Junior Amateur Blog

Welcome to the live blog for the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur championship match being held on the Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club in Bremerton, Wash. We have another glorious day here in the Pacific Northwest. The sun is out and temperatures are expected to creep into the 70s. I know people in the Northeast and Midwest are probably quite envious of the conditions here outside of Seattle.

Anyhow, we invite you to follow today's 36-hole final between Jordan Spieth, 17, of Dallas and 16-year-old Chelso Barrett of Keene, N.H. Spieth, who turns 18 next Wednesday and is headed to the University of Texas in the fall, is vying to become just the second multiple champion of this event. Tiger Woods claimed three consecutive titles from 1991-93. Spieth previously won this championship in 2009 at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., defeating Jay Hwang in the final, 4 and 3.

Please enjoy our hole-by-hole blog of the match, which begins at 8 a.m. PDT. The second 18 of the final is set to start at 12:30 p.m.

Hole 1 - 460-yard par 4 

Jordan Spieth blocked his drive right near the trees. His second shot, which he hit left-handed, went about 15 yards. His third shot landed right of the green in the rough, and he hit his fourth shot to 7 feet. Chelso Barrett hooked his drive left but made a brilliant 4-iron to 35 feet below the hole. He lagged that putt to 8 feet and converted the par putt to win the hole. Barrett is 1 up.

Hole 2 - 354-yard par 4 

Both players found the rough off the tee - Spieth right and Barrett left. Barrett his a wedge to the fringe 15 feet above the hole and liipped out his birdie putt. Spieth's second shot was short of the green above a bunker in the rough. He pitched to 7 feet and missed his par putt. Barrett is 2 up. 

Hole 3 - 481-yard par 4 

Both players found the left greenside bunker with their approach shots. Barrett came out short of the green and he hit his fourth shot to 2 feet for bogey. Spieth blasted to 5 feet and missed the par putt on the left edge. Barrett remains 2 up.

Hole 4 - 362-yard par 4 

Barrett hit a big drive but his approach bounced over the green into the rough. He chunked his first pitch, and his fourth shot went 25 feet past the hole. He missed his bogey putt. Spieth hit a 3-wood to the right intermediate cut of rough. He hit his approach shot to 16 feet and was conceded the birdie putt. Barrett is now 1 up. 

Hole 5 - 157-yard par 3 

Spieth hit his tee shot to 15 feet hole high. His birdie try was just short. Barrett hit his tee shot short and just right of the green. He pitched to 3 feet and made par. Barrett remains 1 up. 

Hole 6 - 563-yard par 5 

Spieth hit his second shot from the fairway with a 3-wood right and short of the green. He flopped up to 10 feet and made the birdie putt. Barrett hit a driver from the fairway into the right rough. He pitched to 8 feet but missed the birdie putt. The match is all square. 

Hole 7 - 458-yard par 4 

Barrett's approach found the front greenside bunker. He blasted out to 2 feet and made the par putt. Spieth hit his approach shot to 5 feet but pushed his birdie putt. Match remains all square. 

Hole 8 - 202-yard par 3 

Barrett hit his tee shot to the right front fringe about 60 feet from the hole. He putted to 5 feet but missed the par putt on the left. Spieth was over the green in the fringe 30 feet from the hole. He pitched to 2 feet, which was conceded for par. Spieth is now 1 up. 

Hole 9 - 617-yard par 5 

Barrett hit his third shot with a 9-iron to 16 feet. He missed his birdie putt to the left. Spieth hit his 6-iron just right of the green in the rough. He pitched to 3 feet and made par. Spieth remains 1 up. 

Hole 10 - 378-yard par 4 

Barrett hit his approach shot over the green in the fringe. His 13-foot downhill putt was short and he was conceded par. Spieth was also in the fringe above the hole. His 10-foot putt went 5 feet past the hole and his par putt lipped out. Match is all square. 

Hole 11 - 549-yard par 5 

Spieth pushed his long approach just right of the green. He pitched to 2 feet, which was conceded for birdie. Barrett his his 3-wood from the left rough just short and right of the green. He almost holed his pitch for eagle, and was conceded his birdie. Match is all square. 

Hole 12 - 249-yard par 3 

Barrett was short of the green with his tee shot. His pitch and run came to rest 5 feet from the hole. Spieth hit his tee shot with a hybrid to 20 feet. His par putt was conceded. Match remains all square.     

Hole 13 - 444-yard par 4 

Spieth hit a 6-iron from 170 yards into the wind to 8 feet above the hole. Barrett's approach found the front greenside bunker. He blasted out to 10 feet but missed the par putt and conceded Spieth's birdie. Spieth is now 1 up. 

Hole 14 - 513-yard par 5 

Barrett hit his second shot with a 3-wood just short in the right fringe. He pitched from 25 feet to 2.5 feet, which was conceded for birdie. Spieth's second shot landed 30 feet above the hole. His eagle putt was just right of the hole and his birdie putt was conceded. Spieth remains 1 up. 

Hole 15 - 355-yard par 4 

Barrett hit his drive into the left rough. His approach shot landed 30 feet left of the flagstick. He hit his birdie putt too firmly and left himself 12 feet for par, which he missed. Spieth was in the fairway and hit his approach with a wedge to 8 feet. The birdie was conceded after Barrett missed his par putt. Spieth is now 2 up. 

Hole 16 - 184-yard 3 

Spieth's tee shot landed 35 feet below the hole. His birdie try stopped 6 inches above the hole and was conceded. Barrett followed with an almost identical shot, from just inside Spieth (30 feet). His birdie putt was 4 feet short. His par putt rolled around the lip and dropped in for par. Spieth remains 2 up. 

