Kevin Yuan watches a drive during round two Australian Amateur action
(Golf Australia Photo)
VICTORIA, Australia (January 18, 2017) -- Serial
contender Kevin Yuan has put himself in a strong
position again after a fighting 69 at Yarra Yarra earned
him medallist honors at the Australian Amateur
Championship, presented by Swinging Skirts.
The Sydneysider, a semifinalist in 2015 and the
first round stroke play leader from a year ago, opened
Wednesday's second round
with a stunning chip-in eagle on the first at Yarra Yarra
and then hung on for a wild 69 on a day of high
winds. The final day of stroke play qualifying had a little
bit of everything from difficult scoring conditions to a
crazy playoff to determine the final 64 to reach the
beginning of match play on Thursday.
His 4-under total after two rounds was enough to
keep Perth’s Min Woo Lee at bay by a stroke, with one
of the overnight leaders, Kiwi Ryan Chisnall, joining
Central Coast's Kieren Jones in a share of third one
stroke further back.
Lee held or shared for much of his second round
and after reaching 4-under through 12 holes he sat at
6-under overall, but three late bogeys cost him a shot
at being medallist and left him at 3-under.
Jones backed up his 69 at Yarra Yarra yesterday
with another 1-under total (71) at nearby Kingswood to
finish 2-under alongside Chisnall who battled
the worst of the winds and fought hard for a plucky 73.
However, most of the drama fell late in the evening
when 20 men set out for 18 spots in a playoff among
those who finished at 7-over.
As five groups of four played the 17th hole, it
wasn’t until the fourth group that a score worse than a
bogey was recorded on the par-four.
But in quick succession, Japan’s Gaku Tsukamoto
and Chris Crabtree took double, as his fellow
Queenslander Lawry Flynn picked up when his putt for
six slid by.
That left Tsukamoto and Crabtree dueling it out and
the Queenslander missed his big chance on the 18th
when a 3m birdie putt singed the left edge.
Back down the 17th, Tsukamoto made a brilliant
birdie after his drive went way right on to the 18th
fairway and it proved enough despite Crabtree’s stellar
up and down for par kept his hopes alive momentarily.
Earlier, Italian Federico Zucchetti eagled the par-
five ninth en route to the best score of the first two
days at Yarra Yarra – his 68 lifting him safely up to 1-
over.
World No. 6 Scott Gregory, of England, advanced at
2-over, despite a 75 on Wednesday.
Australia’s top-ranked players both advanced
despite not having their A-games, with Sydney’s Travis
Smyth one of those to make par in the playoff, while his
good mate and fellow New South Welshman Harrison
Endycott finished at 6-over.
An impressive late rally by Charlie Dann enabled
the Queenslander to eventually cruise through at 3-over
after his 69.
The match play phase begins tomorrow morning
with the Round of 64 to be played.
ABOUT THE
Australian Men's Amateur
The Australian Men's and Women's
Amateur
Championships are Australia's oldest
Amateur
Golf Championships, with both having
been
played since 1894. Long held as a match play event,
in 2021 the format changed to 72 holes
of stroke play.
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