Wyatt Ties Record for U.S. Amateur's Low Medalist Score; Moves on to Match Play


Bobby Wyatt, 20, of Mobile, Ala., a University of Alabama All-American, tied the record for lowest 36-hole stroke-play scoring at 9-under-par 132 on Tuesday at CommonGround Golf Course at the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship.

Wyatt posted three birdies and a bogey for a 2-under-par 68 at the par-70, 7,378-yard CommonGround - the companion course with Cherry Hills Country Club for stroke play - to tie Gregor Main (2011) and Hank Kim (1994) for the lowest medalist score in U.S. Amateur history.

"I didn't think about (the record) going into today, but it's very humbling to have part of that record," Wyatt said of matching the all-time mark in the 112th U.S. Amateur. "They change courses every year and there have been a lot of courses that par is higher than 70, 71. But it's an honor. There have been a lot of great names to play in this championship and to do that certainly means a lot, but I have a lot of work to do this week."

The championship began with a field of 312 players competing in 36 holes of stroke play, with the field now pared to the low 64 scores for six rounds of match play, which begins Wednesday at 8 a.m. MDT at the par-71, 7,409-yard Cherry Hills (see below for the first-round pairings). The championship is scheduled to conclude with a 36-hole final on Sunday starting at 8:30 a.m. MDT.

Wyatt, who shot a 7-under 64 at Cherry Hills Country Club Monday, understands that making the match-play field just one step in a grueling process. "I was pretty confident I was going to make match play so it was a good day for me," said Wyatt, who won the Sunnehanna Amateur in Johnstown, Pa., in June and was the runner-up at the Southeastern Conference Championship and the NCAA Regional in Athens, Ga., earlier this season.

"I've got to go and fine-tune things and work on the mental part of the game for me and my approach heading into the rest of the week. I played patient golf out there. I didn't putt well really . . . I missed some putts, but I hit it really well. I feel real confident about things."

Cheng Tsung Pan, 20, of Sammamish, Wash. who is originally from Chinese Taipei, and Jeff Osberg, 28, of West Chester, Pa ., each posted a 5-under-par 65.at CommonGround Tuesday to trail Wyatt by two strokes. Pan, a sophomore at the University of Washington, made eight birdies against three bogeys.

"I feel good about these two rounds," said Pan, who earned first-team All-Pacific 12 Conference as well as All-America honors in his freshman year at Washington in 2011-12. "It gives me confidence going into match play. My goal is to win the tournament. Higher seeds always have an advantage."

Osberg, a certified public accountant and member of Guilford (N.C.) College's NCAA Division III national championship team in 2005, logged six birdies, including his last three holes, and a bogey at CommonGround. "I just putted fantastically both days . . . probably the best I've putted in my life," Osberg said. "I made everything I looked at - every par putt I needed to make."

Sebastian Vasquez, 22, of Mexico, followed a 65 at CommonGround with a 1-under 70 at Cherry Hills for a 6-under-par 136 total. Also advancing to match play at 3-under-par 138 were two 2011 USA Walker Cup Team members: Chris Williams, 21, of Moscow, Idaho, who won the 2012 Western Amateur and is ranked No. 1 in the world, and Jordan Spieth, 19, of Dallas, the low amateur at the 2012 U.S. Open, who is ranked No. 3 in the world by the World Amateur Golf Ranking that is jointly administered by The R&A and the USGA.

For all the stroke-play scores, visit http://www.usga.org/ChampEventScore.aspx?id=17179869326&year=2012&type=stroke.

