VARIOUS SITES, United States (June 6, 2016) -- If
you're a long time avid golfer, you probably know
someone who has played in a U.S. Open. Maybe
you've
played in one yourself like many of
AmateurGolf.com's
longtime members George Kelley of California and
David Nelson of Nevada.
And if you've attended an Open, you know the
feeling
of seeing players whose names you've never heard
of.
Club pros, amateurs, and journeymen. There's
always
a story -- like Spencer Levin putting, and acing his
way
to a T13 finish at Shinnecock in 2004.
We've got you covered on the stories of the day, and
the USGA has you covered on the live scoring. Let's
take a look at the qualifying spots and what to
watch:
DALY CITY, California -- Lake Merced Golf Club &
The Olympic Club (Ocean Course)
TWO TO WATCH
Rico Hoey of USC finished just two behind
Aaron Wise at the NCAA Championship at a very
"U.S.
Open-like" Eugene Country Club with lightning fast
greens and healthy rough. He will find much of the
same at The Olympic Club's Ocean Course and Lake
Merced Country Club, with afternoon winds much like
what he dealt with effectively in Oregon.
Maverick
McNealy hasn't been in his top form, but he
advanced through Sectional in 2014 and would love
to
play on the big stage again.
AND KEEP AN EYE ON THESE GUYS
Kaiwen Liu a Torrey Pines (San Diego)
junior,
just set the San Diego Section boys golf
record by four shots with a 14-under-par 130. And
we
probably don't need to list some of the players who
have gone through that program. Let's just start with
Phil Mickelson. We also like
Will Zalatoris
(Texas) plus Californians
Corey Pereira, Nahum
Mendoza, and AmateurGolf.com Silicon Valley
Am
champ and Cal golfer
Collin Morikawa.
LIVE
SCORING>
JACKSONVILLE, Florida --
Timuquana Country Club
OUR FAVORITE
Let's start out with English ex-pat and University of
Florida golfer
Sam Horsfield, recent winner
of
the Phil Mickelson award (hey that's twice we've
mentioned Phil in one story) for outstanding Division
I
freshman golfer. We've been following Sam since he
shot 59 in the Orlando City as an amateur.
TWO TO WATCH
We'll also be keeping an eye out for Latin American
Amateur champion
Paul Chaplet, who
played
in the 2016 Masters. He didn't break 80 at Augusta,
but that experience has likely given him the
confidence
he needs to play another major. And we would love
to
see 2014 U.S. Mid-Am champ
Scott Harvey
of
North Carolina advance. He's got the game to do it.
LIVE
SCORING>
ROSWELL, Georgia -- Ansley Golf Club
(Settindown
Creek Course)
While no immediate favorites stand out, we can point
to two brothers playing, one as a pro and one as an
amateur. Former collegiate and amateur standout
Ollie
Schniederjans of Alpharetta (now a pro) will be
joined
by his brother Luke, a high school junior who has
committed to Georgia Tech to follow in Ollie's big
footsteps. There is also another Schniederjans at
Georgia Tech. Ben plays for the Yellowjacket's
baseball
team.
LIVE
SCORING>
ROCKVILLE, Maryland -- Woodmont Country Club
(North Course)
At a location where PGA Tour veterans like Woody
Austin and Billy Hurley III will be vying for spots, we
noticed that 2015 Monroe Invitational winner
Adam Ball is in the field. The Virginia
Commonwealth golfer also finished in the top 32 at
the
2015 U.S. Amateur and could play well here. Also in
the field is
Ben Warnquist -- you might
remember he and his partner Brandon Cigna lost in
the
finals at the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball two weeks ago
at
Winged Foot.
LIVE
SCORING>
SUMMIT, New Jersey -- Canoe Brook (North and
South Courses)
There is a large field of amateurs in New Jersey,
including
Sean Crocker of California. The
USC
golfer lost a close semifinal match at the NCAAs, but
is
playing well. He's another past champion on the
AmateurGolf.com Tour and you probably remember
him for his fiery run at the 2015 U.S. Amateur. It
would be only fitting if
Cameron Young of
New York advanced -- he was the last to get in at his
Local Qualifier when he made eagle in a sudden-
death
playoff for the last spot.
LIVE
SCORING>
POWELL, Ohio -- Wedgewood Golf & Country
Club
and Kinsale Golf & Fitness Club
This is one of the "Tour" qualifiers where non-exempt
PGA Tour players who competed in the Memorial,
may
choose to qualify. As such, there are more spots
available. Among a couple of dozen amateurs playing
alongside pros like last year's NCAA and U.S. Am
winner Bryson DeChanbeau, you'll find two names
that
stand out.
Doug Ghim and
Scottie
Scheffler of University of Texas, coming off a
heartbreaking loss in the NCAA finals last week,
would
love to find some redemption in the form of a spot at
Oakmont.
LIVE
SCORING>
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio -- Springfield Country
Club
At Springfield Country Club, you'll find collegiate
standouts like
Charlie Danielson and
Nick
Hardy of Illinois, and
Dylan Wu of
Northwestern. Danielson qualified for the Northern
Trust Open at Riviera and played very well there,
finding himself in the top 10 after the first round.
With
that kind of experience, we like his chances. But
we're
going to also have our eye on
Tee-K Kelly
of
Ohio State. Kelly won an individual berth at the
NCAAs
by winning the Central Regional tournament.
LIVE
SCORING>
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Germantown Country Club
and
Ridgeway Country Club
This is another of the "Tour Stop" qualifiers afforded
extra spots because of the number of PGA Tour
players
who play on the Monday prior to the Fedex St. Jude
Classic. We made the trip out to several PGA Tour
veterans two years ago and couldn't believe the
galleries -- there weren't any. With more spots
available, some of the top amateurs like their
chances
and you'll want to keep an eye on LSU standout
Sam Burns,
Jordan Niebrugge
(remember his T6 finish at the 2015 Open) plus
Georgia's
Lee McCoy and Alabama's
Robbie Shelton.
LIVE
SCORING>
HOUSTON, Texas -- Lakeside Country Club
Unfortunately, Beau Hossler's shoulder injury has
forced him to withdraw from the Houston qualifier.
Maybe Mid-Amateur
Patrick Christovich of
Louisiana can step up and grab one of the available
spots here among a relatively small field.
LIVE
SCORING>
VANCOUVER, Washington -- Royal Oaks Country
Club
Can
Sulman Raza's dream continue? Why
not? After leading his Oregon team to victory with a
playoff win over Taylor Funk at the NCAA
Championship, how could Raza be flying on anything
other than cloud 9? We wish him the best in his
effort
at Washington's Royal Oaks CC.
LIVE
SCORING>
We will give you the complete wrap-up after the day
concludes, and follow these amateur players as they
attempt to make a run at the U.S. Open title.