Bremerton, Wash. – Beau Hossler still isn’t thrilled with how he’s driving the ball off the tee at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship. But he is definitely happy with his scores.
The 16-year-old Hossler, of Mission Viejo, Calif., followed up his first-round 68 with a 5-under 67 during Tuesday’s second round of stroke-play qualifying at the par-72, 7,111-yard Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club. The 36-hole total of 135 gave Hossler medalist honors by four strokes.
I’ve got to work on my driving, said Hossler, whose only bogey in the two rounds of stroke play came his first hole Monday. Not because I’m hitting bad shots, but because the confidence just isn’t there. I’ve gotten away with a lot of iffy tee shots, but my irons and consistency overall has been really good, and that’s helped me to keep away the bogeys.
Hossler played in last month’s U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md., but is playing in his first U.S. Junior Amateur. He admits to being somewhat of a novice when it comes to match play – he’s only played in one match-play event and lost in the first round – but his approach for the format is simple.
You go out there and try to make the most birdies you can, said Hossler. I feel like maybe the best thing I have going for me in match play is my short game right now, because I’m not making a lot of bogeys and I’m assuming the guy I’m playing against is going to make a few bogeys at least. So if I can keep the bogeys away and start firing at some pins and make some birdies, I definitely like my chances to get far in this tournament.
Will Starke, 17, of Chapin, S.C., who shared the first-round lead with Hossler, shot a second-round 1-under 71 for a 139 total. Starke, playing in his first USGA championship, also has limited match-play experience but will employ a similarly simple strategy.
I’m not going to try to do anything different, said Starke, who is carrying his own bag. I’m just going to try to play my game and play the course. You can’t control what your opponent does.
Reigning champion Jim Liu, 15, of Smithtown, N.Y., rebounded from his first-round 78 with a 2-under 70 to easily advance to match play.
I hit more fairways and I definitely hit more greens, said Liu, who last year surpassed Tiger Woods as the youngest winner in the championship’s 64-year history. It was a lot easier for me.
Liu is trying to become just the second repeat winner in the championship’s 64-year history. The only golfer to win more than one Junior Amateur was Woods, who claimed three consecutive titles from 1991-93. Liu knows it will be difficult.
It’s a stretch, said Liu of his chances of duplicating Woods’ feat. What he did was just amazing – three years in a row. And then winning three Amateurs in a row. So that’s going to be really hard to match. I’m not really expecting myself to match that. So we’ll see what happens.
Also trying to earn a second title is 2009 U.S. Junior Amateur champion Jordan Spieth, 17, of Dallas, Texas, who followed up his first-round 72 with five birdies and one bogey Tuesday en route to a 4-under 68.
It was just more consistent today, said Spieth. I hit more fairways and that was kind of the key. Given every hole where I missed the fairway, I made birdie. It was a very unconventional day, but I got the ball in the hole early.
Yi Keun Chang, 17, of Walnut, Calif., shot a second consecutive 2-under 70 to match Spieth’s 36-hole total of 140.
The U.S. Junior Amateur field continues with the first round of match play Wednesday. The second and third rounds will be played Thursday, the quarterfinal and semifinal matches will be played Friday, and the 36-hole championship final will be played Saturday.
The U.S. Junior Amateur is one of 13 championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association each year, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.
Beth Murrison is a manager of championship communications for the USGA. For questions or comments, contact her atbmurrison@usga.org.
