”
Overall, the pair tied three of the first four extra holes with birdies, before Gutschewski closed out the match with a par on the 5th hole. The son of PGA Tour player Scott Gutschewski, Trevor will face medalist Blades Brown in tomorrow’s Round of 32.
“It feels good right now,” said Gutschewski. “It didn’t feel very great on the back nine, but it’s always good to come away with the win regardless.”
The top-seeded Brown was able to pull away from No. 64 Alex Huang to advance. In a match that didn’t see more than a 1 up lead until the 14th hole, Brown turned on the jets down the stretch to secure a 3 and 2 victory.
“[Alex] was hitting fairways and applying pressure on me,” said Brown. “He was doing what he was supposed to be doing, and I was not doing what I was supposed to be doing. Then the back nine I turned it on a little bit, got some momentum and flew with it.
On Tuesday, Brown joined only Tiger Woods and Bobby Clampett in having secured medalist honors at both the U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Amateur. Brown earned his U.S. Amateur medalist position last summer at Cherry Hills Country Club in suburban Denver, Colo.
Miles Russell, who became the youngest golfer ever to make a cut on the Korn Ferry Tour earlier this year, took care of business with a conceded victory over Hamilton Coleman of Martinez, Ga. Russell was 5 up through 10 holes when Coleman retired due to a back injury. The U.S. National Junior Team member also made his first PGA Tour start last month at the nearby Rocket Mortgage Classic.
“It’s a good match play course. There are a lot of birdies to be made, you just need to be careful,” said Russell. “I don’t know what the weather looks like the rest of the week, but if there’s no rain, I think it can get a little crispy and it can get fun.”
Luke Colton, who came into his second U.S. Junior Amateur with seven top-five finishes this year, including wins in the Byron Nelson Junior Championship and the Terra Cotta Invitational, jumped out to a 4 up lead through the turn on University of Notre Dame commit Pavel Tsar.
“I was playing really smart golf,” said Colton, about his front nine lead. “I was putting it in play and giving myself a few birdie putts and making them. Just knowing when to play aggressive and when to put it in the middle of the green was important.”
However, the future Golden Domer hung tough and fought throughout the back nine, eventually forcing extra holes with a par on the 18th. Colton was able to eventually close the door with a birdie on the 20th hole.
“I’m just kind of overwhelmed right now,” said Colton. “I had a few chances to win out there, but I was able to pull it together down the stretch. I’m just glad I was able to come out with the victory.”
Joshua Bai, last year’s runner-up, was able to outlast Brayden Miller, 3 and 2. Bai jumped out to a 2 up lead after two holes and never trailed for the duration of the match.
What’s Next
The Round of 32 will take place on Thursday at 7 a.m. EDT, followed by the Round of 16 at 1 p.m. Friday’s quarterfinal matches are scheduled for 7 a.m., with the semifinals to follow at noon. The 36-hole final on Saturday will begin at 8 a.m. Peacock will stream the semifinals and afternoon portion of the championship match with Golf Channel re-airing the broadcast on tape delay. Steve Burkowski will anchor the broadcast. Admission is free and the public is encouraged to attend. Fan information can be found at usga.org.
Notable
The No. 1 seed (Brown) in the U.S. Junior Amateur won a first-round match for the 21st consecutive time. The last time the top seed lost was in 2002 when Jarred Texterfell to Shane Sigsbee, 2 up, at Atlanta Athletic Club’s Highlands Course.
The 13-for-9 playoff for the final spots in the match-play draw lasted one hole and less than an hour. Alex Huang, from Plano, Texas, garnered the 64th and final spot. Jaxon Bandelier nearly aced his tee shot, leaving himself an 8-inch tap-in birdie. The playoff was conducted on the North Course’s par-3 10th hole.
12 players reached match play in both 2023 & 2024 – Kihei Akina, Joshua Bai, Jake Birdwell, Luke Colton, Edan Cui, Billy Davis, Gerardo Gomez, Henry Guan, Chase Kyes, Jay Leng Jr., Brooks Simmons and Tyler Watts.
Fifteen countries were represented in the match bracket. They are: United States of America (45), People's Republic of China (4), France (2), New Zealand (2), Australia (1), Canada (1), Chinese Taipei (1), Czech Republic (1), Hong Kong China (1), Mexico (1), Republic of Ireland (1), Republic of Korea (1), Ukraine (1), Vietnam (1), Wales (1). The average age was 16.92.
Lev Grinberg, who advanced with a 6 and 5 victory over Hsuan-Yi Chen, carded an albatross on the par-5 12th hole by holing a 5-iron from 242 yards. It is the second double-eagle in U.S. Junior Amateur championship history (Travis Vick, eighth hole, 2018, Baltusrol – Upper).
Billy Davis, fresh off a semifinal run last year at Daniel Island Club, beat Zack Swanwick, 4 and 3, to advance. Davis, who will join his twin sister, Anna, at Auburn University in the fall, Monday-qualified for the World Wide Technology Championship in Mexico last November where he made his PGA Tour debut.
Chase Hughes, who is the youngest player in match play (14 years, 3 months, 7 days), survived with a 1 up victory over Cayse Morgan. Hughes sealed his spot in tomorrow’s Round of 32 with a par on the last after Morgan was unable to get up-and-down.
Xihuan Chang, the highest-ranked player in the field, according to WAGR (No. 57), advanced by beating Ayden Fynaut, 4 and 3. Chang, from the People’s Republic of China, has won two China Golf Association (CLPGA) events this year and finished runner-up at the China Amateur Open.
Quotable
“He [Rich Wills] hit a ton of good shots on the back nine and brought himself back in it. I hit a bad drive on 18 in the bunker and made bogey so went to extra holes. I just figured, ‘win the next hole and you’re done.’” – Trevor Gutschewski, on his mindset heading into extra holes, after relinquishing a 4 up lead
“The crowd was great. They came out even with the rain this morning, they still showed up.” – Miles Russell
“[The South Course] is amazing. It’s one of the best courses I’ve ever played. It’s just a great championship venue for the USGA and it’s an honor to play. I just hope to play a few more rounds here.” – Luke Colton
“It’s going to be a shot I remember all my life. I switched clubs; went from a 6-iron to a 5-iron. I had been hitting it good all day and as soon as I hit it, it came off unbelievably good off the clubface. It was tracking in the air, and it pitched, and the ball started rolling, rolling, and it just disappeared. Everyone put their hands up and started screaming. It was a moment of happiness.” – Lev Grinberg, on his albatross on the par-5 12th hole
“They are some dogs. I know I’m going to have to play a couple of them coming in, so I’m ready.” – Blades Brown, on the other U.S. National Junior Team members advancing to the Round of 32
No comments:
Post a Comment