By Ryan Herrington
With her victory on Sunday at the U.S. Women’s Amateur, Jensen Castle knew her plans for late August had changed in an instant. Rather than spend the end of the month settling in on campus for the start of her junior season at the University of Kentucky, the 20-year-old from West Columbia, S.C., had locked up a spot on the 2021 U.S. Curtis Cup team that would be competing against Great Britain & Ireland at Conwy Golf Club in Wales, Aug. 26-28.

On Monday, four other top American amateurs got word that they’ll be heading overseas as well to compete as the USGA announced the final members of the eight-player squad captained by Sarah Ingram. They include Duke senior Gina Kim, Wake Forest junior Rachel Kuehn, Arkansas senior Brooke Matthews and recent Wake Forest grad Emilia Migliaccio.

The fivesome join Rose Zhang (the top ranked player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking), Rachel Heck and Allisen Corpuz, who were named to the team a few weeks ago.

“I couldn’t be more excited to finally have the team in place,” said Ingram, with seven of her eight players sitting inside the World Amateur Golf Ranking top 40. “Over the last two years, I’ve gotten to know many of these young ladies, and have a tremendous amount of admiration and respect for them as golfers and people. We’re going to work hard over the next few weeks with the goal of bringing the trophy back to the United States.”

The Americans will be trying to win the Cup on foreign soil for the first time since 2008.

The USGA also named two alternates to the team: Auburn junior Megan Schofill and high school senior Megha Ganne. Both players will travel to Wales in the event they might be pressed into service due to on-going issues with COVID-19. This was the same policy that was in place at the Walker Cup in May, and which proved critical when both the U.S. and the Great Britain and Ireland teams had several players knocked out due to a stomach bug.

On Monday, the R&A announced the members of the GB&I team, captained by Elaine Ratcliffe, who will try to avenge its 17-3 loss to the Americans in 2018 at Quaker Ridge Golf Club.

Hannah Darling (18, Broomieknowe, Scotland)
Louise Duncan (21, West Kilbride, Scotland)
Annabell Fuller (19, Roehampton, England)
Charlotte Heath (19, Huddersfield, England)
Caley McGinty (20, Knowle, England)
Emily Toy (23, Carlyon Bay, England)
Lauren Walsh (20, Castlewarden, Ireland)
Annabel Wilson (20, Lurgan, Ireland)

Reserves:
Hazel MacGarvie (21, Royal Troon, Scotland)
Julie McCarthy (22, Forrest Little, Ireland)

“Home matches have been very successful for GB&I in recent times,” Ratcliffe said, “and this year we have selected a highly skilled and talented team, which is focused on winning back the trophy on home soil. I know that they will enjoy the opportunity to compete together and create memories and friendships that will last a lifetime.”

With the teams now set, captains, players, and reserves have a little more than two weeks to prepare for the matches in Wales at the end of the month.

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Two-points adrift overnight and still one-point behind going into Sunday afternoon singles at Royal Liverpool, the visitors eventually overwhelmed a game but ultimately toothless Great Britain & Ireland team to successfully defend the cup won at the Los Angeles Country Club two years ago. The victory takes America’s all-time record in this 97-year-old event to 37-9-1.

The final, and ultimately convincing, score of 15½-10½ also made the Americans the first Walker Cup side to win away from home since 2007. That U.S. team, containing the likes of Webb Simpson, Dustin Johnson, Billy Horschel, Jamie Lovemark, Rickie Fowler and Kyle Stanley, triumphed by a single point at Royal County Down in Northern Ireland.

It remains to be seen if those on the current American squad will go on to anything like individual successes of their already prolific predecessors. What is known, however, is that this was truly a team effort, a proper collaborative endeavour. Points came from nine of the team’s 10 members (Steven Fisk the unfortunate exception), although just one, John Pak (matching earrings and all) emerged unbeaten, walking off with a 3-0-0 record.

Every other golfer on the winning side lost at least once, a “feat” repeated by all 10 players on the GB&I team. Scotsman Sandy Scott (2-1-1) was the best of the Old World bunch, at least statistically, with British Amateur champion James Sugrue the only home player to leave pointless.