Wednesday's Round of 64 Match-Play Pairings at the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship at Cherry Hills

Upper Bracket

1:10 p.m. - Bobby Wyatt, Mobile, Ala. (132) vs. Taylor Hancock, Clearwater, Fla.
8:00 a.m. - Matthew Stieger, Australia (141) vs. Jade Scott, Daingerfield, Texas (141)
8:10 a.m. - Justin Thomas, Goshen, Ky. (139) vs. Barry Dyche, Charlotte, N.C. (142)
8:20 a.m. - Max Homa, Valencia, Calif. (139) vs. Corey Conners, Canada (142)
12:00 p.m. - Devin Miertschin, El Paso, Texas (138) vs. Drew Evans, Dallas
8:30 a.m. - Michael Kim, Del Mar, Calif. (141) vs. Bobby Leopold, Cranston, R.I. (142)
11:50 a.m. - Oliver Goss, Australia (138) vs. Eli Cole, Los Angeles
8:40 a.m. - Brett Drewitt, Australia (140) vs. Michael Miller, Brewster, N.Y. (142)
12:40 p.m. - Sebastian Vazquez, Mexico (135) vs. Devon Purser, Clearfield, Utah
8:50 a.m. - Adam Schenk, Vincennes, Ind. (141) vs. Oliver Schniederjans, Powder Springs, Ga. (141)
11:10 a.m. - Nicholas Reach, Moscow, Pa. (139) vs. Patrick Duncan Jr., Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.
9:00 a.m. - Ricardo Gouveia, Portugal (140) vs. Eric Frazzetta, Long Beach, Calif. (142)
12:30 p.m. - Zac Blair, Ogden, Utah (136) vs. Michael Weaver, Fresno, Calif.
9:10 a.m. - Patrick Rodgers, Avon, Ind. (141) vs. Justin Spray, Gold Canyon, Ariz. (141)
11:20 a.m. - Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas (138) vs. Thomas Pieters, Belgium
9:20 a.m. - Mackenzie Hughes, Canada (140) vs. Albin Choi, Canada (142)

Lower Bracket

1:00 p.m. - Jeff Osberg, Philadelphia, Pa. (134) vs. Steven Fox, Hendersonville, Tenn.
9:30 a.m. - Douglas Hanzel, Savannah, Ga. (141) vs. Andrew Biggadike, Ridgewood, N.J. (141)
9:40 a.m. - Zack Munroe, Charlotte, N.C. (139) vs. Michael Schoolcraft, Englewood, Colo. (142)
9:50 a.m. - Jonathan De Los Reyes, Antioch, Calif. (139) vs. Todd White, Spartanburg, S.C. (142)
12:10 p.m. - Curtis Thompson, Coral Springs, Fla. (138) vs. Edouard Espana, France
10:00 a.m. - Justin Shin, Canada (141) vs. Brad Valois, Warwick, R.I. (142)
11:40 a.m. - Chris Williams, Moscow, Idaho (138) vs. Peter Williamson, Hanover, N.H.
10:10 a.m. - Adam Stephenson, Greenville, N.C. (140) vs. Carlos Ortiz, Mexico (142)
12:50 p.m. - Cheng-Tsung Pan, Chinese Taipei (134) vs. Evan Bowser, Dearborn, Mich.
10:20 a.m. - Gavin Green, Malaysia (141) vs. Derek Ernst, Clovis, Calif. (141)
11:00 a.m. - Talor Gooch, Midwest City, Okla. (139) vs. T.J. Mitchell, Albany, Ga.
10:30 a.m. - Bryson Dechambeau, Clovis, Calif. (140) vs. Andrew Presley, Fort Worth, Texas (142)
12:20 p.m. - Brandon Hagy, Westlake Village, Calif. (137) vs. Denny McCarthy, Rockville, Md.
10:40 a.m. - Paul Misko, Thousand Oaks, Calif. (141) vs. Kenny Cook, Noblesville, Ind. (141)
11:30 a.m. - Richard Lamb, South Bend, Ind. (138) vs. Patrick Newcomb, Benton, Ky.
10:50 a.m. - Michael Hebert, Alpharetta, Ga. (140) vs. Todd Sinnott, Australia (142)

For all the scores in match play, visit http://www.usga.org/ChampEventScore.aspx?id=17179869326&year=2012&type=reversetree.  

The above report is courtesy of the USGA. For more information, visit www.usga.org.