Orlando, Fla. – Medalist Patrick Tallent and runner-up Paul Simson advanced to the second round of match play at the 2010 USGA Senior Amateur Championship, being conducted at the 6,691-yard, par-72 Lake Nona Golf & Country Club.
Tallent, 57, of Vienna, Va., was visibly frustrated by his performance during his 2-up victory over Dave Bates, 61, of Newburgh, Ind., who earned the 64th and final match-play berth out of Monday morning’s 11-for-10 playoff. After playing rock-solid golf through the two qualifying rounds, Tallent struggled on Monday and did not take his first lead until the par-5 ninth hole.
However, he managed to stay ahead of Bates, whose tee shot on the par-4 18th wound up in a sand divot, which allowed Tallent to survive the tight match.
For two days, I never hit the ball in the rough and I hadn’t made a bogey, said Tallent, shaking his head. On the first hole, I hit it in the bunker off the tee and then I three-putted for bogey. I just played poorly today, but I played well enough to win.
It was just the opposite for the 59-year-old Simson. The Raleigh, N.C., resident cruised through his match with playoff survivor Curt Knorr, 58, of Dunwoody, Ga., opening with a birdie at the par-4 first hole and never looking back in a 6-and-5 triumph.
I got pretty far ahead early, just held on and ran out of holes, which is always good when you’re ahead, said Simson, winner of this year’s British Senior Amateur and Canadian Senior Amateur. To make five birdies in 13 holes is pretty solid.
Defending champion Marvin Vinny Giles, 67, of Richmond, Va., only led his match for one hole, but it was the one that counted. Giles trailed for the first 17 holes against 59-year-old Robin McCool of Bethlehem, Pa. But after capitalizing on McCool’s bogey on the par-3 17th hole to square the match, Giles halved 18 and then holed a 10-foot birdie putt at the 19th to advance. En route to the title last year, Giles won his first-round match in 20 holes.
He was a good player and I knew he was a good player, said Giles. I told my wife, I didn’t catch an easy draw. It was a good match. One thing was I didn’t drive the ball extremely well. Fortunately, I got away with some errant drives.
Rick Woulfe, 60, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Christopher Veitch, 56, of Newport Beach, Calif., had a match for the USGA record books. Veitch led early, but Woulfe squared the match with a birdie at the par-4 14th hole. They went on to halve 10 consecutive holes before Woulfe prevailed in 25 holes, the longest Senior Amateur match since 1987 and the second-longest match in championship history.
Other notable first-round matches saw past USGA champions Stewart Buddy Alexander, Stanford Lee, Greg Reynolds and George J. Zahringer III advance to Tuesday morning’s round of 32. Steve Smyers of Lakeland, Fla., a member of the USGA Executive Committee and chairman of the International Team Selection Committee, defeated 2009 USA Walker Cup Captain and 2008 Senior Amateur champion George Buddy Marucci Jr. of Villanova, Pa., on the 19th hole.
Six of the seven Floridians who qualified for match play advanced. Besides Alexander (Gainesville), Smyers and Woulfe, Bruce Scamehorn (Winter Haven), David Anthony (Jacksonville) and Tom Knapp (Tequesta) posted wins.
The second and third rounds of match play are scheduled for Tuesday, beginning at 8:15 a.m. EDT. The quarterfinal and semifinal matches are scheduled for Wednesday, while the 18-hole championship final will be played Thursday morning.
The USGA Senior Amateur, open to golfers 55 and older, is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the USGA, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.
Christina Lance is the USGA’s coordinator of championship communications. Contact her with questions or comments at clance@usga.org.
Orlando, Fla. – Results following Monday’s first round of match play at the 2010 USGA Senior Amateur Championship at the 6,691-yard, par-72 Lake Nona Golf & Country Club:
Round of 64
Upper Bracket
Pat Tallent, Vienna, Va. (140) def. Dave Bates, Newburgh, Ind. (152), 2 up
David Szewczul, Farmington, Conn. (149) def. Arthur Kania, Haverford, Pa. (149), 19 holes
Marvin Giles, Richmond, Va. (150) def. Robin McCool, Bethlehem, Pa. (146), 19 holes
