Frost & Medalist Jinx Get Hogarth at U.S. Sr. Am; Peterson, Lehman Are into 2nd Round

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GROSS POINTE FARMS, Mich. -- Tim Hogarth set two records on Sunday during stroke-play qualifyings at the 2021 U.S. Senior Amateur. The 55-year-old former U.S. Publinx champion played bogey-free in the second round, and his birdie burst at the end of the round -- he birdied the 14th, 15th, 16th and 18th holes -- resulted in a 7-under-par 65 at the Country Club of Detroit. That was a record, and so was the 36-hole total of 134 that he posted. 

He came in four shots ahead of the second-place finisher, Chip Lutz, who followed a 68 with a 70. Sherrill Britt and Sean Knapp tied for third at 139. Knapp got there with a second-round 66. Britt backed up a 71 with a 68.

Hogarth was the medalist three times before in USGA events. So he knew that being the No. 1 seed doesn't guarantee anything in match play. But that didn't prevent him from being ambushed by the No. 64 seed, Kory Frost, on Monday in the Round of 64.. Frost led for most of the front nine and was 1 up when Hogarth holed his second shot at the 441-yard, par-4 12th hole to level things.

A par at the 14th put Frost in front again, but Hogarth came right back and won the 15th. It took 21 holes, but Frost finally won the match with a birdie at the 520-yard, par-5 third. His victory earned him a place opposite No. 33 seed Rusty Strawn on Tuesday in the Round of 32.

Frost's victory continued a pattern that has began to develop in the U.S. Women's Am, where the defending champion and medalist/No. 1 seed, Rachel Kuehn, lost to No. 64 Marissa Wenzler in the first round, and it continued in the U.S. Amateur, where the medalist/No. 1 seed, Mark Goetz. lost to No. 64 David Nyfjal. 

Only two other players seeded in the top 11 lost on Monday. Craig Davis, the No. 58 seed, knocked off No. 7 Jeff Knox 4&2, and No. 55 Lewis Stephenson dismissed No. 10 Scott Almquist 3&2.

Tim Peterson of Forest Lake didn't qualify for the U.S. Senior Amateur, at least not on his first try earlier this month. After shooting a 2-over-par 74 at Minneapolis Golf Club in a qualifier on Aug. 8, he went into a four-man playoff for two spots. He parred the two holes in the playoff, but that wasn't quite good enough, because both Jim Lehman and Bob Rolston birdied the second. So Peterson had to settle for being the first alternate. 

As it turned out, that was good enough to get Peterson into the Senior Am, and so far he's making the most of his opportunity.

He shot 74-71--145 in the stroke play portion of the tournament over the weekend, which put him in an 11-way tie for 28th. He wound up as the No. 37 seed, and on Monday he dispatched a former Walker Cupper and two-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, Tim Jackson in 21 holes. Peterson was 2 down after 15 holes, but he won the 170-yard, par-3 16th with a birdie and leveled the match with another birdie at the 416-yard, par-4 18th. 

The second extra hole (396 yards, par 4) could have been his undoing once again, because he bogeyed it. But so did Jackson, the No. 28 seed, and Peterson claimed his victory with a birdie at the par-5 third extra hole.

Lehman, a two-time MGA Senior Player of the Year and four-time MGA Senior Amateur champion, is making his fourth appearance in the U.S. Senior Am. He got through  the stroke play portion twice before but had never made it beyond the first round of matches -- until Monday. 

It wasn't easy. After qualifying with 147 (74-73), he got the No. 48 seed and took on No. 17 Pat Thompson. Lehman was 4 up through 12 holes, but Thompson won the 13th (186 yards, par 3) with a par, the 15th (370, par 4) wih a par, and he was only 1 down after winning the 17th (514 par 5) with a birdie. Lehman held him off by halving the 18th hole with a par. 

He will play the No. 16 seed, Steve Harwell, on Tuesday in the Round of 16.  Harwell had to go 23 holes on Monday to get past Jeff Wilson (No. 49). 

As his reward for upsetting Jackson, Peterson will get the No. 5 seed, Roger Newsom, on Tuesday. Newsom blew past No. 60 Rick Herpich 7&5 in his first match.

The other local qualifier from MGC, Rolston, he got off to a bad start, with a 78 in the opening round of stroke play, and missed the cut (148) by four with a 152.  


U.S. Senior Amateur

At the Country Club of Detroit
       
Par 72

Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich. 

Stroke play (the top 64 players advance to match play)

1. Tim Hogarth, Northridge, Calif.            69-65--134

2. Chip Lutz, Redding, Pa.                       68-70--138

T3. Sherrill Britt, West End, N.C.             71-68--139

T3. Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa.              73-66--139

5. Roger Newsom, Virginia Beach, Va.   69-71--140

T6. Scott Almquist, Wallace, Idaho          68-73--141

T6. Jeff Knox, Augusta, Ga.                     68-73--141

T6. Doug Hanzel, Savannah, Ga.           71-70--141

T6. Michael McCoy, Des Moines, Iowa   69-72--141

T6. Jerry Gunthorpe, Ovid, Mich.            71-70--141

T6. Chris Fieger, Dnver, Pa.                    69-72--141

T28. Tim Peterson, Forest Lake            74-71--145

T48. Jim Lehman, Minnetonia               74-73--147

Missed cut  --  148

Bob Ralston, Hopkins                            78-74--152

Lee Kolquist, Geneva, Ill.                       81-80--161


Match play

Round of 64

Peterson (37) def. Tim Jackson (28) 21 holes 

Lehman (48) def. Pat Thompson (17) 1 up