The rumbling was felt on the golf course long before the thunder rattled through the sky. The third round was completed under ominous skies, while earlier in the day, defending champion Jordan Spieth and medalist Curtis Thompson were both upset at the 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, being conducted at Egypt Valley Country Club.
The third round got off to a wet start, as play was suspended for thunderstorms at 2:13 p.m., with six of the eight matches underway. Once play resumed at 4:45 p.m., the air temperature had dropped considerably, the fairways had softened and the winds whipped through the air. However, it was not all bad for Anthony Paolucci, of Del Mar, Calif., who led for most of his match against Georgia’s Charles Martin and ultimately prevailed, 2 and 1.
That rain delay helped me. It really calmed me down, slowed down my tempo and it helped me take a deep breath, Paolucci, 17, said. This afternoon, I struck the ball a lot better.
Gavin Hall, 15, of Pittsford, N.Y., continued his roll through the championship, never falling to worse than all-square with Jonathan Garrick, of Atherton, Calif., and taking the 5-and-3 victory just as another storm threatened to halt play.
I was sprinting down the fairway, Hall said. I’m just glad we got it in.
Justin Thomas, of Goshen, Ky., needed the full 18 holes to defeat Jorge Fernandez Valdes of Argentina, who was the stroke-play medalist at the 2008 championship at Shoal Creek in Alabama. The 17-year-old, who made the cut at the PGA Tour's Wyndham Championship in 2009, admitted to struggling with the weather conditions following the storm – and the strength of his opponent.
That was my toughest test, Thomas said. We both started off so hot, but that rain delay slowed us down. … Jorge’s a great player, and I felt that was by far my toughest match so far.
Others advancing to the quarterfinals are Denny McCarthy, of Burtonsville, Md.; Richard Sun Il Jung, of Canada; Scott Wolfes, of St. Simons Island, Ga.; Robby Shelton, of Wilmer, Ala.; and Jim Liu, of Smithtown, N.Y.
In what was certainly the biggest upset of the championship thus far, 14-year-old Shelton defeated Spieth in a come-from-behind stretch over the final two holes of their second-round match. Shelton, who went to the 16th hole facing a 1-down deficit, nailed a 6-foot birdie on the 17th to pull all square for the match. He watched Spieth three-putt the 18th and calmly proceeded to drop his par putt and send the 2009 champion back home to Dallas.
I just wanted to play the same as I’d been – straight down the middle, straight on the green, Shelton said, who was almost rendered speechless following his out-of-the-blue victory.
Spieth was never able to find his groove, struggling with his putting throughout the 18 holes and allowing Shelton to keep himself in the match.
It’s what happens in match play, Spieth said, but that was a very poor performance on my part, putting wise. I made way too many bogeys today. … Nothing felt on today.
You’re going to have that off day and if you can win on that off day, then you’re in good shape. Unfortunately, it ended like that.
Thompson, 17, of Coral Springs, Fla., never held the lead in his match against McCarthy, also 17. The Maryland native, who has committed to attend the University of Virginia, took the lead off the first hole with a birdie and kept the pace steady from there, shooting 1-under-par for the round (with the usual match-play concessions) against Thompson’s three over.
I went out there, hit fairways and greens, and gave myself good looks, McCarthy said. I’m pleased with the way I played.
Other notable players to lose in the second round were Emiliano Grillo, who had received a special exemption into the championship for taking the men’s title at the 2010 Copa de las Americas, and Cameron Wilson, who advanced to the quarterfinals at the 2009 U.S. Junior Amateur at Trump National Golf Club.
The U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, established in 1948 for male golfers under the age of 18, is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.
Story written by Christina Lance, coordinator of championship communications for the USGA.
Ada, Mich. – Results from the second and third rounds of match play on Thursday at the 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, being played at the 7,111-yard, par-72 Egypt Valley Country Club:
Round of 32
Upper Bracket
Denny McCarthy, Burtonsville, Md. (145) def. Curtis Thompson, Coral Springs, Fla. (134), 3 and 2
Devon Purser, Clearfield, Utah (147) def. Adam Ball, Richmond, Va. (147), 4 and 2
Richard Jung, Canada (138) def. Sam Straka, Valdosta, Ga. (146), 5 and 3
Ben Warnquist, Rockville, Md. (138) def. Bryson Dechambeau, Clovis, Calif. (146), 3 and 2
Scott Wolfes, St Simons Island, Ga. (146) def. Aaron Kunitomo, Lahaina, Hawaii (149), 2 up
Zachary Wright, Phoenix, Ariz. (142) def. Lee McCoy, Palm Harbor, Fla. (148), 1 up
Justin Thomas, Goshen, Ky. (136) def. Khaled Attieh, Saudi Arabia (146), 5 and 3
Jorge Fernandez Valdes, Argentina (148) def. Cameron Wilson, Rowayton, Conn. (142), 2 and 1
Lower Bracket
Robby Shelton, Wilmer, Ala. (145) def. Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas (135), 1 up
Andrew Lister, Haymarket, Va. (140) def. Stephen Behr, Florence, S.C. (141), 21 holes
Anthony Paolucci, Del Mar, Calif. (143) def. Andrew Fogg, Greenwood, Ind. (149), 4 and 3
Charles Martin, Lagrange, Ga. (143) def. Emiliano Grillo, Argentina (138), 1 up
Gavin Hall, Pittsford, N.Y. (135) def. Alexander Schauffele, San Diego, Calif. (145), 1 up
Jonathan Garrick, Atherton, Calif. (147) def. Charlie Saxon, Tulsa, Okla. (141), 3 and 1
Jim Liu, Smithtown, N.Y. (144) def. Davis Womble, High Point, N.C. (136), 8 and 7
Cody Proveaux, Leesville, S.C. (139) def. Oliver Schniederjans, Powder Springs, Ga. (146), 3 and 2
Round of 16
Upper Bracket
Denny McCarthy, Burtonsville, Md. (145) def. Devon Purser, Clearfield, Utah (147), 1 up
Richard Jung, Canada (138) def. Ben Warnquist, Rockville, Md. (138), 3 and 2
Scott Wolfes, St Simons Island, Ga. (146) def. Zachary Wright, Phoenix, Ariz. (142), 19 holes
Justin Thomas, Goshen, Ky. (136) def. Jorge Fernandez Valdes, Argentina (148), 2 up
Lower Bracket
Robby Shelton, Wilmer, Ala. (145) def. Andrew Lister, Haymarket, Va. (140), 3 and 1
Anthony Paolucci, Del Mar, Calif. (143) def. Charles Martin, Lagrange, Ga. (143), 2 and 1
Gavin Hall, Pittsford, N.Y. (135) def. Jonathan Garrick, Atherton, Calif. (147), 5 and 3
Jim Liu, Smithtown, N.Y. (144) def. Cody Proveaux, Leesville, S.C. (139), 4 and 3
Ada, Mich. – Pairings for the quarterfinal round of match play on Friday at the 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, being played at the 7,111-yard, par-72 Egypt Valley Country Club:
Upper Bracket
8:00 a.m. Denny McCarthy, Burtonsville, Md. (145) vs. Richard Jung, Canada (138)
8:10 a.m. Scott Wolfes, St Simons Island, Ga. (146) vs. Justin Thomas, Goshen, Ky. (136)
Lower Bracket
8:20 a.m. Robby Shelton, Wilmer, Ala. (145) vs. Anthony Paolucci, Del Mar, Calif. (143)
8:30 a.m. Gavin Hall, Pittsford, N.Y. (135) vs. Jim Liu, Smithtown, N.Y. (144)