Thursday began with 32 players teeing it up at Pebble Beach Golf Links, and now we’re down to 16. The competitors who won in the morning had quick turnarounds, as the Round of 16 began at 2 p.m. PDT. Here are a few notes and quotes from the early matches.
Notable
Medalist Malaise
- Co-medalist Daniel Hillier’s 5-and-4 defeat to Davis Riley means that the No. 1 seed has not advanced past the Round of 32 in the U.S. Amateur since Neil Raymond was a quarterfinalist in 2013.
Shots
- With the tee moved up more than 30 yards on the fourth hole, Stewart Hagestad drove the green on the 303-yard par 4 with a driver. The 2016 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion was conceded his 8-foot eagle putt after his opponent, Davis Chatfield, missed his birdie putt. Hagestad advanced, 4 and 3.
- Noah Goodwin holed two bunker shots in his 2-and-1 victory over Raul Pereda in the Round of 32. The first, at the par-4 11th hole, moved him to 2 up, while the second, from the front greenside bunker on the par-3 17th, clinched the match.
Familiar Foes
- In the second consecutive USGA championship for which they were eligible, Trent Phillips and William Mouw met in the Round of 32. Phillips beat Mouw, 5 and 3, at Baltusrol in the U.S. Junior Amateur in July, but Mouw exacted revenge Thursday at Pebble Beach, edging Phillips in 20 holes.
- William Gordon was well acquainted with his Round-of-32 opponent, Zheng Kai “Bobby” Bai. The pair played in the same group during the stroke-play portion of the championship. Gordon won the match, 3 and 2.
Survive and advance! William Mouw wins a 20-hole thriller and the 17-year-old is on to the #USAmateur Round of 16.
— USGA (@USGA) August 16, 2018
Watch Live: https://t.co/5WYxEl2G2t pic.twitter.com/B9hUliUjmG
Moving On Up
- A restored teeing ground was used on the 10th hole on Thursday morning, shortening the par 4 by 130 yards to 373 yards. It is original to Pebble Beach’s 1919 design, but fell into disrepair for several decades before being restored in 2017. The tee is located just five steps off the ninth green and forces the players to carry the beach running along the right side of the hole with their tee shots.
Quotable
Davis Riley, Hattiesburg, Miss. (won, 5 and 4, over Daniel Hillier), on advancing to the Round of 16:
- “I've never made it this far. I’m trending in the right direction. I knew some of my best golf was ahead of me. In stroke play I didn't have my best. I'm getting better every day.”
Noah Goodwin, Corinth, Texas (won, 2 and 1, over Raul Pereda), on how he played in the Round of 32:
- “I left a lot of key putts out there. Missed one for birdie on 16 that was about 6 feet, and a couple others. But overall, I just kind of kept it going. Didn't really put myself too far out of it on any holes and just was able to make a lot of pars.”
Cole Hammer, Houston, Texas (won, 1 up, over Joshua McCarthy), on winning close matches:
- “Seeing myself come back and win matches on the 18th and 19th and 20th holes three or four times in the past month or so, that gives me a lot of confidence and lets me realize that I can do really well under pressure. It's a little bit different in the middle of the round when you're just out there looking at the views of Pebble Beach, which is pretty spectacular. Yeah, it gives me some confidence going forward.”
Hey @TexasMGolf, @cole_hammer6765 can play! He’s #USAmateur Round of 16 bound! #HookEm 🤘 pic.twitter.com/1bZZz6cdA4
— USGA (@USGA) August 16, 2018
Viktor Hovland, Norway, (won, 2 and 1, over Harrison Ott), on making three straight bogeys from Holes 12-14:
- “You just want to win every single hole. But it’s nice to know that when you have it going and then you lose it for a couple holes, that you can get it back again. It’s good to know that you can bounce back from that.”
William Mouw, Chino, Calif. (Won in 20 holes over Trent Phillips), on facing Phillips again:
- “I learned a lot. I was 2 down through 11 at the (U.S. Junior Amateur) and I think I was 2 down (through 11) here, and I forced a lot more at the Junior Am because I thought I had to come back from it, so I learned a lot from that. I just felt like if I just kept hitting good golf shots that would do the job.”
Michael Trostel is the USGA’s senior content producer. Email him at mtrostel@usga.org.