John Augenstein gets a high-five from U.S. Walker Cup teammate Akshay Bhatia. Augenstein’s Sunday singles victory gave the U.S. its clinching point at Royal Liverpool. (Richard Martin-Roberts/R&A)

It was clear from the start of the fourth and final session that the Americans were imbued with an uncommon level of determination. Where the golf during Sunday morning foursomes (won 2½-1½ by the Americans) had been less than stellar on both sides, post-lunch the visiting squad was quick to make its collective mark. Six of the 10 won their opening hole. Only the previously unbeaten Brandon Wu lost the 424-yard par 4 (to a birdie), en route to a 4-and-3 loss at the hands of Scott.

“I played very well today,” said Scott, a Texas Tech student by way of Scotland. “I started well and made a few birdies and just had a rough patch in the middle but managed to hold on for the win. On the three holes in a row [9-10-11] that I lost, it was just poor decision making. But I knew I wasn’t playing bad golf, so I just had to get back on track and concentrate a little harder.”

But Scott’s play was the exception for GB&I, the scoreboard an almost exclusive sea of red until eight of the 10 contests concluded in favour of the U.S. Amidst that avalanche, the winning point arrived when U.S. Amateur runner-up John Augenstein shook hands with Thomas Plumb on the 15th green, the American a 4-and-3 winner of Match 7. But it had long been simply a matter of time before the arithmetically unassailable number of 13½ was reached.

All in all, the final score represented something of an anti-climax, especially so in the wake of three sessions that, although lacking in the area of solid course management on both sides, never ceased to be intriguing. Few things in golf are more exciting to watch than a closely fought team competition, even if the play falls short of the level one might expect from some of the best amateurs on the planet. Disappointingly, way more holes were lost rather than won.

Anyway, at close of play, the moods of the respective captains accurately reflected how their respective afternoons developed. Where Crosby’s smiling demeanour captured his mixture of delight and relief, GB&I captain Craig Watson’s habitual deadpan expression was the outward manifestation of an inward despondency. Yes, the home team had pushed its opponents hard for a day-and-a-half. But in the end, as so often over the years, the American’s greater strength-in-depth clinched the victory.

“I am very excited,” Crosby said. “We were a crazy mix of personalities, but all blended well. It was almost too much fun, but after yesterday we sobered up and really focused today, and it was an amazing afternoon. I let them just go play. They are very talented guys who believe in themselves. Their talent came to the surface. I could not be more excited for them and me. I’ve not won anything in about 38 years.”

Akshay Bhatia sits on Stewart Hagestad’s shoulders as the U.S. team begins to celebrate their Walker Cup victory on Sunday at Royal Liverpool. (Jan Kruger/R&A)

Watson, British Amateur champ in 1997, can beat that period of futility by a decade-and-a-half or so, but that now far-off victory over future Masters champion Trevor Immelman at Royal St. Georges was little consolation for the 53-year-old Scot.

“It’s been a fantastic week,” Watson said, displaying a rare burst of enthusiasm. “The lads will probably learn a lot from this disappointment today. It was a tough course the way it was set up. If you were ahead, early pars were enough to stay ahead because birdies were going to be few and far between, and the American boys did that very well. I don’t think playing in more wind would have made too much of a difference. I don’t think the conditions had anything to do with the fact that the Americans outplayed us today.”

No, in the end, for the winning side this was a result built on greater ball-control, both off the tee and around the greens. A combination that ultimately led to their own little bit of history-making.

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By John Huggan
HOYLAKE, England — Sometimes genuine analysis and perspective means looking beyond the obvious. While a cursory glance at the scoreboard shows a two-point edge, 7-5, for Great Britain & Ireland over the United States at the end of Day 1 of the 47th Walker Cup at Royal Liverpool, deeper inspection reveals the true closeness of the contest. Remarkably, 11 of the 12 matches over Saturday’s two sessions reached at least the 17th green before coming to a conclusion. So far at least, this has been a snarling, scratching dog-fight that has left just about every protagonist breathless.

It is, of course, an immutable law of match-play golf that playing the 18th hole better than the opponent will almost certainly mean not losing the match. And that was perhaps the only difference between the two sides halfway through the biennial contest. After splitting the morning foursomes 2-2, almost without exception the GB&I golfer in each afternoon singles match hit the right shots at “closing time” to clinch a point for the home team.

