Aug 20, 2008
Based on Jordan Walor’s enthusiasm, hard to tell was that he turned in an 8-over 148 score during match play qualifying at the U.S. Amateur Championship and was exiting well before the cut score would be announced.
“Nah, I’m outta here,” said Waler, of Wake Forest.
Walor would have enjoyed sticking around a few more days, but he also had a good reason for leaving. He was headed down the road to check in at UNC-Pembroke for his freshman year.
But he was at least leaving with some great memories.
“First time trying to qualify and I got in,” said Walor, who played scholastically at Wake Forest-Rolesville High. “It was a blast. It was unbelievable.”
After an opening-round 2-over 72 on the No. 4 course Monday, Walor followed with a 6-over 76 in his first trip around No. 2.
“I really wanted to shoot even par, since I didn’t get a practice round [due to rains washing out play on Sunday] I thought even par would be good, but another 72 would probably do it for me,” said Walor of what it would take to make the cut.
"What’s the line from ‘Dumb and Dumber’? ‘So you’re telling me I have a chance?’" said Jack Newman, the reigning U.S. Amateur Public Links champion who waited more than two hours to find out that his 5-over 145 qualified him for a 26-for-2 playoff on Wednesday morning to decide the 63rd and 64th spots in Wednesday's match-play bracket.
With a field of 315 players vying for a spot among the 64-player match play bracket, it is easy for some of the so-called "name" players to be leaving after the two-round match play qualifier.
That will not be the case for the four members of the 2007 U.S. Walker Cup team — Kyle Stanley (Clemson University), Billy Horschel (University of Florida), Rickie Fowler (Oklahoma State University) and Jamie Lovemark (University of Southern California).
Barden Berry, a former University of North Carolina player, followed his first-round 68 with a second-round 75 on No. 4 and sits at 3-over 143. He was two strokes back of Canadian Matt Hill of N.C. State, who finished at 141.
Berry's former Tar Heel teammate, Kevin O'Connell, advanced to match play with a 4-over 144. Jack Fields, a North Carolina freshman, finished at 145 and will be in the 26-for-2 playoff.
While the 26-for-2 playoff to determine the final two match play bracket spots will be one of the more compelling storylines on Wednesday, looking ahead, consider keeping an eye on two particular match play pairings.
At 10:20 a.m., Matt Hill of N.C. State plays Jamie Lovermark, the 2007 NCAA champion from Southern Cal. At noon, Brian Harman, a University of Georgia All-American, will square off against Kevin O'Connell of Cary and the ACC Freshman of the Year at UNC.
Players who got the No. 2 tee time on Tuesday fared better than those on Monday. The stroke average at No. 2 on Monday was 75.088, while on Tuesday it was slightly better at 74.705. ... For the two rounds of stroke play, the No. 2 course played nearly a stroke tougher than No. 4 (74.898 to 73.981). ... On Monday there were 20 players under par. By nightfall on Tuesday, there were just nine — Robbie Fillmore, Wesley Bryan and Dan Woltman being the only three players to shoot under par in each round.
Contact Stuart Hall at golf@wral.com.
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