Bremerton, Wash. – Results following Tuesday’s second round of stroke play at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur at the 7,111-yard, par-72 Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club (* = in playoff):
Beau Hossler, Mission Viejo, Calif., 68-67--135
William Starke, Chapin, S.C., 68-71--139
Yi Keun Chang, Walnut, Calif., 70-70--140
Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas, 72-68--140
Taylor Moore, Edmond, Okla., 69-73--142
A.J. McInerney, Henderson, Nev., 70-72--142
Chelso Barrett, Keene, N.H., 69-74--143
Adam Ball, Richmond, Va., 73-71--144
Juan Yumar, Venezuela, 72-72--144
Grant Daugherty, Alcoa, Tenn., 73-72--145
Jonathan De Los Reyes, Antioch, Calif., 73-72--145
Christopher Petefish, Scottsdale, Ariz., 74-71--145
Cameron Smith, Australia, 72-73--145
Emilio Maurer, Mexico, 75-70--145
Matthew Nesmith, North Augusta, S.C., 73-72--145
Connor Black, Katy, Texas, 74-72--146
Jonah Texeira, Northridge, Calif., 76-70--146
Cody Proveaux, Leesville, S.C., 71-75--146
Jordan Niebrugge, Mequon, Wis., 76-70--146
Stuart Thomas, Knoxville, Tenn., 78-69--147
Andrew Whalen, Ephrata, Wash., 77-70--147
Ross Thornton, Leawood, Kan., 72-75--147
William Zalatoris, Plano, Texas, 72-75--147
Anthony Vecchiarelli, Agawam, Mass., 72-76--148
James Park, Korea, 71-77--148
Jim Liu, Smithtown, N.Y., 78-70--148
Hank Lebioda, Winter Springs, Fla., 74-74--148
Robby Shelton, Wilmer, Ala., 72-76--148
Wesley Gosselin, Knoxville, Tenn., 71-77--148
Grayson Murray, Raleigh, N.C., 73-76--149
Adam Wood, Zionsville, Ind., 76-73--149
Sulman Raza, Eugene, Ore., 74-75--149
Austin Smotherman, Loomis, Calif., 77-72--149
Matt Gilchrest, Southlake, Texas, 77-72--149
Nicolas Echavarria, Colombia, 76-73--149
Andy Shim, Duluth, Ga., 72-78--150
Nick Heinen, Edmond, Okla., 75-75--150
Michael Davis, Newtown Square, Pa., 75-75--150
Nicolo Galletti, Clayton, Calif., 75-75--150
Robert Deng, Irvine, Calif., 76-74--150
Derek Bard, New Hartford, N.Y., 79-71--150
Zachary Coats, Springdale, Ark., 72-78--150
Ryan Benton, Dothan, Ala., 73-77--150
Justin Suh, San Jose, Calif., 73-77--150
Hunter O'Mahony, Tequesta, Fla., 74-76--150
Jeffrey Swegle, West Des Moines, Iowa, 76-74--150
Zachary Herr, New Hope, Pa., 75-76--151
Scottie Scheffler, Dallas, Texas, 77-74--151
Joshua Martin, Pinehurst, N.C., 74-77--151
Aaron Kunitomo, Lahaina, Hawaii, 78-73--151
Stratton Nolen, Austin, Texas, 76-75--151
Wilson Bateman, Canada, 75-76--151
James Feutz, University Place, Wash., 76-75--151
Andrej Bevins, Elk Grove, Calif., 75-76--151
*Andy Olsen, San Antonio, Texas, 74-78--152 (3)
*Hayden Shieh, Fremont, Calif., 76-76--152 (3)
*George Cunningham, Litchfield Park, Ariz., 78-74--152 (3)
*Andrew Bonner, Ripon, Calif., 78-74--152 (3)
*Christopher Hickman, Centreville, Md., 74-78--152 (3)
*Sean Busch, West Lafayette, Ind., 73-79--152 (4, 4)
*Blake Toolan, Phoenix, Ariz., 76-76--152 (4, 4)
*Matthew Lowe, Farmingdale, N.Y., 75-77--152 (4, 4)
*Brian Bullington, Frankfort, Ill., 76-760--152 (4, 5)
*Miller Capps, Denver, N.C., 77-75--152 (4, 5)
Failed to qualify:
*Rylee Reinertson, Gibbon, Neb., 80-72--152 (4, 6)
*Seth Sweet, Madison, Maine, 77-75--152 (5)
Davis Bateman, Charlotte, N.C., 77-76--153
Dominic Kieffer, Byron, Minn., 76-77--153
Carr Vernon, Poplar Bluff, Mo., 73-80--153
Lorens Chan, Honolulu, Hawaii, 79-74--153