In Game 1, Alex Fitzpatrick’s solid par won the 18th and revenge against World No. 1 Cole Hammer, who defeated him in the quarterfinals of the 2018 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach.

In Game 2, Euan Walker followed his teammate’s example to beat Steven Fisk.

In Game 3, Sandy Scott’s closing 4 was enough to edge out U.S. Amateur champion Andy Ogletree.

In Game 6, Conor Gough made 4 on the 446-yard par-4 to beat Isaiah Salinda.

Only John Pak’s stellar closing birdie stemmed the faster-finishing GB&I tide. Which was huge, and a fact not lost on the the Florida State All-American. One down with two to play against British Amateur champion James Sugrue, Pak had never led until the final putt disappeared into the cup. Which was perhaps not so surprising. In his post-match press conference, American skipper Nathaniel Crosby mention more than once how he has given Pak a “bad time” about being a slow starter in matches.

“That felt really good,” said Pak, who holed from 10 feet for the win before indulging in the loudest whoop of the day. “I knew we were down a few points, so that was a big moment for the team. I knew it was a bit of a risk hitting driver off the tee, but it came off. I must admit I pulled my approach a little bit. Middle of the green was what I was aiming for. But when I holed the putt I had to fist-pump and scream to get my team going.”

Peter Byrne – PA Images
GB&I’s Alex Fitzpatrick and USA’s Cole Hammer share a joke during their Saturday singles match at the 2019 Walker Cup.

That was much needed. Although Brandon Wu was approximately eight under par in defeating Tom Sloman on the 16th green in the eighth and final match of the session, and John Augenstein had been up all the way in defeating Conor Purcell, 2 and 1, until that point the scoreboard had contained a lot more British (and Irish) blue than American red.

Perhaps most depressed by that turn of events was Ogletree. In the wake of his 1-up loss to Scott, the Georgia Tech student was a disconsolate figure afterwards, having endured one of those days when his opponent had holed a series of unlikely and lengthy putts.

“I didn’t play great this morning, but this afternoon I felt like I played really well,” Ogletree said. “I hit it in the fairway a lot more and hit my irons great. But Sandy made about 200 feet of putts out there. That’s amazing on these greens. Every time I did something great, he did something great. So hats off to him.”

Not surprisingly, the British and Irish side was quietly content with their day out on a Hoylake links playing much easier than it had done in practice. Even the nagging thought that their lead could and maybe should have been bigger was not causing any disquiet.

“There is no disappointment,” said GB&I captain Craig Watson. “What happened is probably a good thing because my players will be ready for something similar tomorrow. If they had won convincingly this afternoon, they might have been looking around for someone else not get the winning points tomorrow. So the fact that the American kept things close could work in our favour. We’ll be ready for another fight tomorrow.”

Speaking of which, Crosby claimed incredulity at the number of putts holed by the home side and strangely won’t be making any adjustments to his already established foursomes pairings for Day 2. Three of the four pairs from Day 1 survive, but Steven Fisk and Cole Hammer replacing Pak and Salinda. Which will come as a surprise to all (especially the benching of Pak), except the American players themselves. On the eve of the matches, Crosby told his squad of his plans and nothing, not even a two-point deficit, is going to change those.

“These guys are adults,” Crosby said. “I can pat them on the back and tell them I love them, but there’s no words of wisdom or special secret sauce that I can give them to turn things around. They’re here because they have turned it around in bad circumstances for the last two years on occasion. They’ve been great front-runners many times and won a lot of golf tournaments. All I did today was tell them what was going on and say it would be great if they could win three of the next four holes. Simple stuff. One thing I do know, we won’t have an overconfidence problem going into tomorrow.”

Hardly inspirational stuff. Which, on the evidence of Day 1, is going to be needed if the U.S. side is to turn this thing around. Well, that and play the 18th hole a little bit better than the guys with the red lions on their chests.

