LORTON, Va. – In temperatures that soared into the upper 90s but felt close to 115 degrees, Canadian Garrett Rank kept his cool and flirted with re-writing the record books at steamy Laurel Hill Golf Club.
Rank, 25, carded a 3-under 67 on Tuesday for a 36-hole total of 8-under 132 to earn medalist honors during the stroke play portion of the 2013 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship.
Ian Davis, playing in his first USGA championship, was two strokes back at 134, while Eric Sugimoto followed his record-tying, first-round 63 with a 2-over 72 and finished three strokes behind at 135.
Rank was even par for his round through five holes when, for the second straight day, he birdied holes 6, 8 and 9. A birdie at the 182-yard 14th, offset by a bogey at the long par-4 17th, brought Rank to the final hole needing a birdie to match the mark set by Danny Green at the 2004 APL at Rush Creek G.C. in Maple Grove, Minn.
If I knew that, I wouldn’t have laid up on 18, joked Rank, who faced a 226-yard approach over water on the par-5 closing hole. I was more worried about a Tin Cup moment.
Rank, who works as a professional referee for the Ontario Hockey League in the winter, has dedicated himself full-time to golf this summer. In fact, he went to the practice range immediately after his round Tuesday despite playing near-flawless golf over the first two days.
I’m treating this as my full-time job, said Rank. I made some good swings at the end of the round and was trying to cement those for the next couple of days.
As much as his focus is on golf, Rank is also overcoming a serious health concern. In the winter of 2011, he had successful surgery for testicular cancer that gave him a scare, but also put things in perspective.
As a young kid at 22 years old, you never want to hear ‘cancer,’ said Rank, but it was really a blessing in disguise. I started to realize, even if I made a bogey or bad swing, things could be a lot worse.
Rank finished runner-up at last year’s U.S. Mid-Amateur and has been climbing the ladder of the World Amateur Golf Rankings since. This summer, he finished second at the Ontario Amateur and has top-20 finishes at the Northeast Amateur and the Sahalee Players Championship.
I’m coming in playing very well and this only gives me more confidence, said Rank. Coming to a USGA championship and finishing as medalist – that’s huge.
Davis, 21, of Edmond, Okla., birdied all three par 5s, including an up-and-down from just over the green on the ninth, his final hole of the day.
I was trying to come in under par today and with that birdie on [No. 9], I was able to do it, said Davis, who also advanced through sectional qualifying on July 8 for next month’s U.S. Amateur, which will be held at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass. I actually felt like I hit the ball a little better today, but couldn’t get a few putts to drop. Overall, I’m very happy with how I’m playing.
Davis, 21, also had an excellent junior season at Oklahoma State. He won the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate in Dallas in October 2012 and finished eighth in the NCAA Division I Championship. His assistant coach, Brian Guetz, is his caddie this week and two of his teammates, Talor Gooch (68-69—137) and Jordan Niebrugge (71-67—138) also qualified for match play.
Sugimoto failed to sustain the momentum from his opening-round 63. With the 36-hole stroke-play record within grasp at the start of Tuesday’s round, the 19-year-old from San Diego bogeyed three consecutive holes starting at No. 4. He birdied the short par-4 10th for the second day in a row, then finished with eight straight pars to post a 72.
I started off with a couple of bad shots and put myself in some not-so-ideal places, said Sugimoto, of his three straight bogeys, but I stayed patient and avoided any mental errors or big numbers coming in.
Tuesday’s low-round belonged to Sam Horsfield, of England, whose 66 gave him a two-day total of 4-under 136. One of the youngest players in the field at age 16, Horsfield double-bogeyed the third hole, but birdied six of his last 10 holes, including all three par 5s, to surge up the leader board.
Other players to advance to match play include 2012 APL medalist James Erkenbeck (67-70—137); the low amateur at last month’s U.S. Open, Michael Kim (69-68—137); 2008 U.S. Junior Amateur champion Cameron Peck (68-70—138); and 51-year-old Sean Knapp (69-73—142), who just last week competed in the U.S. Senior Open in Omaha, Nebraska.
Thirteen golfers began a playoff for 11 spots to round out the 64-player match-play portion of the championship. They made it through one hole, the 181-yard 16th, before darkness forced a suspension of play. Kyle Henning made a birdie-2, while Mitchell Rutledge, Justin Wenger, Payne Gniewek, Brandon Hortt, Sam Straka and Justin Shin made pars to secure their spots in the match play bracket. The playoff will resume Wednesday at 7 a.m. EDT on the 10th hole with five players for four spots.
The U.S. Amateur Public Links is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs. First round matches will begin immediately after the conclusion of the playoff on Wednesday, with the championship scheduled to conclude with a 36-hole final on Saturday.
Michael Trostel is the senior curator/historian for the USGA Museum. Email him at mtrostel@usga.org.