Max Carter, Lake Oswego, Ore., 80-73--153
Keegan Boone, Bethesda, Md., 77-76--153
Chris Tedesco, Gig Harbor, Wash., 82-71--153
Connor Nelson, Roscoe, Ill., 79-74--153
Rigel Fernandes, Bradenton, Fla., 77-76--153
Luke Sheehan, Cypress, Texas, 78-75--153
J.J. Lindsey, Adkins, Texas, 76-77--153
Geoff Vartelas, Cromwell, Conn., 76-77--153
Wade Chen, Orlando, Fla., 80-74--154
Craig Hornberger, Lancaster, Pa., 80-74--154
Daniel Schwarz, Cincinnati, Ohio, 76-78--154
Kamrin Allen, Sheridan, Wyo., 78-77--155
Victor Fox, Delmar, N.Y., 81-74--155
Grady Meyer, West Fargo, N.D., 79-76--155
Preston Heyward, Duluth, Ga., 79-76--155
Forrest Gamble, Birmingham, Ala., 78-77--155
Eric Bae, Cary, N.C., 77-78--155
Patrick Sanchez, Mexico, 78-77--155
Ki Taek Lee, Bermuda Dunes, Calif., 77-78--155
Jake McBride, Hartville, Ohio, 79-76--155
Jordan Sweet, Bowie, Md., 83-72--155
David Sargent, Davidson, N.C., 75-80--155
Trey Kidd, Honolulu, Hawaii, 76-79--155
Trevor Smith, Newnan, Ga., 83-73--156
Johnny Ruiz, Camarillo, Calif., 79-77--156
Woody Woodward, Bridgeport, W.Va., 83-73--156
Greyson Sigg, Augusta, Ga., 80-76--156
Will Blalock, Gastonia, N.C., 76-80--156
Jake Marriott, Springfield, Ill., 79-77--156
Christian De La Cruz, San Antonio, Texas, 81-75--156
Michael Hines, Acworth, Ga., 81-75--156
Andrew McCain, Australia, 82-74--156
Bobby Gojuangco, San Diego, Calif., 76-80--156
Cameron Davison, Canada, 81-75--156
Reed Hrynewich, Muskegon, Mich., 80-76--156
Trent McPherson, Venetia, Pa., 79-77--156
Zachary Tate, Leawood, Kan., 81-76--157
Jeremy Wall, Brielle, N.J., 77-80--157
Zachary Wright, Phoenix, Ariz., 78-79--157
Matt Rachey, Waconia, Minn., 82-75--157
Aaron Crawford, Canada, 79-78--157
Hayden Wood, Edmond, Okla., 79-78--157
Brett Wilson, Mesa, Ariz., 77-80--157
Justin Pagila, Dublin, Calif., 78-80--158
Cody Neal, Lemoore, Calif., 77-81--158
Trevor Times, Williamsburg, Va., 79-79--158
Max Greyserman, Boca Raton, Fla., 76-82--158
Noah West, Belden, Miss., 77-82--159
Cody Cox, Milford, Pa., 78-81--159
Jona Scott, New Haven, Vt., 78-81--159
Keegan Vea, Evansville, Ind., 82-77--159
Ryan Medhaug, Veblen, S.D., 80-79--159
Will Cannon, Birmingham, Ala., 78-81--159
Alberto Sanchez, Nogales, Ariz., 82-77--159
Nicholas Robert, McKinney, Texas, 75-84--159
Taewon Kim, Canada, 79-81--160
Daniel Maier, Irwin, Pa., 74-86--160
Connor Klein, Lone Tree, Colo., 82-78--160
Thayer White, Santa Barbara, Calif., 84-76--160
Matt Williams, Canada, 81-79--160
Andrew Bieber, Shaker Heights, Ohio, 82-79--161
Wes Artac, Kingwood, Texas, 78-83--161
Robert Geibel, Pembroke Pines, Fla., 79-82--161
John Yu, Fresh Meadows, N.Y., 82-79--161
Nick Popely, Painesville, Ohio, 83-78--161
Austin Duhon, Orange, Texas, 78-83--161
Matthew Drake, Sioux Falls, S.D., 76-85--161
Taylor Rittman, Ankeny, Iowa, 80-81--161
Andrew Levitt, Ladera Ranch, Calif., 81-80--161
John Wirth III, Waterloo, Ill., 86-75--161
Preston French, Lexington, Ky., 74-88--162
Joe Walp, Portland, Maine, 77-85--162
Ethan Wagner, Port Orange, Fla., 77-86--163
Nathan Wunderli, Sandy, Utah, 79-84--163
Austin Banz, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84-79--163
Brandon Barrows, Lake Orion, Mich., 79-85--164
Will Seger, Jasper, Ind., 84-80--164
Michael Colgate, Sarasota, Fla., 89-75--164
Brian K. Song, Beverly Hills, Calif., 82-83--165
Connor Dudley, Fremont, Ohio, 85-80--165