SUNDAY MORNING FOURSOMES

United States vs. Great Britain & Ireland (All times Eastern)
3 a.m.—Brandon Wu/Alex Smalley vs. Alex Fitzpatrick/Conor Purcell
3:10 a.m.—Andy Ogletree/John Augenstein vs. Euan Walker/Sandy Scott
3:20 a.m.—Stewart Hagestad/Akshay Bhatia vs. Harry Hall/Conor Gough
3:30 a.m.—Cole Hammer/Steven Fisk vs. Tom Sloman/Thomas Plumb

SUNDAY AFTERNOON SINGLES
8:15 a.m.—Isaiah Salinda vs. Alex Fitzpatrick
8:25 a.m.—John Pak vs. Euan Walker
8:35 a.m.—Brandon Wu vs. Sandy Scott
8:45 a.m.—Alex Smalley vs. Caolan Rafferty
8:55 a.m.—Stewart Hagestad vs. Harry Hall
9:05 a.m.—Andy Ogletree vs. Conor Gough
9:15 a.m.—John Augenstein vs. Thomas Plumb
9:25 a.m.—Akshay Bhatia vs. James Sugrue
9:35 a.m.—Cole Hammer vs. Conor Purcell
9:45 a.m.—Steven Fisk vs. Tom Sloman

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By Brittany Romano
Going into the Sunday singles’ session of the 40th Curtis Cup with a seemingly insurmountable six-point lead didn’t dampen the competitive spirit of the United States squad at Quaker Ridge Golf Club. The Americans only needed 1½ points to win back the cup lost in 2016 but left with all eight to claim a historic 17-3 runaway victory.

The 17 points earned by captain Virginia Derby Grimes’ team is the most in Curtis Cup history since the biennial match against Great Britain & Ireland was extended to three days in 2008. The previous best from the U.S. of 13 came in 2008 and 2010.

The outcome of the three-day affair at the venerable A.W. Tillinghast layout outside New York City wasn’t unexpected but remained impressive, the U.S. improving its overall record in the match to 29-8-3. Every player on the U.S. roster was ranked inside top 22 on the Women’s World Amateur Rankings, compared to just one on GB&I captain Elaine Farquharson-Black’s squad, making the U.S. the clear favourite to win, particularly when playing at home.

With an average age of 20, the Americans acclimated well to team play in foursomes and four-balls before shining in singles. Despite a slow start on Friday morning—two matches were halved and the U.S. won the third—the home side ended the day with a 4-2 lead. If this was their day to struggle, the GB&I team was in for a long weekend.

Sadly, that was the case. On Saturday, the U.S. swept the three-morning four-ball matches and then went 2-1 in the afternoon foursomes to take a comfortable 9-3 lead that essentially decided the final outcome before Sunday even arrived.

Still, the U.S. dominated singles play, each woman competing as if the overall outcome hinged on the result of their individual match.

“We knew the other team was going to play aggressive because they had to, and that’s good and bad for them,” Sophia Schubert, the reigning U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, said of the GB&I. “We as a team talked about, yeah we only need a point and a half, but we don’t want to give them any points really. If we can win it all, we want to.”

Schubert earned the first point for the U.S., playing out of the leadoff spot traditionally given the defending Amateur champion. The University of Texas standout made it count going, 2 and 1, against Curtis Cup veteran Olivia Mehaffey, the GB&I’s highest ranked player at No. 16.

“I was ready to come out here and play their best player and just show them what I can do,” Schubert, 22, said. “It was nerve-wracking being the first one off, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

Kristen Gillman ultimately clinched the winning point for the U.S. with her 5-and-4 victory over Annabell Fuller, and in the process made Curtis Cup history of her own. The University of Alabama All-American became just the second American and third player overall to go 5-0 in a single Curtis Cup, a result made possible with the format change in 2008. Gillman joined Stacy Lewis (2008) and Bronte Law (2016) in achieving the feat.

“She is very gritty,” Derby Grimes said of the 2014 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion. “It’s good to see, she’s going to fight until the bitter end.”

With the remaining matches left to play out, college stars Lilia Vu, Jennifer Kupcho, Andrea Lee and Lauren Stephenson and 15-year-old Lucy Li all won their individual matches. The lone excitement then came in the final match of the day, as U.S. Curtis Cup veteran Mariel Galdiano tried to close out the sweep.

However, when she hit her tee shot left into the trees en route to a bogey the 17th hole, it allowed Paula Grant to cut the lead to 1-up going into the final hole. Galdiano’s tee shot went wide again on 18, leaving the 19-year-old behind a tree with her second shot. But Grant struggled on the hole too, missing a 12-foot par putt that gave Galdiano the 1-up victory to let the U.S. sweep the singles session for the first time since 1990.

