Daniel Wetterich (Ohio State Athletics)
As several top amateurs approach the threshold to the next level, we monitor their progress. Here's how the first of three stages of Korn Ferry Qualifying School played out:
Oct. 8-11
SunRiver Golf Course, St. George, Utah
Top 22 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Neither Matt Paradis, a notable New Englander who won the New Hampshire Amateur in 2018, nor Jeg Coughlin III, a former Ohio State player, managed to advance.
• • •
Dayton Valley GC, Dayton, Nev.
Top 17 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: No amateur made the cut in Dayton, but the most notable one to finish outside the top 17 and ties was recent Walker Cupper Isaiah Salinda of South San Francisco. Salinda struggled the whole week with rounds of 76-68-76-69
• • •
October 1-4
The Breakers Rees Jones, West Palm Beach, Fla.
Top 18 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Former Michigan State standout
Donnie Trosper, who graduated last spring, finished tied for fifth to with his 13-under total and easily advanced.
Another amateur did not fare so well. Recent Wake Forest graduate
Cameron Young, a New York native, remained amateur over the summer to leave himself in the running for a Walker Cup bid. He did not get selected to the team, and now has come up short of advancing through Q-School. With a final-round 76, Young finished 2 over and tied for 32nd. That was one better than
Steven Chervony, the recent Texas graduate who helped his team to an NCAA runner-up finish in the spring. Chervony has since turned professional.
Worth noting: Former World No. 1
Braden Thornberry continues to climb work his way through Q-School thanks to an eighth-place finish in West Palm Beach. Thornberry, who turned professional in December, opened with a 67 and cruised from there.
Recent Barry University graduate
Jorge Garcia, who was the individual runner-up at the NCAA Division II National Championship each of the past two years, also successfully advanced at 5 under, which was good for a tie for 15th.
• • •
ArborLinks, Nebraska City, Neb.
Top 21 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Andy Spencer, a former University of Kansas golfer, was the only amateur to advance at ArborLinks
Worth noting: Recent Oklahoma graduate
Blaine Hale, who was a member of the 2017 Sooner national championship team, advanced with his T-15 finish and recent Virginia graduate Thomas Walsh did the same with his T-3 finish.
• • •
Grasslands G&CC, Lakeland, Fla.
Top 21 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Austin Squires shining moment from each of the past two years came at the U.S. Amateur. He was a quarterfinalist each time, and memorably had this to say in August when he defeated stroke-play medalist Brandon Wu in the Round of 64: “I wish I could stay an amateur forever, but I want to make a career out of golf,” he said. “Not a lot of money in amateur golf.”
Despite a strong performance in the pre-qualifier, Squires, the former Cincinnati player, couldn’t channel the same magic in the first stage. He finished at 10 under for 72 holes and missed advancing by one shot.
Amateurs Danny Harcourt and Jimmy Hervol also missed advancing.
Worth noting: Recent LSU graduate
Luis Gagne, who was runner-up at the Latin America Amateur last winter, advanced by going 13 under. Former Florida player
Gordon Neale was 11 under and advanced on the number.
• • •
The Club at Irish Creek, Kannapolis, N.C.
Top 20 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: This one’s short and sweet: No amateurs entered the Irish Creek qualifier.
Worth noting: Plenty of fresh professionals teed it up in Kannapolis, and the first one worth calling attention to is Ohio State graduate
Daniel Wetterich. The Cincinnati native had a busy, but productive, summer, which culminated in a trip to the finals at the Western Amateur. Wetterich was third after 72 holes at Irish Creek with his 20-under total.
That was one shot better than Walker Cupper and Duke graduate
Alex Smalley. The two-time Sunnehanna Amateur champion delayed turning pro specifically to play the Walker Cup, and now is on his way toward a professional career.
Former Texas player
Gavin Hall, who turned professional in 2017, was solo sixth at 15 under and former LSU player
Stewart Jolly was part of a tie for seventh that also included former Georgia Tech player
Christopher Petefish.
Broc Everett, the 2018 NCAA individual champion while a member of the Augusta State men’s golf team, was among the last players to advance out of the Irish Creek site with his 12 under total. The cut fell at 11 under.
• • •
September 24-27
Bridges at Firewheel in Garland, Texas
Top 20 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Only
Jordan Hahn, a recent Wisconsin graduate who holds the career scoring average record (73.08) for the Badgers, managed to advance to the next stage as an amateur. The Spring Grove, Ill., native had a closing 7-under 65 for an 11 under total.
