Warian Is Medalist & Gophers Are Team Champs at Highland Meadows
April 16, 2024
By Nick Hunter
nick@mngolf.org
MINNEAPOLIS – Former champion Paul Simson and defending Dave Ryan are among the quarterfinalists Tuesday as the field at the 63rd U.S. Senior Amateur Championship has been whittled to eight following the Round of 16 at The Minikahda Club.
Simson, the 2010 and 2012 Senior Amateur Champion, grabbed the early lead during his morning match Tuesday before cruising in the afternoon against 2015 champion, Chip Lutz, winning, 6 and 4.
“Sometimes a close match will wake you up,” Simson said Tuesday after rolling in an 18-footer for par to cling to a 1-up lead over John Hornbeck and would hang on for the victory. “This afternoon I went out and made five birdies and one bogey. Sometimes that’s pretty tough to deal with.”
Simson, of Raleigh, N.C., sank a pair of early birdies Tuesday against Lutz to take the early lead and would maintain a 2-up advantage heading to the final nine. Starting with a birdie at the 10th, Simson took advantage of two early miscues by Lutz to win three consecutive holes, taking a 5-up lead and would close out the match at the 16th with a par to win, 6 and 4.
“Chip is a former champion and a fine player and we know each other really well,” Simson said. “I don’t particularly like playing people I know. It’s so hard to get here; it’s so much work and you know one of us is going home, but that’s the nature of match play.”
Simson won his first of two U.S. Senior Amateur titles at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, Fla., edging Patrick Tallent, 2 and 1. He added a second title two years later at Mountain Ridge Country Club in New Jersey, defeating Curtis Skinner, 4 and 3.
“I try not to play the player too much and just play the golf course,” Simson said of what his experience brings to this week's event. “I’ve got my son, Phillip, on the bag, so he knows my game and is able to kick me along when I’m not doing it right. He helped me out on two or three reads that were critical today.
“I’m hitting the ball straight and I’m hitting it solid. I’m putting pretty well and keeping it below the hole, which you’ve got to do on a Donald Ross course.”
Playing in his first U.S. Senior Amateur Championship since turning 55 in March, David Nocar let a 3-up lead against John McClure slip away late, but hung on to claim a 1-up victory and advance to the quarterfinals Wednesday, earning an exemption into next year’s championship in the process.
“It was a tale of two cities today. The first six or seven holes I was a couple under and hitting it solid. I hit some greens and made a couple putts and then I tightened up and got ahead of myself,” Nocar said Tuesday. “I really grinded through the back nine and putt some bad swings on the ball.”
Nocar, Millersville, Md., carded two early birdies and would take a quick 4-up lead over McClure after only five holes, before McClure chiseled his way back by winning the ninth and 12th holes to pull within two.
Regaining a 3-up lead after a McClure bogey at the 14th, Nocar watched as McClure rolled in birdie to win the 15th and took the 16th hole with a par to trail by one with two holes to play. McClure put his approach in the left rough and would take bogey as Nocar won the 18th with a par to clinch the match, 2-up.
“I was just able to squeak it through on 18 after being up 4-up after eight holes,” Nocar said. “I struggled with my putter a little bit on the back nine, but I’ve actually been putting really well and that’s kept me in the game. My ball striking all week hasn’t been great, but my misses are in good spots.
“I’m sure tomorrow will be more difficult because the greens are going to firm up. I need to drive the ball better. The tee shot, whether you’re hitting an iron, 3-wood or driver, it just sets up the hole. The course is built to be played from the fairway. When you get out of position on a hole, your next shot is really difficult to recover.”
Other quarterfinalists include Sean Knapp who defeated 2013 Senior Amateur champion Doug Hanzel and the defending champion Ryan, who has now won eight consecutive matches at the championship. Last year’s runner-up, Matthew Sughrue, downed Keith Decker, 3 and 2, to move on, while John Pierce defeated Russ Perry, 4 and 3.