Bev Hargraves, Helena, Ark. (147) def. Pete Willoughby, Houston, Texas (150), 5 and 3
Rick Woulfe, Ft Lauderdale, Fla. (144) def. Christopher Veitch, Newport Beach, Calif. (152), 25 holes
Frank Ford III, Charleston, S.C. (148) def. Mike Booker, The Woodlands, Texas (150), 4 and 3
Bruce Scamehorn, Winter Haven, Fla. (145) def. John Lindholm, Grand Blanc, Mich. (152), 20 holes
Dave Ryan, Taylorville, Ill. (150) def. Glenn Mullian, Richmond, Va. (148), 2 and 1
Don Thames, Rancho Murieta, Calif. (143) def. William T. Doughtie, Amarillo, Texas (152), 1 up
Jim Knoll, Sunnyvale, Calif. (148) def. Dick Satterfield, Cincinnati, Ohio (149), 1 up
David Williamson, Ladoga, Ind. (145) def. Rick Luzar, Pinehurst, N.C. (151), 2 and 1
Bill Zylstra, Plymouth, Mich. (147) def. Ted Pecora, Glencoe, Ill. (150), 1 up
Chip Lutz, Reading, Pa. (143) def. Thomas Nesbitt, Nashville, Tenn. (152), 1 up
George J. Zahringer III, New York, N.Y. (149) def. Raymond Thompson, Drexel Hill, Pa. (148), 4 and 2
Douglas Pool, Las Vegas, Nev. (145) def. Richard Pfeil, Naples, Fla. (151), 5 and 4
Stewart Alexander, Gainesville, Fla. (147) def. Larry Clark, Kingston, Ga. (150), 4 and 3
Lower Bracket
Paul Simson, Raleigh, N.C. (141) def. Curt Knorr, Atlanta, Ga. (152), 6 and 5
Logan Jackson, Winston Salem, N.C. (149) def. Kim Mansfield, High Point, N.C. (149), 4 and 3
Terry Werner, Dyer, Ind. (146) def. James Lyons, Shreveport, La. (151), 6 and 5
David Anthony, Jacksonville, Fla. (150) def. Gary Palmer, Taunton, Mass. (147), 21 holes
Stanford Lee, Heber Springs, Ark. (144) def. Bill Caveness, Dallas, Texas (152), 6 and 4
Dan Bieber, Alamo, Calif. (148) def. Jim Henderson, Hattiesburg, Miss. (150), 2 and 1
Michael Kelly, Odenton, Md. (145) def. Steven Whittaker, Becker, Minn. (152), 3 and 2
Tim Miller, Kokomo, Ind. (148) def. Duke Delcher, Bluffton, S.C. (150), 6 and 5
Randy Nichols, Brookville, Ind. (142) def. Jon Groveman, Larchmont, N.Y. (152), 5 and 4
Chuck Palmer, Dallas, Texas (149) def. Don Erickson III, Dubois, Pa. (149), 4 and 3
Greg Reynolds, Grand Blanc, Mich. (151) def. David Pocknall, Katy, Texas (146), 2 and 1
Steve Smyers, Lakeland, Fla. (147) def. George Marucci Jr, Villanova, Pa. (150), 19 holes
Tom Knapp, Tequesta, Fla. (144) def. Charles Jones, Collegeville, Pa. (152), 4 and 2
Sam Farlow, Birmingham, Ala. (150) def. Corliss J. Nelson, Dallas, Texas (148), 4 and 2
Robert Allshouse, Greensburg, Pa. (145) def. Skip Runnels, Richmond, Ind. (151), 2 and 1
Jeff Burda, Modesto, Calif. (148) def. Brad Larsen, Oceanside, Calif. (150), 4 and 3
Orlando, Fla. – Pairings for Tuesday’s second round of match play at the 2010 USGA Senior Amateur Championship at the 6,691-yard, par-72 Lake Nona Golf & Country Club (all times EDT):
Round of 32
Upper Bracket
8:15 a.m. – Pat Tallent, Vienna, Va. (140) vs. David Szewczul, Farmington, Conn. (149)
8:23 a.m. – Marvin Giles, Richmond, Va. (150) vs. Bev Hargraves, Helena, Ark. (147)
8:31 a.m. – Rick Woulfe, Ft Lauderdale, Fla. (144) vs. Frank Ford III, Charleston, S.C. (148)
8:39 a.m. – Bruce Scamehorn, Winter Haven, Fla. (145) vs. Dave Ryan, Taylorville, Ill. (150)
8:47 a.m. – Don Thames, Rancho Murieta, Calif. (143) vs. Jim Knoll, Sunnyvale, Calif. (148)
8:55 a.m. – David Williamson, Ladoga, Ind. (145) vs. Bill Zylstra, Plymouth, Mich. (147)
9:03 a.m. – Chip Lutz, Reading, Pa. (143) vs. George J. Zahringer III, New York, N.Y. (149)
9:11 a.m. – Douglas Pool, Las Vegas, Nev. (145) vs. Stewart Alexander, Gainesville, Fla. (147)
Lower Bracket
9:19 a.m. – Paul Simson, Raleigh, N.C. (141) vs. Logan Jackson, Winston Salem, N.C. (149)
9:27 a.m. – Terry Werner, Dyer, Ind. (146) vs. David Anthony, Jacksonville, Fla. (150)
9:35 a.m. – Stanford Lee, Heber Springs, Ark. (144) vs. Dan Bieber, Alamo, Calif. (148)
9:43 a.m. – Michael Kelly, Odenton, Md. (145) vs. Tim Miller, Kokomo, Ind. (148)
9:51 a.m. – Randy Nichols, Brookville, Ind. (142) vs. Chuck Palmer, Dallas, Texas (149)
9:59 a.m. – Greg Reynolds, Grand Blanc, Mich. (151) vs. Steve Smyers, Lakeland, Fla. (147)
10:07 a.m. – Tom Knapp, Tequesta, Fla. (144) vs. Sam Farlow, Birmingham, Ala. (150)
10:15 a.m. – Robert Allshouse, Greensburg, Pa. (145) vs. Jeff Burda, Modesto, Calif. (148)