Hole 17 - 461-yard par 4 

Spieth's tee shot found the far left rough. He punched out to the fairway and hit his third shot with a wedge to 6 feet above the hole. His par putt lipped out on the left edge. Barrett hit his approach from the fairway short and right of the green. He chipped to 7 feet above the hole. His par putt missed to the right and went five feet past the hole. He lipped out his bogey putt and Spieth won the hole. Spieth is now 3 up. 

Hole 18 - 324-yard par 4 

Spieth, playing the 18th hole for the first time since the second round of stroke play on Tuesday, drove the ball into a greenside bunker. He blasted out to 4 feet and made the putt for birdie. Barrett's tee shot found the rough just next to a greenside bunker. He second shot came back off the slope and rolled to 2 feet, which was conceded for birdie. Spieth is 3 up at the break. 

Some quick statistics from the morning 18. Jordan Spieth hit 7 of 14 fairways, 11 of 18 greens and totaled 27 putts. He shot the equivalent of 2-under-par 70, with the usual concessons for match play. Of his seven birdies, three were conceded.

Chelso Barrett has hit 9 of 14 fairways, 8 of 18 greens and totaled 29 putts, including two three-putt greens on holes 15 and 17. He shot the equivalent of 5-over 77.

Spieth's caddie is Michael Greller, a sixth-grade teacher from University Place, Wash., who caddies at nearby Chambers Bay during the summer. He caddied for 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur runner-up Justin Thomas at last year's U.S. Amateur held at Chambers Bay and The Home Course (second stroke-play qualifying venue). Thomas recommended Greller to Spieth. Greller is wearing a University of Texas hat out of respect for Spieth, who will be matriculating at the Austin school in late August. Greller said he is hoping to land a bag when the U.S. Open comes to Chambers Bay in 2015. -- David Shefter 

 

Hole 19 - 460-yard par 4 

Spieth hit a 340-yard drive into the intermediate cut of rough. His approach shot with a wedge flew over the green to the back rough. He pitched to 4 feet. Barrett's approach was safely on the green, 10 feet from the hole. He made the putt to win the hole. Spieth is now 2 up. 

Hole 20 - 354-yard par 4 

Both drives found the right intermediate cut of rough. Barrett hit his approach with a wedge to 9 feet and missed his birdie putt left. Spieth hit his approach with a wedge to 16 feet and made the birdie putt to win the hole. Spieth is 3 up. 

Hole 21 - 481-yard par 4 

Spieth's long-iron approach landed just short of the green. His pitch curled to the right of the hole and his par putt was conceded. Barrett hit his approach with a 5-wood to 25 feet. He missed his birdie putt left. Spieth remains 3 up. 

Hole 22 - 362-yard par 4 

Barrett hit his approach from the left rough to 20 feet below the hole. His birdie try just slid by the right side of the hole and his par was conceded. Spieth hit his approach from the fairway to 7 feet above the flagstick. His birdie try lipped out on the right side and his par putt was conceded. Spieth remains 3 up.  

Hole 23 - 157-yard par 3 

Barrett's tee short was short of the green. He pitched 25 feet past the hole and missed his par putt. Spieth knocked his tee shot to 3 feet, which was conceded for birdie. Spieth is now 4 up. 

Hole 24 - 563-yard par 5 

Spieth outdrove Barrett by 65 yards and was just 230 yards to the middle of the green. Barrett, hitting driver from the fairway, hit his approach short and right in the rough, about 30 yards from the hole. He pitched to 20 feet beyond the flagstick and missed his birdie putt to the left. His par was conceded. Spieth hit a long-iron approach just right of the green in the rough. He hit a flop shot that traveled over the flagstick to 24 feet. His birdie putt missed to the right and his par was conceded. Spieth remains 4 up. 

Hole 25 - 458-yard par 4 

Both tee shots found the right rough. Barrett pulled his approach left into the greenside rough. His flop shot went 16 feet past the hole and he slapped his hand against his leg in frustration as he bogeyed. Spieth's approach went long into the rough. He pitched to 4 feet and made the par putt to increase his lead to 5 up. Spieth is 5 up. 

Hole 26 - 202-yard par 3 

Spieth hit his tee shot with a 5-iron to 4 feet and made his birdie putt. Barrett's tee shot got caught up in the left fringe 20 feet from the hole. His putt slid by the right side of the hole. Spieth is now 6 up. 

Hole 27 - 617-yard par 5 

Barrett hit his approach shot to 45 feet below the hole. He left his birdie putt 9 feet short but converted the par putt. Spieth hit his approach to 25 feet left and below the hole. His birdie putt just slid by the right edge and his par putt was conceded. Spieth remains 6 up. 

Hole 28 - 378-yard par 4 

Barrett hit his approach shot 15 feet below the hole. His birdie try lipped out. Spieth hit his approach shot with a wedge to 3 feet above the hole. His birdie try hit the right edge of the hole and slid in for birdie. Spieth is now 7 up.  

Hole 29 - 549-yard par 5 

Both players were short of the green in two. Spieth chunked his chip onto the green, 9 feet short of the flagstick. He left his birdie putt short. Barrett hit his pitch to 3 feet and made birdie. Spieth is now 6 up. 

Hole 30 - 249-yard par 3 

Spieth hit his tee shot left of the green into a greenside bunker. He blasted out to 2 feet. Barrett's tee shot was on the green, 10 feet from the hole. He narrowly missed his birdie try. Spieth is 6 up and dormie.

Hole 31 - 444-yard par 4

Barrett's putt from the fringe hit the flagstick. His par putt was conceded. Spieth's putt from the fringe went 4 feet past the hole. He made his par putt to win the championship, 6 and 5.

 

Spieth becomes the second player in history to win more than one U.S. Junior Amateur, joining Tiger Woods, who claimed the 1991, 1992 and 1993 championships.