When crowned on Thursday, the winner of the U.S. Senior Amateur takes possession of the Frederick L. Dold Trophy for the next year and also earns a spot in sectional qualifying for the 2018 U.S. Open Championship.
The winner is exempt for the 2018 U.S. Senior Open as well as the 2018 and 2019 U.S. Amateur and U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships. Finally, the champion earns an exemption to the next 10 U.S. Senior Amateur Championships.
The U.S. Senior Amateur began in 1955 at Belle Meade Country Club in Nashville, Tenn., before it was contested at Somerset Country Club in Mendota Heights, Minn., in 1956. Interlachen Country Club hosted the U.S. Senior Amateur Championship in 1986, while this week’s national championship is the 36th USGA tournament the state has hosted, with only seven states conducting more events.
Prior to the championship being contested at Minikahda this week, the club previously hosted the 1916 U.S. Open; the 1927 U.S. Amateur; the 1957 Walker Cup; the U.S. Women’s Amateur in 1988 and most recently, the 1998 Curtis Cup.
The 63rd U.S. Senior Amateur Championship continues Wednesday at The Minikahda Club with the quarterfinal round beginning at 7:15 a.m., followed by the semifinal round beginning at 1 p.m.
THE 63RD U.S. SENIOR AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
THE MINIKAHDA CLUB
MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.
6,557 YARDS, PAR 72
TUESDAY’S ROUND OF 16 RESULTS
David Nocar, Millersville, Md., def. John McClure, Los Angeles, Calif., 2-up
Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa., def. Doug Hanzel, Savannah, Ga., 2 and 1
Ken Lee, Manchester, Tenn., def. Bob Cooper, Monroe, La., 6 and 5
Dave Ryan, Taylorville, Ill., def. Michael Hughett, Tulsa, Okla., 2 and 1
Matt Sughrue, Arlington, Va., def. Keith Decker, Martinsville, Va., 3 and 2
Paul Simson, Raleigh, N.C., def. Chip Lutz, Reading, Pa., 6 and 4
John Pierce, San Antonio, Texas, def. Russ Perry, Winston Salem, N.C., 4 and 3
TUESDAY’S ROUND OF 32 RESULTS
John McClure, Los Angeles, Calif., def. David Brown, Ligonier, Pa., 3 and 2
David Nocar, Millersville, Md., def. Claud Cooper, Birmingham, Ala., 4 and 3
Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa., def. Scott Thomas, Chesterfield, Mo., 6 and 5
Doug Hazel, Savannah, Ga., def. Ned Zachar, Bedford, N.Y., 20 holes
Bob Cooper, Monroe, La., def. Craig Steinberg, Agoura Hills, Calif., 1-up
Ken Lee, Manchester, Tenn., def. Mark Coward, Paradise Valley, Ariz., 4 and 3
Dave Ryan, Taylorville, Ill., def. Ronald LaVerdiere, Amherst, Mass., 2 and 1
Michael Hughett, Tulsa, Okla., def. James Pearson, Charlotte, N.C., 4 and 3
Matthew Sughrue, Arlington, Va., def. John Fisher, Collierville, Tenn., 4 and 3
Keith Decker, Martinsville, Va., def. Gene Elliot, West Des Moines, Iowa, 1-up
Paul Simson, Raleigh, N.C., def. John Hornbeck, Saratoga, N.Y., 1-up
Chip Lutz, Reading, Pa., def. Don Donatoni, Malvern, Pa., 5 and 4
John Pierce, San Antonio, Texas, def. Mitch Wilson, Portage, Mich., 20 holes
Russ Perry, Winston Salem, N.C., def. Bob Royak, Alpharetta, Ga., 2 and 1
Frank Vana, Boxford, Mass., def. Bryan Norton, Mission Hills, Kan., 1-up
Alan Hill, Spring Branch, Texas, def. Chris Hartenstein, Austin, Texas, 4 and 3
For complete tournament results go to: www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/championships/2017/u-s--senior-amateur-/scoring.html
April 9, 2024
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