For the visitors, Mehaffey and Sophia Lamb proved the lone bright spot as they combined for 2½ of the team’s three-point finish. They were only the second pairing in Curtis Cup history to compete in all four sessions together. Stephanie Meadow and Georgia Hall did the same in 2014.

Given the lopsided finish, the question many were asking prior to the start of the match seemed moot: Would the notable absence on the GB&I side of Leona Maguire cost the team a chance at victory?

Maguire, a three-time Curtis Cup team member from Ireland who just closed out an impressive college golf career at Duke, decided to turn pro rather than wait and play in one final team competition. On Friday, Maguire was making her professional debut at the ShopRite LPGA Classic, where she finished T-15. Had she been at Quaker Ridge, it likely wouldn’t have been enough to stop the Americans.

Indeed, this dominating Curtis Cup win is part of a trend for American golfers in international team events recently, including a 12-point win at the Walker cup, eight-point win at the Presidents Cup, six-point win at the Ryder Cup and 5-point win at the Solheim Cup. This 14-point win is the most lopsided of U.S. team wins in the last year.

It’s a short celebration for a few players on the team as Americans Lee and Galdiano are in the midst of college finals. Lee has two finals due Monday and an exam Tuesday morning at Stanford while Galdiano has a paper due Monday and two more finals next week at UCLA. Galdiano had an exam proctored onsite Thursday, just before the flag raising ceremony.

If their dominance in the classroom is anything like their golf games, the two should have no problem.

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By John Strege
It was, more or less, an afternoon victory lap, a means by which to assign a number illustrative of the U.S. Walker Cup team’s dominant performance.

The number was 19, equalling the most points ever scored in a Walker Cup, and its 19-7 landslide victory over the Great Britain & Ireland team was the second widest margin of victory in the history of the event.

Victory had become a formality by virtue of the lead the U.S. had established from Saturday afternoon singles and Sunday morning foursomes.

It took an 11-5 lead into Sunday’s singles and deftly completed its task, winning eight of 10 matches, to avenge a seven-point loss for U.S. captain Spider Miller and one of his players, Maverick McNealy, in 2015.

“It’s not easy to lose,” a jubilant Miller said, “and Mav was there with me. We had a choice to be either the 2017 Walker Cup team or the winning 2017 Walker Cup team. and it was up to them and how they played and their performance, and they chose to be known as the winning team and they did that. And it’s a memory for these guys. These guys, when they’re my age, they will have the defining moments in golf in their careers, and it’s going to be a number of things that will define them, but they will always remember the Walker Cup and they will always remember being a part of this winning team. And that’s what it’s all about. That’s why it is so special.”

McNealy went 0-2-1 in the ’15 Walker Cup, but more than made amends this time, when he went 4-0 in the final tournament of his amateur career.

“I think it starts with the U.S. team getting that big trophy, and that was our goal at the beginning of the week. I’m so excited to be part of the 2017 winning Walker Cup team,” McNealy said. “That’s what’s most important to me. I’m so glad we could win this for our team, win this for Captain [Spider] Miller, and win this for the country.”

McNealy, in fact, was only one of three U.S. players to go 4-0, a first in the Walker Cup. Doug Ghim, the runner-up in the U.S. Amateur, and Collin Morikawa also went 4-0.

Ghim defeated Matthew Jordan, 3 and 1, to complete his sweep. Only a few weeks ago, Ghim was on the wrong end of a match in these parts, losing the U.S. Amateur Championship to Doc Redman on the 37th hole.

“Well, the Monday after the U.S. Amateur, I was on Twitter and it kind of just hit me,” he said. “Yeah, certainly I was disappointed that I didn’t get the W at Riviera, but I played great and I just ran into a really tough competitor.

“But I was really excited for the Walker Cup, and I really wanted to play well. And, more than anything, it wasn’t so much that I wanted to get redemption for the U.S. Amateur, it was more like I really wanted to win for Cap [Miller]. I know how much this means to him and I’m just so happy that we could pull it through and win for him. He’s such a great guy.”

Morikawa, meanwhile, defeated Harry Ellis, 2 and 1, after which he called his performance “a dream come true.

“I’ve never really gone undefeated in one of these team events,” he said. “And just to have some momentum to know that I can do it against these guys, these guys are the best [amateur] players around the country and the entire world, really. So just to come out here and I just had a great time with everyone. I’m just glad we can come out with a win.”