Amateurs Scott Fawcett and Andrew Chambers failed to advance.
Worth noting: Zach Bauchou, who recently completed his Oklahoma State career after being part of the 2018 national-championship team and last year’s top-ranked team, advanced with a top-10 finish after playing his way to 14 under for 72 holes. Bauchou also won back-to-back Canadian Amateur titles during his college career.
Brad Dalke, runner-up at the 2016 U.S. Amateur and a member of the 2018 Oklahoma team that won the NCAA title, missed advancing by a single shot.
• • •
Ak-Chin Southern Dunes GC, Maricopa, Ariz.
Top 19 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Oliver Farrell, an Englishman who recently completed his career at Marquette University, was the only amateur to advance from this site after a 10-under total left him tied for seventh.
Tyler Kertson, a Boston College graduate who entered as an amateur, failed to advance despite playing in his home state of Arizona.
Worth noting: Former Cal player
KK Limbhasut was the medalist at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes after finishing at 17 under. That included a second-round 62 during which Limbhasut had two eagles.
• • •
Magnolia Grove-Crossing, Mobile, Ala.
Top 20 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: James Nicholas has been on a tear this summer. After graduating from Yale with a degree in Biology (with a pre-med concentration), Nicholas played a full summer schedule. Highlights included a third-place finish at the Sunnehanna Amateur, a fifth-place finish at the New York State Open and a 25th-place finish at the Western Amateur. Now, Nicholas is through the first stage of qualifying school thanks to an 8-under total.
Maximillian Herman, of Germany, was the only other amateur at the site, but he failed to advance.
Worth noting: Former Auburn player
Jacob Solomon was medalist at 21 under. He finished three ahead of a trio of players tied in second.
• • •
Soboba Springs GC, San Jacinto, Calif.
Top 20 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Only two players entered this site as amateurs, and neither advanced.
Cody Hall tied for 68th and
Han Seop Lee didn’t finish.
Worth noting: David Kim isn’t holding anything back as qualifying moves along. The former UC Irvine player, who appeared frequently on the amateur circuit, was 18 under in his pre-qualifier and went 19 under in the first stage to finish second.
Former Wake Forest player
Theo Humphrey was sixth at 15 under and Canadian player
Chris Crisologo, who recently turned professional after top-10 finishes this summer at the Sahalee Players Championship and Pacific Coast Amateur, tied for 14th
• • •
The Landings Club – Oakri, Savannah, Ga.
Top 21 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: Only one amateur entered the field, and he failed to make it any farther. That was
Lake Johnson, a recent Chattanooga graduate, who finished 71st with his 9-over total.
Worth noting: The Savannah qualifying site was full of familiar names of up-and-comers, and Walker Cupper
Steven Fisk is a good place to start. Fisk, the Georgia Southern graduate who finished runner-up to Matthew Wolff at the NCAA Championship, ended his amateur career as a top-10 player in the world, but at 10-under 278 in Savannah, came up one shot short of making the cut to advance.
Former Clemson player
Bryson Nimmer did finish on the right side of the cut. His steady, 13-under effort left him tied for 14th.
Juan Jose Guerra, a Nova Southeastern player who garnered some publicity when the Latin America Amateur Championship came to Casa de Campo near his the Dominican Republic home, finished two shots back and made the cut on the number.
Past Clemson
Corbin Mills, the 2011 U.S. Amateur Public Links champion who turned professional in 2012 before his senior season with the Tigers, finished second with his 21-under total.
• • •
The Woodlands (Texas) CC
Top 21 players and ties advance to second stage
Amateur report: The only amateur who entered the event, Ivan Camilo Ramirez of Colombia, did not make the cut.
Worth noting: Will Grimmer, a two-time U.S. Open qualifier as an amateur and an Ohio State standout, was among the recent college graduates who will continue to advance in Korn Ferry Tour qualifying. He tied for eighth at 9 under.
Recent Baylor graduate
Garrett May, who won the Northeastern Amateur this summer, and Texas A&M graduate Chandler Phillips, who was in the conversation for a Walker Cup pick all summer, tied for 12th another shot back and also advanced. Former LSU player Nathan Jeansonne was also in that group.
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