 

More information will follow shortly.          

Chelso Barrett, 16, of Keene, N.H., made a par on the first extra hole to defeat Nicolas Echavarria, 16, of Colombia. Barrett will face 2009 champion Jordan Spieth in the 36-hole final that is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. PDT. Barrett faced Spieth in the first round of the 2010 championship at Egypt Valley C.C., losing 7 and 5.

Chelso Barrett and Nicolas Echavarria continue to produce fireworks. With the match all square on 18, Barrett faced a tricky 12-foot downhill shot from the fringe above the ball. With the ball nestled against the primary rough, he used the front of his putter head to calmly stroke in the birdie. Echavarria followed by holing his 7-footer for birdie to push the match to extra holes.

Echavarria took a 1-up lead on 16, only to see Barrett win 17 to square the match again. The winner gets Jordan Spieth in Saturday's 36-hole final.

Chelso Barrett now has pulled in front of Nicolas Echavarria after 12 holes. After making three consecutive birdies, Echavarria, who had a 1-up lead through 10, posted two straight bogeys.

Jordan Spieth has defeated Adam Ball, 7 and 5, in the first semifinal at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur. He will be looking for his second title in the last three Junior Amateurs. He won the title in 2009 at Trump National in Bedminster, N.J. His Junior Amateur match-play record is now 16-2.

A winning par at the 12th hole has put Jordan Spieth 6 up with six to play over Adam Ball. Ball hit his tee shot in a greenside bunker and failed to get up and down for par.

Meanwhile, Nicolas Echavarria, made a third consecutive birdie at No. 10 to grab a 1-up lead over Chelso Barrett.

Apparently, Chelso Barrett and Nicolas Echavarria think the semfinal match is a 100-yard dash. They played the first nine holes on Friday afternoon in 88 minutes. "That's the fastest nine holes I have ever seen," said David Staebler, the director of the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship for the USGA.

Echavarria birdied his second consecutive hole to take the match back to all square. Barrett went the full distance in his morning quarterfinal win. This one seems to be trending in that direction as well.

The first semifinal match between Jordan Spieth and Adam Ball also is pushing forward at a nice pace. Ball just birdied No. 10 to trim the deficit to 5 down. Does he have another miracle comeback in his arsenal? He's already pulled off two remarkable rallies in match play, beating James Park in round two and Juan Yumar in the round of 16. -- David Shefter 

 

Chelso Barrett pulled a Houdini act to earn a halve on the par-4 seventh hole. His tee shot went way left and he was forced to hit a provisional ball. He played his fourth shot from the fairway to 5 feet and made the putt for a 5. Nicolas Echavarria could not take advantage of the opening. His second found a bunker and he failed to get up and down for par. Barrett remains 2 up.

Then at the eighth hole, Echavarria responded by making a 22-footer for a birdie-2 to close the deficit to 1 down.

In the first semifinal, Jordan Spieth is cruising toward a spot in the final. He won the ninth with a 4 (Adam Ball made a 6) and now owns a 6-up lead with nine to play.

Only three other players in Junior Amateur history have made it back to a final after winning a title. The first two failed to win a second title, but Tiger Woods won three in a row from 1991-93. He's the only multiple winner of the championship. Eddie Pearce won in 1968 and lost in 1969 to Aly Trompas at Spokane (Wash.) Country Club.

Mike Brannan won in 1971 and lost in 1973 at Singing Hills C.C. to future PGA Tour player Jack Renner in 20 holes. -- David Shefter

Chelso Barrett hit a driver off the fairway to the par-5 sixth hole and reached the green in two shots. When Nicolas Echavarria failed to hole his fourth shot with a chip from off the putting surfaces, Barrett's eagle putt was conceded. Barrett now has a 2-up lead over the Colombian.

Should Barrett and Spieth win their matches, they would face each other in the Junior Amateur for a second consecutive year. Last year, Barrett, then 15, lost to Spieth in the first round at Egypt Valley C.C., 7 and 5.

Jordan Spieth said he's been waiting all week to put everything together. It might be happening in the semifinals against Adam Ball. Spieth has made five consecutive birdies to go from 1 down to 3 up after six holes. He also just won the seventh with a par to go 4 up.

"My putter is inconsistent right now and my irons are just not going where I want them to go," said Spieth after eliminating Andrew Whalen of Ephrata, Wash., 2 and 1, in the quarterfinals on Friday morning. "But I’m still managing to get by. But I’m not going to be able to do this the rest of the way. I’m going to have to find a way to get the ball in the hole in a little fewer strokes than I did."

Spieth, who is looking to join Tiger Woods as the only multiple winners of the Junior Amateur, said he knows his semifinal opponent quite well and knows it will be a challenge. He also is starting to see his chances to make history.

"I felt a lot of pressure out there, especially near the end," said Spieth. "Somehow I’m just willing it in right now. I’m just squeaking by." 

In the second semifinal, Chelso Barrett owns a 1-up lead on Nicolas Echavarria of Colombia. Both just two-putted the par-3 fifth hole to halve the hole.  

Echavarria won the first hole with a birdie, but made a mess of the short par-4 second and the match returned to all square. Barrett then won the third hole with a par to grab the 1-up lead. They halved the par-4 fourth hole with birdie-3s. -- David Shefter    

  

It's another glorious day in the Pacific Northwest. The sun is out and temperatures are in the upper 50s and expected to rise ever so slightly during the day. Those suffering from the stifling heat and humidity in most of the country probably don't want to hear this.

But the eight golfers remaining in this year's U.S. Junior Amateur are quite happy to be playing in these conditions.