It was close only for a short time, on Saturday morning, when GB&I played the Americans to a 2-2 tie. After that, it was all red, white and blue. the U.S. won the next three sessions, 6-2, 3-1 and 8-2, its most dominating victory since it beat GB&I, 19-5, in 1993.

“I guess back home we call it a bit of a hedgehog day,” GB&I acting captain Andrew Ingram said. “We couldn’t get anything moving forward. And it is just wonderful for these guys to play at the very top of amateur golf, it’s great for their career.

“The Americans are amazing. What a team.”

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By Ryan Herrington
Who says it’s all about the long ball in golf these days?

At the Walker Cup on Saturday afternoon, the USGA moved up the tee on the par-3 15th hole at Los Angeles Country Club’s North course from the 133 yards it played in the morning to 78 yards, making it the shortest recorded hole ever in a USGA championship.

That’s not to say the hole was a push over. The pin position on the right side gave players a landing area of only seven yards, requiring plenty of touch to have a realistic chance at making a birdie. Plus players had to decide just how hard to actually swing given that it was less than a full wedge for all of them.

RELATED: U.S. dominates Saturday singles, opens 8-4 lead on Day 1 of Walker Cup

“Half the battle was trying to decide whether to use a tee or put it on the ground,” said U.S. team member Doug Ghim, who halved the hole with a birdie before defeating David Boote of Great Britain & Ireland in their afternoon singles match.

“I don’t recall ever playing a hole that short since I was like maybe 6 years old, and I used like a 7-iron then. But, yeah, that was pretty wild. I was just lucky enough to just barely get it over the bunker and have enough spin to keep it on the green. But, yeah, it’s a cute little hole; really enjoyed it. It’s just a little unnerving to have 80 yards off a tee box.”

The hole turned out to be a pivotal one in the anchor match of the afternoon singles session. American Maverick McNealy saw his wedge shot just stay on the back of the green and then spin down to just off the front right of the green, while his opponent, GB&I’s Scott Gregory saw his ball bound over the green into a back bunker. McNealy used a putter to roll in a 15-footer for birdie to take a 1-up lead. McNealy then won the next to holes for a 3-and-1 victory that gave the U.S. team a decisive 8-4 overall lead entering Sunday play.

? for @MavMcNealy, curling it in on the right side to go 1 up. #WalkerCup https://t.co/H0L3gibs9f

— The Walker Cup (@WalkerCup) September 10, 2017

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By John Strege
U.S. Amateur champion Doc Redman and runner-up Doug Ghim both were named to the 10-man U.S. Walker Cup team that will face a Great Britain & Ireland team at Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course, Sept. 9-10.

USGA president Diana Murphy made the announcement in the immediate aftermath of Redman’s victory over Ghim on the 37th hole of the Amateur at Riviera Country Club.

RELATED: Doc Redman rallies to win ‘an incredible match’

Joining Redman and Ghim are Maverick McNealy, Stewart Hagestad, Braden Thornberry, Norman Xiong, Cameron Champ, Collin Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler and Will Zalatoris.

McNealy is No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and the only player on the U.S. roster with previous Walker Cup experience. Thornberry is No. 3 in the world after winning the NCAA individual title and the Sunnehanna Amateur this summer. Hagestad is the reigning U.S. Mid-Amateur champion who in April became the first Mid-Amateur champion to make the cut in the Masters.

The captain is Spider Miller.

“It’s a committee decision,” he said, “but the committee has always held a spot for our current U.S. Amateur champion. But Doc went out and earned that spot, and I’m very proud of him. I’m looking forward to a great competition. I have a wonderful team and I’m very excited.”

Missing from the U.S. team was a second mid-amateur representative, with Scott Harvey believed to be on the short list for the team. Also on the outside looking in was LSU’s Sam Burns, college golf’s Jack Nicklaus Player of the Year honoree in June who announced he would turn pro in September in hopes of still having a chance to play on the U.S. team; Oklahoma’s Brad Dalke, the 2016 U.S. Amateur runner-up, Illinois’ Dylan Meyer, who won the 2016 Western Amateur, was a semifinalist at 2016 U.S. Amateur and is currently ranked No. 4 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

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