Opening round of match play in U.S. Amateur continues Thursday morning
Rockville’s Denny McCarthy was 2 down through three holes in his opening round of match play Wednesday in the U.S. Amateur when play was halted due to darkness. McCarthy, 18, a recent graduate of Georgetown Prep who will play this fall at Virginia, had a long wait Wednesday at Erin Hills (Wisc.).
McCarthy completed his second qualifying round on Tuesday, but the day ended with half the field on the course. On Wednesday, after those players completed their rounds, there was a lengthy playoff as 20 golfers competed for the final four slots in match play.
McCarthy finally hit the course late in the afternoon for his match with Tim Madigan of Rio Rancho, N.M., who took the lead, winning the first two holes. Madigan is a recent graduate of New Mexico State, and two-time WAC player of the year. The match resumes Thursday morning.
Players who teed off earlier on Wednesday and advanced to the round of 32 include Harris English, a Georgia graduate who won a Nationwide Tour event last month, and defending Amateur champion Peter Uihlein of Oklahoma State. Both won 3 and 1 over lower-seeded foes.
Also winning on Wednesday was 2010 NCAA champion Scott Langley, a recent graduate of Illinois, who followed up a brilliant second-round 63 with a 3 and 2 victory over Donald Constable of Deephaven, Minn.
Top-seeded medalist and UCLA junior Gregor Main of Danville, Calif. is 2 down through nine holes in his match with No. 64 Bobby Leopold, a 26-year-old Englishman who lives in Cranston, R.I.
McCarthy is the only Washington area player who made it to match play. Recent Virginia graduate Will Collins of Salisbury, N.C. (72-69 – 139) shot the same score as McCarthy in the qualifying rounds to tie for 19th place. Collins’ match play opener tees off Thursday morning.
Potomac’s Billy Peel (70-72 — 142), a senior at Eastern Kentucky, was among those who tied for the final playoff slots and were eliminated.
Other local players who failed to qualify were William & Mary junior Jeremy Wells of Hopewell (69-75 – 144); 41-year-old Rusty Pies of Potomac (71-76 – 147); Bryce Chalkley of Richmond (71-76 – 147), a sophomore at Virginia Tech; Brad Miller of Timonium (75-72 – 147), a senior at Richmond; Nick Austin of Midlothian (74-76 – 150), a junior at Richmond; George Washington senior Andres Pumariega (70-80 – 150); Ryan Rettberg of Front Royal (75-77 – 152), a freshman at Radford; Brad Miller of Timonium, a senior at Richmond; and Evan Beck of Virginia Beach (75-78 – 153), a junior at Wake Forest.