Two of the pre-championship favorites, including 2009 champion Jordan Spieth, have survived the first three rounds of match play. Medalist Beau Hossler, who qualified for last month's U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club and won last week's Junior Worlds at Torrey Pines in San Diego, also is in the mix. Hossler takes on Adam Ball of Richmond, Va., who twice avoided defeat on Thursday with comeback victories. He used a loss-of-hole penalty for slow play to his advantage to first eliminate James Park of Korea. Park had made a birdie putt on No. 11 to go what he thought was 4 up in the match. Instead, the penalty pushed the status down to 2 up. From there, Park struggled with his form and Ball rallied for the victory.

Then in the afternoon, Ball was 3 down after 12 holes to Juan Yumar of Venezuela. He won No. 13 with a par, then had an eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie-birdie finish for a remarkable 2-up win. His final birdie on No. 18 was conceded but the other three were shots to within 5 feet of the hole.

Ball will need to continue that kind of golf to beat the hot Hossler. In the first round, Hossler was 4 down after four holes to Miller Capps, the last qualifier out of the Tuesday 12-for-10 playoff. Then he reeled off seven birdies in 12 holes, only one of which was conceded, for a 3-and-2 victory. Hossler also had to grind out a 1-up second-round win over Austin Smotherman before rolling in his third-round match over Connor Black.

Spieth is looking to join Tiger Woods as the only multiple champions in Junior history. He said after his matches on Thursday that he's still looking to put that one perfect round together where all aspects of his game are firing in sync.

Spieth would dearly love to win another USGA title to bolster his chances of making this year's Walker Cup Team. Already ranked among the top 10 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, this title certainly wouldn't deter his efforts. He also will be playing in the Western Amateur and U.S. Amateur in the coming weeks.

Of course, the champion could be someone few had heard about prior to this week. How about Chelso Barrett of Keene, N.H. His family runs the Bretwood Golf Course, a 36-hole public facility. He could join Austin Eaton and Pat Bradley as a USGA champion from New Hampshire. But more importantly, by making it to the quarterfinals, he is exempt into next year's Junior Amateur, which will be played at the Golf Club of New England in Stratham, N.H. It will be almost a home game.

What about Nicolas Echavarria of Colombia. In 1999, a young Colombian named Camilo Villegas made it to the Junior Amateur final, only to lose to the hottest junior in the country that year, Hunter Mahan. Echavarria's brother, Andres, is a past All-American at the University of Florida.

And Will Starke of Chapin, S.C., definitely has shown his game this week. He finished as the No. 2 seed, but has gone through the bracket in relative anonymity. He hasn't even used a caddie, preferring to carry his clubs or use a pull cart. For the quarterfinals, the 2012 University of South Carolina commit will employ a caddie.

One thing we do know: By the end of the day, there will be two finalists. -- David Shefter 

Even if Adam Ball doesn't go on to win the U.S. Junior Amateur in his final attempt, the 17-year-old from Richmond, Va., will have a finish to remember for a long time. Trailing by two holes with six to play, Ball, whose father Matt is the head men's coach at Virginia Commonwealth, put on a furious rally to defeat Juan Yumar of Venezuela.

Ball won No. 13 with a par, but then hit a low-hooking 4-iron on the par-5 14th hole to 20 feet above the hole, leaving a very delicate downhill putt for eagle. Ball barely struck the putt, but the ball rolled right into the hole for a winning eagle. It was his second 3 on that hole this week.

At the par-4 15th, Ball left himself just 72 yards for his approach and perfectly executed a wedge approach to 5 feet. Yumar holed his 12-footer for birdie and Ball converted his short putt to halve the hole.

At the 202-yard 16th hole, Ball knew from his morning round that a 4-iron was too much club. So with his adrenaline pumping and nerves working overtime, he pulled a 5-iron and stuck it to 4 feet below the hole. It set up another birdie, which squared the match.

At the challenging 17th hole, Ball left himself 155 yards to the flag. With the wind freshening into his face, he played a knockdown 8-iron punch shot that stopped 3 feet left of the hole. It set up another birdie for a 1-up lead.

At 18, against his better judgement, Ball pulled out a driver on the 305-yard hole. He pulled the shot left into some thick rough. He called it one of the worst lies "I've ever seen."

Nevertheless, Ball executed another perfect shot, lofting his wedge over a bunker to within 7 feet of the hole.

"I put my hands on the club softly and swung as hard as I could," said Ball, who is competing in his third Junior Amateur. "It came out perfectly right where I wanted to land it and it trickled onto the green."

Yumar eventually conceded the birdie putt, giving Ball an improbable 2-up win.

"I think he was [stunned]," said Ball. "I would have been. Playing like that, there's nobody out there that can beat me if I keep that up."

Jordan Spieth, the 2009 champion, certainly was impressed when informed of what Ball achieved.

"That unreal," said the Texan. "That's a tough [quarterfinal] match for [medalist] Beau [Hossler]."

"I’ve had really good stretches in my life," said Ball, "but considering the circumstances -- and winning this tournament has been my dream for the longest time -- I really didn’t want to see it crushed right there. I just kept my head up and finished the best I could." -- David Shefter

 

The 18th hole on the Olympic Course at Gold Mountain is a driveable par 4 that is an ideal finish for a match-play competition. Playing at just 305 yards for match play, the hole offers players plenty of options. Do you try to drive the green and risk putting the ball in the water hazard (right of the green) or one of the bunkers or do you lay up with an iron and play conservatively?

Medalist Beau Hossler, who held a 1-up lead going into 18 against Austin Smotherman, took the prudent approach and hit a 4-iron off the tee. Smotherman, who was hoping to force extra holes, tried to drive it.