Chase Taylor, Columbus, Miss., 79-87--166
Joshua Keating, Noblesville, Ind., 85-83--168
Alex Church, Timonium, Md., 90-79--169
Sean Bozuk, Canada, 91-81--172
John-Michael Larson, Spokane, Wash., 91-87--178
Carlos Briones, San Lorenzo, Calif., 77-WD
Bremerton, Wash. – Pairings for Wednesday’s first round of match play at the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur at the 7,111-yard, par-72 Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club (All times PDT):
Round of 64
Upper Bracket
8:30 a.m. Beau Hossler, Mission Viejo, Calif. (135) vs. Miller Capps, Denver, N.C. (152)
8:39 a.m. Sulman Raza, Eugene, Ore. (149) vs. Austin Smotherman, Loomis, Calif. (149)
8:48 a.m. Connor Black, Katy, Texas (146) vs. Joshua Martin, Pinehurst, N.C. (151)
8:57 a.m. Jonah Texeira, Northridge, Calif. (146) vs. Scottie Scheffler, Dallas, Texas (151)
9:06 a.m. Adam Ball, Richmond, Va. (144) vs. George Cunningham, Litchfield Park, Ariz. (152)
9:15 a.m. James Park, Korea (148) vs. Robert Deng, Irvine, Calif. (150)
9:24 a.m. Juan Yumar, Venezuela (144) vs. Hayden Shieh, Fremont, Calif. (152)
9:33 a.m. Anthony Vecchiarelli, Agawam, Mass. (148) vs. Derek Bard, New Hartford, N.Y. (150)
9:42 a.m. Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas (140) vs. Blake Toolan, Phoenix, Ariz. (152)
9:51 a.m. Wesley Gosselin, Knoxville, Tenn. (148) vs. Andy Shim, Duluth, Ga. (150)
10:00 a.m. Cameron Smith, Australia (145) vs. Wilson Bateman, Canada (151)
10:09 a.m. Stuart Thomas, Knoxville, Tenn. (147) vs. Hunter O'Mahony, Tequesta, Fla. (150)
10:18 a.m. Taylor Moore, Edmond, Okla. (142) vs. Sean Busch, West Lafayette, Ind. (152)
10:27 a.m. Robby Shelton, Wilmer, Ala. (148) vs. Nick Heinen, Edmond, Okla. (150)
10:36 a.m. Christopher Petefish, Scottsdale, Ariz. (145) vs. James Feutz, University Place, Wash. (151)
10:45 a.m. Andrew Whalen, Ephrata, Wash. (147) vs. Justin Suh, San Jose, Calif. (150)
Lower Bracket
10:54 a.m. William Starke, Chapin, S.C. (139) vs. Brian Bullington, Frankfort, Ill. (152)
11:03 a.m. Adam Wood, Zionsville, Ind. (149) vs. Matt Gilchrest, Southlake, Texas (149)
11:12 a.m. Matthew Nesmith, North Augusta, S.C. (145) vs. Aaron Kunitomo, Lahaina, Hawaii (151)
11:21 a.m. Cody Proveaux, Leesville, S.C. (146) vs. Zachary Herr, New Hope, Pa. (151)
11:30 a.m. Chelso Barrett, Keene, N.H. (143) vs. Andrew Bonner, Ripon, Calif. (152)
11:39 a.m. Jim Liu, Smithtown, N.Y. (148) vs. Nicolo Galletti, Clayton, Calif. (150)
11:48 a.m. Grant Daugherty, Alcoa, Tenn. (145) vs. Andy Olsen, San Antonio, Texas (152)
11:57 a.m. William Zalatoris, Plano, Texas (147) vs. Zachary Coats, Springdale, Ark. (150)
12:06 p.m. Yi Keun Chang, Walnut, Calif. (140) vs. Matthew Lowe, Farmingdale, N.Y. (152)
12:15 p.m. Grayson Murray, Raleigh, N.C. (149) vs. Nicolas Echavarria, Colombia (149)
12:24 p.m. Emilio Maurer, Mexico (145) vs. Stratton Nolen, Austin, Texas (151)
12:33 p.m. Jordan Niebrugge, Mequon, Wis. (146) vs. Jeffrey Swegle, West Des Moines, Iowa (150)
12:42 p.m. A.J. McInerney, Henderson, Nev. (142) vs. Christopher Hickman, Centreville, Md. (152)
12:51 p.m. Hank Lebioda, Winter Springs, Fla. (148) vs. Michael Davis, Newtown Square, Pa. (150)
1:00 p.m. Jonathan De Los Reyes, Antioch, Calif. (145) vs. Andrej Bevins, Elk Grove, Calif. (151)
1:09 p.m. Ross Thornton, Leawood, Kan. (147) vs. Ryan Benton, Dothan, Ala. (150)