"He almost made eagle," said Hossler, who knocked his wedge approach to 6 feet and holed the birdie putt for a 1-up second-round victory Thursday morning. "That’s a great match-play hole. It’s not even a par 5. There are just so many options, and this hole is just so much better when they move the tee up like they did [on Wednesday and Thursday]. I bet if it was 324 [yards like it was during stroke play] he wouldn’t go for it because he’d have to kill one to get over the front bunker."  

Earlier this week, 2009 champion Jordan Spieth said the Olympic Course was ideal for match play because of all the risk-reward holes. You have reachable par-5s and a couple of short par-4s. And the par-3s offer plenty of variety. -- David Shefter

Gold Mountain G.C. honored Seattle native and 1960 U.S. Junior Amateur champion Bill Tindall by making him the honorary chairman for the championship. When the club hosted the 2006 U.S. Amateur Public Links, it honored William Wright, the first African-American to win a USGA championship (1959 APL). Wright also grew up in Seattle and now works as a golf pro in Los Angeles.

Tindall did more than just shake a few hands this week. Earlier in the week, he served as a starter for practice rounds. Then when match play began on Wednesday, he was serving as a standard bearer. On Thursday morning, he walked with the William Zalatoris/Andy Olsen second-round match.

Tindall and Wright also have a connection that is just not related to growing up in Seattle. When Wright won the 1959 APL, his roommate that week in Denver was Tindall, who was a 16-year-old high school golfer. The next year, Tindall won the Junior Amateur in Kansas City. Overall, Tindall, who is a teaching pro in the Seattle area, has competed in 10 USGA championships, including the 1960 and 1961 U.S. Amateurs.

Tindall said he's been very impressed by the quality of play shown this week at the Junior Amateur. -- David Shefter

While most of the country is trying to stay cool from the stifling heat wave, including our brethren at the U.S. Girls' Junior Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club in suburban Chicago, the temperatures in the Pacific Northwest are downright comfortable. We are not supposed to top 70 degrees today and there's hardly any humidity.

Talk about ideal playing conditions for a national championship.

The field at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur has been trimmed to 32 players and by day's end, we'll be down to our quarterfinalists.

There are a couple of intriguing matchups in round two. Two matches feature players from Texas. Connor Black, 15, of Katy faces off against 16-year-old Scottie Scheffler of Dallas, who survived a 21-hole marathon against Jonah Texeira of Northridge, Calif., on Wednesday.

The other Lone Star State match features 14-year-old William Zalatoris of Plano against 16-year-old Andy Olsen of San Antonio, a 12-for-10 Tuesday playoff survivor who eliminated 10th-seeded Grant Daugherty.

Of course, the biggest Texas name remaining is 2009 champion Jordan Spieth, who is vying to join Tiger Woods as the only multiple Junior Amateur winner in the event's 64-year history. Spieth takes on Wesley Gosselin of Knoxville, Tenn., who needed 23 holes to eliminate Andy Shim of Duluth, Ga., on Wednesday. It was the longest match of the championship.

Defending champion Jim Liu of Smithtown, N.Y., also is looking to match Woods' feat. He already broke Woods' mark for being the youngest champion when he won at the tender age of 14 a year ago at Egypt Valley C.C.

One left-hander also is still alive in Canada's Wilson Bateman. The championship has produced two southpaw winners in Brian Harman (2003) and Cory Whitsett (2007). Bateman faces Stuart Thomas of Knoxville, Tenn., who went 21 holes in beating Hunter O'Mahony of Tequesta, Fla.

Robby Shelton of Wilmer, Ala., a semifinalist last year, also advanced into the round of 32. He takes on fifth-seeded Taylor Moore of Edmond, Okla.

And the state of Washington still has one survivor. Andrew Whalen of Ephrata, who was the medalist at the sectional qualifier held last month at Gold Mountain, meets Chris Petefish of Scottsdale, Ariz. Petefish already has eliminated one Washington resident. He beat James Feutz of University Place, 3 and 2, in the first round on Wednesday. -- David Shefter

 

Adam Ball of Richmond, Va., finds himself in a familiar position at this week’s U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at Gold Mountain Golf Club’s Olympic Course. 

For a second straight year, Ball has advanced to the round of 32 at the national championship. The eighth low qualifier for match play, the 17-year-old Ball scored a 3 and 2 victory over George Cunningham (Litchfield Park, Ariz.) in Wednesday morning’s round of 64 to open match play.  

A rising junior at St. Christopher’s School in Richmond, Ball started to take control of an all-square match, winning three consecutive holes, Nos. 6-8  - a stretch he played in the stroke play equivalent of two under par counting the usual match play concessions - to own a three holes up advantage after nine. Cunningham closed to within one after 12 before Ball answered with consecutive par wins at Nos. 13 and 14 to go back to three holes up;  he closed the match with a halve at the par-3 16th hole.  

Ball was in the same position at last year’s U.S. Junior at Egypt Valley (Mich.) Country Club in Ada, Mich., before falling to Marcel Puyat of the Philippines, 4 and 2, in the round of 32. Ball led in the early stages of the match and smacked his golf glove against the side of his trousers in frustration shortly after the encounter’s conclusion, feeling that he’d allowed things to get away. 

After medaling in sectional qualifying for the U.S. Junior, shooting 5-under 139 (74-65) at the par-72, 7,002-yard Independence Golf Club in Midlothian, Va., and posting even-par in two-round qualifying at Gold Mountain, Ball feels a year of maturity and experience is an ally. He’ll face Korea’s James Park, the 25th low qualifier for match play, in Thursday’s round of 32 match that begins at 7:48 a.m. (pdt). Park opened match play by getting past Robert Deng of Irvine, Calif., 2 and 1. 

Ball admittedly made the trip to the Pacific Northwest with a purpose in mind – and it doesn’t include an early 2,900 mile trek back to central Virginia. 

“I’ve always dreamt about winning the U.S. Junior,” Ball said following the sectional qualifier at Independence. “I’m going to go out there with that dream, and hopefully I can achieve it.” 

Even as a teenager, Ball knows all about the survive and advance mindset that accompanies match play. In late June, he won the Virginia State Golf Association Junior Match Play Championship, winning four matches to take home his first title in the event. A week earlier Ball claimed four matches in reaching the final of the Richmond Golf Association Amateur Championship.  

And he enters the U.S. Junior with some momentum on his side, posting a top-10 finish at the Eastern Amateur Championship on July 11 at Elizabeth Manor Golf and Country Club in Portsmouth, Va., an event that draws a national field.  

Ball, coached by his father, Matt, the head men’s golf coach at Virginia Commonwealth University, has added size and strength to his game in recent years and is hoping to stand tallest by week’s end at a championship he’s longing to win.  

Following two rounds of match play on Thursday at the U.S. Junior, the quarterfinals and semifinals are set for Friday, July 22. The scheduled 18-hole final is set for Saturday, July 23. -- Andrew Blair  

 

Here's some tidbits from the first round of match play at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur.

Twelve of the 32 matches went to the 18th hole or beyond. Four of those matches went extra holes, including a 23-hole marathon between Wesley Gosselin of Knoxville, Tenn., and Andy Shim of Duluth, Ga. Gosselin prevailed.

For those who follow seeding, 13 of the top 16 seeds advanced, including medalist Beau Hossler and No. 2 seed Will Starke, who needed 19 holes to eliminate Brian Bullington. Bullington had to play two playoff holes late Tuesday just to make the draw.

The three seeds to fall were No. 13 Cameron Smith of Australia, No. 15 Matthew Nesmith and No. 10 Grant Daugherty. Wilson Bateman of Canada defeated Smith (3 and 2), Aaron Kunitomo of Lahaina, Hawaii beat Nesmith (2 and 1) and Andy Olsen of San Antonio, Texas ousted Daugherty (1 up). Olsen made the draw via Tuesday's playoff.

On Thursday morning, Texas natives Connor Black (Katy) and Scottie Scheffler (Dallas) will square off. That should be interesting.

We already had a pair of Northern Californians play each other on Wednesday, with Jonathan De Los Reyes beating Andrej Bevins, 3 and 2.

 

During the stroke-play qualifying portion of this year's U.S. Junior Amateur, Jonathan De Los Reyes of Antioch, Calif., had Daniel Bevins, the father of fellow competitor Andrej Bevins, serving as his caddie. The USGA doesn't allow parents or guardians to serve as caddies for this championship, so often times a friend, sibling or even a swing instructor might do the honors.

What's interesting about this scenario is De Los Reyes, a 17-year-old recent high school graduate who will play at St. Mary's College in the fall, wound up facing Bevins in the first round of match play on Wednesday. De Los Reyes registered a 3-and-2 win.

The two golfers have competed on the same Northern California Junior Golf Association Team and known each other for the last three to four years, so you could say the matchup was a bit awkward.

"It was weird," said De Los Reyes. "We were talking about it before [match play] of what are the chances that I play Andrej, and it happened."

With the two players on opposite of the draw for stroke play, Daniel Bevins was able to watch his son play and caddie for De Los Reyes. Obviously, he couldn't caddie on Wednesday, especially under the circumstances.

"He was a really good caddie," said De Los Reyes, who carried his own bag for Wednesday's match. "He helped me out a lot."

De Los Reyes plans to employ a caddie for Thursday's second round, but it likely won't be Bevins.

Asked if the two had any chatter during the round, De Los Reyes responded: "I didn't talk to him once the whole round. It was kind of a little weird, but we're good friends, so it wasn't that bad. I tried not to think about it, playing his son.

"I think I did a pretty good job of managing the course by myself." -- David Shefter

 

Beau Hossler began his first-round match Wednesday morning against Miller Capps like he was going to be the first U.S. Junior Amateur medalist to lose his opening match at this championship since 2002. The 16-year-old Californian, who qualified for last month's U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club, lost his first four holes, two coming with double-bogey 6s.

But Hossler shook off the early jitters to rally for a 3-and-2 victory.

From the fifth through the 16th hole, which is where the match concluded, the Mission Viejo resident registered seven birdies against no bogeys. It was the kind of golf he showcased during stroke play in shooting 68-67 over the 7,133-yard, par-72 Olympic Course layout at Gold Mountain Golf Club. Hossler made just one bogey over the 36-hole qualifying -- and that came at the par-4 10th hole, his first of the competition.

"I figured it out a little bit," said Hossler, who next faces Austin Smotherman of Loomis, Calif., a 6-and-5 winner over Sulman Raza of Eugene, Ore. "Once I was 4 down, I wasn't afraid of losing more holes. I knew I was going to make birdies because I was making birdies all week. I was just waiting for it [to happen]."

 

The preliminaries are now over and we can now focus in on the meat of the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship: Match Play. Some believe this is when the championship begins. While sectional qualifying and then on-site stroke-play qualifying are extremely important to the competition, match play is where the intensity gets pushed up several levels. What happened over the past two days is now irrevelant. Each match is a separate competition all to itself. It's always interesting to see how the juniors handle it. Very few of these kids have much match-play experience since most events in this country are stroke play.

Medalist Beau Hossler had only competed in one match-play event prior to this week. How will he handle the format?

Jordan Spieth, the 2009 champion, certainly knows the process and the vagaries of the format. In 2008, he reached the semifinals before falling to Evan Beck. He then won in 2009 before suffering a surprising second-round loss last year to Robby Shelton.

Jim Liu came in as the defending champion. He's hoping to join Tiger Woods as the only players to successfully defend a Junior Amateur title. He's coming off a first-round defeat at the U.S. Amateur Public Links three weeks ago in Bandon Dunes. He said that match, which went to the 18th hole, got him back into grinding mode for match play.

So who will ultimately hoist the trophy on Saturday afternoon?

Will it be one of the big names such as Spieth, Liu or Hossler?

Or will an unknown come out of the pack?

That's the beauty of match play. Anyone who qualifies has a chance. It requires not only physical ability but incredible mental fortitude to grind out match after match. You can win when playing poorly and lose when shooting under par.

But we do know one thing: Come Saturday afternoon, the large silver cup will be handed out to one deserving player.

The playoff has concluded after just two holes. Matthew Lowe of Farmingdale, N.Y., and Blake Tooland of Phoenix, Ariz., each made 4s, while Miller Capps of Denver, N.C., carded a 5. That eliminated Rylee Reinertson, who had a double bogey in the first group.

The first match is set to tee off at 8:30 a.m. PDT on Wednesday.

Sean Busch of West Lafayette, Ind., punched his ticket to match play with a 4 on the par-4 17th hole, the second playoff hole. Rylee Reinertson of Gibbon, Neb., could have played his way out of the competition with a double-bogey 6, while Brian Bullington of Frankfort, Ill., made a 5. If the final three players make 5 or better, the draw will be officially set.

One player was eliminated from the playoff in the final foursome to play No. 16, as Seth Sweet of Madison, Maine made a double-bogey 5. Adam Bonner of Ripon, Calif., and Christopher Hickman of Centreville, Md., each advanced into the draw with 3s, while Matthew Lowe of Farmingdale, N.Y., had a bogey and will move on to the par-4 17th hole. We are now down to six players vying for five spots.

We have our first three players into the draw from the 12-for-10 playoff. Andy Olsen of San Antonio Olsen, Hayden Shieh of Fremont, Calif., and George Cunningham of Litchfield Park, Ariz., each made 3s on the 184-yard, par-3 16th hole. Miller Capps of Denver, N.C., registered a 4 and will have to play another hole to get into the draw.

The first four players have completed the first playoff hole and all four made bogey-4s on the 184-yard par-3. The foursome included Brian Bullington of Frankfort, Ill., Rylee Reinertson of Gibbon, Neb., Sean Busch of West Lafayette, Ind., and Blake Toolan of Phoenix, Ariz.  

Name	Hole 16	Hole 17	Hole 18
*Miller Capps	4	5
*-Andy Olsen	3
*-George Cunningham	3
*Hayden Shieh	3
*-Brian Bullington	4	5
x-Rylee Reinertson	4	6
*-Sean Busch	4	4
*-Blake Toolan	4	4
*-Matthew Lowe	4	4
*-Andrew Bonner	3
*-Christopher Hickman	3
x-Seth Sweet	5

 

*-Advanced

x-Eliminated

Twelve players will be vying for the last 10 spots in the U.S. Junior Amateur match-play draw. The playoff will begin on the 16th hole of the Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club and then move to 17 and 18, if necessary. If the playoff needs to go beyond those three holes, the players will return to No. 16.

The group includes Miller Capps, Seth Sweet, Matthew Lowe, Andrew Bonner, Christopher Hickman, Blake Tooland, Andy Olsen, Sean Busch, Rylee Reinertson, Brian Bullington, Hayden Shieh and George Cunningham. All of those players finished at 8-over 152.

The folks at Gold Mountain are pulling out all the stops when it comes to goodies. First it was fresh oysters this afternoon that were plucked locally and now they are serving up smores near the scoreboard. Even some of the college coaches are indulging the popular treat.

What's next? Lobster?

Other than the actual golf course or practice facility, one of the more popular places for Junior Amateur competitors and caddies this week has been the makeshift recreation room that was set up adjacent to the Gold Mountain G.C. clubhouse. The host committee put two ping pong tables, a foosball table and a video-game console in the room for players and caddies to enjoy before and after rounds. Snacks are also available as well as a small television for viewing scores. The ping pong tables certainly have been very popular as heated games go on throughout the day.

Beau Hossler, a 16-year-old from Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., who qualified for last month's U.S. Open, registered a birdie-birdie finish to shoot 67 and post 9-under 135. He currently leads for stroke-play medalist honors by one stroke over William Starke of Chapin, S.C., who is at eight under with seven holes to play.

Jordan Spieth of Dallas, Texas, the 2009 champion, also has a very strong round going. He is four under for the day through 13 holes. He would need to have a furious finish to catch Hossler or even Starke. But Spieth looks like he'll be safely into the 64-player match-play draw.

Defending champion Jim Liu is currently at five over total and one under for the day through 16 holes. Liu has only had two bad holes, so he could be a tough foe for a high seed.

Perhaps it was just a lapse in concentration that led to Jordan Spieth's poor start in Monday's first round of stroke-play qualifying at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur. The 2009 champion bogeyed the first hole by knocking his approach over the green. Then he uncharacteristically four-putted the third green, carelessly knocking an 18-inch par putt 6 feet past the hole and missing the come-backer for bogey. From there, Spieth played 3-under golf. He birdied holes 10, 11, 12 and 14 and nearly drove the green on the 324-yard 18th hole. A poor chip left him 14 feet from the hole. He missed the birdie putt.

Nevertheless, Spieth knows a 72 is fine. It won't help him achieve his goal of earning medalist honors for the second time in three years. He would almost need to card a 65 or 66 on Tuesday to become the top seed, which he did in 2009 at Trump National in Bedminster, N.J.

Still, Spieth knows the championship really begins on Wednesday.

He almost feels like a powerhouse NCAA basketball team waiting for the regular season to end and the tournament to commence. Get the preliminary stuff over so the fun can begin.

For Spieth, these are important months. He desperately wants to play on the USA Walker Cup Team, so any USGA victory or big amateur win is crucial to his chances. He made the cut earlier this year at the PGA Tour's HP Byron Nelson Classic and he is among the top 10 golfers in the current World Amateur Golf Rankings. He also hasn't played a junior tournament since February. He chose to play the U.S. Junior because it's a USGA championship and doing well can only enhance his chances.

He will play the Western Amateur in a couple of weeks and the U.S. Amateur at Erin Hills in late August.

"There are so many good players here who nobody has ever heard of," said Spieth. "Three years ago, I lost to Evan Beck in the semifinals and nobody had heard of him. And then he goes on and starts winning everything after the Junior. Last year I lost to Robby Shelton and I had not heard of him, either. He then beat Anthony Paolucci in the next round, so you knew he was a good player. You can have one bad round and lose. When I won two years ago, there was a round or two that I didn't play my best, but managed to win. That's what you need to do."

 

They are champions for a reason. Jim Liu and Jordan Spieth each know how to recover from adversity. Both players started sluggishly, but are making moves on the Olympic Course's inward nine today. Liu, the defending champion, has three birdies and is back to three over with a couple of holes remaining. Spieth, the 2009 winner, made the turn in three over, but quickly made three consecutive birdies before a bogey at No. 13. He quickly birdied No. 14 to get back to even par. He has three holes remaining on his round

Beau Hossler, who qualified for this year's U.S. Open at Congressional C.C., has posted the best round of the day, a 4-under-par 68 that leads Taylor Moore by one stroke.

Keep in mind, the biggest thing for the players over the first two days is to just qualify for match play. Once a player qualifies, anything can happen in match play. Both Spieth, Liu and Hossler figure to be difficult opponents once the head-to-head competition commences on Wednesday.

Not such a good start for the two players in the field who have already hoisted the U.S. Junior Amateur trophy. Defending champion Jim Liu of Smithtown, N.Y., and 2009 winner Jordan Spieth of Dallas are a combined seven over par. Neither has completed nine holes yet. Liu was cruising along until making a quadruple-bogey 8 at the par-4 seventh hole. He is five over through eight holes. Spieth is two over through six holes.

Meanwhile, you should look at the card being produced by Cody Proveaux of Leesville, S.C. The 2012 Clemson commit didn't make a par through his first six holes and has just one 5 through 11 holes. He started birdie-birdie, then made a double bogey and followed with three more birdies before registering his first par at No. 7. He is one under par through 11 holes.

Play has officially begun at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship on the Olympic Course at Gold Mountain. The weather couldn't be better after two days of off and on drizzle. We have partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s. That's a far cry from the sizzling heat our brethren at the U.S. Girls' Junior at Olympia Fields outside of Chicago are experiencing this week.

The Pacific Northwest is one of the few spots in the U.S. not experiencing a heat wave and the competitors have to be loving that.

Today is the first of two stroke-play qualifying rounds. By late Tuesday, we should have our 64 golfers for the match-play portion of the competition.

Jim Liu, 15, of Smithtown, N.Y., is looking to become just the second golfer in Junior Amateur history to successfully defend his title. Liu broke Tiger Woods' age record last year at Egypt Valley when he won the title at 14. Tiger won three consecutive titles from 1991-93 before winning three straight U.S. Amateur titles.

Jordan Spieth also has a chance to be a multiple Junior winner. He won the title in 2009 at 15, but was upset in round two last year. The Dallas resident is headed to the University of Texas this fall, but he's also hoping to make the USA Walker Cup Team. He is ranked in the top 10 of the World Amateur Golf Rankings that is supported by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club and the USGA.

Liu and Spieth tee off this afternoon as does 16-year-old Beau Hossler of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., who qualified for this year's U.S. Open.

But each year, the Junior Amateur also produces new stars and we certainly could see that this week.

We'll keep you updated all week on the website. Feel free to drop us a line at dshefter@usga.org. We'll be happy to answer any questions.

 

Some 750 people attended the U.S. Junior Amateur Players' Dinner aboard the USS John C. Stennis on Sunday night. Despite a drizzling rain, the event was a major success. Players, USGA officials, volunteers and other invited guests thoroughly enjoyed being on the 1,092-foot nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. Approximately 110 players out of the 156-player field took advantage of the free tour of the vessel, which included the hangar, flight deck and portions of the bridge. "Cool" was definitely the word of the night from most of the players, and it had nothing to do with the cool temperatures.

Admiral Craig S. Faller, Commander of Carrier Strike Group Three, drew a standing ovation following his inspirational speech. You almost wanted to enlist in the Navy. The Stennis departs Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Wash., on July 23 for a six- to eight-month tour of the Persian Gulf to provide support for troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Guest speaker Johnny Miller also was outstanding. He even choked up when talking about how much his parents supported him, both on and off the course. Miller also was humorous and informative as he recounted stories about fellow players and his golf accomplishments, including victories at the 1964 U.S. Junior Amateur and 1973 U.S. Open when he carded a final-round 63 to win by one stroke at Oakmont Country Club outside of Pittsburgh.

All the players were sharply dressed in jackets and ties, and Cody Proveaux went one step further by donning a pair of wild orange pants with the Clemson University logo. Proveaux plans to play for the Tigers in the fall of 2012, and has grown close to recent U.S. Amateur Public Links winner Corbin Mills.

The event ended a little after 8 p.m., giving players a chance to get back to their hotels or host families for a good night's rest. The championship begins today with the first of two stroke-play qualifying rounds at Gold Mountain Golf Club's Olympic Course.