Lorton, Va. – Results from stroke-play qualifying at the 2013 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship being played at 7,022-yard, par-70 Laurel Hill Golf Club:
Garrett Rank, Canada 65-67--132
Ian Davis, Edmond, Okla. 65-69--134
Eric Sugimoto, San Diego, Calif. 63-72--135
Sam Horsfield, United Kingdom 70-66--136
Talor Gooch, Midwest City, Okla. 68-69--137
Paul McConnell, Garland, Texas 69-68--137
Michael Kim, Del Mar, Calif. 69-68--137
Nicholas Scott, Union, Ohio 69-68--137
James Erkenbeck, San Diego, Calif. 67-70--137
Kyle Jones, Taylor, Ariz. 69-68--137
Xander McDonald-Smith, R. Park, N.Y. 68-70--138
Jordan Niebrugge, Mequon, Wis. 71-67--138
Sam Saunders, Albuquerque, N.M. 66-73--139
Cameron Peck, Olympia, Wash. 68-71--139
Robby Shelton IV, Wilmer, Ala. 70-69--139
Anton Arboleda, La Canada, Calif. 69-70--139
Austin Smotherman, Loomis, Calif. 68-72--140
Jonathan Hauter, Morton, Ill. 68-72--140
James Glenn, Houston, Texas 72-68--140
Zecheng Dou, People's Republic of China 70-71--141
Kyle Weldon, St. Louis, Mo. 69-72--141
P. J. Samiere, Kailua, Hawaii 69-72--141
Nick Sherwood, Albany, Ore. 73-68--141
Zac Blair, Ogden, Utah 72-69--141
Zachary Wright, Phoenix, Ariz. 71-70--141
Lucas Kim, Canada 71-71--142
Carlson Cox IV, Church Hill, Tenn. 69-73--142
John Oda, Honolulu, Hawaii 72-70--142
Taeksoo Kim, Republic of Korea 74-68--142
Kevin Josephson, New Britain, Conn. 73-69--142
Trevor Cone, Concord, N.C. 71-71--142
Jon Trasamar, Minneapolis, Minn. 72-70--142
Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa. 69-73--142
Mark Cusic, California, Md. 72-70--142
Tanner Owens, Claremore, Okla. 74-68--142
Nick Brothers, Crystal River, Fla. 71-71--142
Mitchell McLeroy, Mansfield, Texas 71-71--142
Andrew Bailey, Cleveland, Ohio 73-69--142
Ricky Desantis, San Marcos, Calif. 73-70--143
Mario Clemens, Mexico 70-73--143
Brandon Cigna, Arlington, Va. 72-71--143
Addison Lambeth, Browns Summit, N.C. 67-76--143
Sean Kelly, Staten Island, N.Y. 72-71--143
Paul Misko, Thousand Oaks, Calif. 73-70--143
Cameron Harrell, Colorado Springs, Colo. 71-72--143
George Cunningham, Tucson, Ariz. 69-74--143
Derek Fribbs, Boulder, Colo. 68-75--143
Andy Drohen, Granville, Mass. 69-74--143
Thomas Lim, Moorpark, Calif. 70-74--144
Brett Patterson, McMinnville, Tenn. 72-72--144
Zachary Moore, Orlando, Fla. 71-73--144
Ryan Nagy, Raleigh, N.C. 72-72--144
Michael Schmitmeyer, St Marys, Ohio 69-75--144
Alberto Sanchez, Nogales, Ariz. 68-77--145
Kyle Henning, Brookfield, Wis. 69-76--145
Glenn Przybylski, Frankfort, Ill. 74-71--145
Joshua Stone, Stockton, Calif. 75-70--145
Sam Straka, Valdosta, Ga. 72-73--145
David Tepe, Cincinnati, Ohio 72-73--145
Justin Shin, Canada 69-76--145
Tyler Klava, Pace, Fla. 74-71--145
Mitchell Rutledge, Creve Coeur, Mo. 74-71--145
Justin Wenger, Greenwood, Ind. 72-73--145
Payne Gniewek, Austin, Texas 72-73--145
Brandon Hortt, Spring Valley, Calif. 76-69--145
Greg Condon, Orange County, Calif. 70-75--145
Jooho Lee, Republic of Korea 69-77--146
Ryan Siegler, West Windsor, N.J. 71-75--146
Andrew McCain, Minneapolis, Minn. 77-69--146
Benjamin Lein, Diamond Bar, Calif. 74-72--146
Chris Yeom, New Hyde Park, N.Y. 74-72--146
Alex Chiarella, Pukalani, Hawaii 73-73--146
Christopher Schriedel, Helotes, Texas 72-74--146
Christian Dolan, Islip, N.Y. 74-72--146
Tyler Merkel, Evansville, Ind. 72-74--146
Daniel Northington, Austin, Texas 75-71--146
Herbie Aikens, Pembroke, Mass. 73-73--146
Chad Merzbacher, Dublin, Ohio 73-74--147
Peter Kyo Won Koo, Republic of Korea 73-74--147
Ryan Zech, Kearney, Mo. 75-72--147
Scott Strohmeyer, Tuscaloosa, Ala. 76-71--147
Blaze Hogan, Big Rapids, Mich. 70-77--147
Mason Casper, Springville, Utah 76-71--147
Justin Newby, Parker, Texas 77-70--147
Chelso Barrett, Keene, N.H. 70-77--147
Ricky Jones, Rockland, Maine 69-78--147
Trey Ka'ahanui, Tempe, Ariz. 78-70--148
Grant Milling, Springfield, Ill. 70-78--148
Carter Page, Waynesville, N.C. 73-75--148
Ji Soo Park, Republic of Korea 73-75--148
Jon Dutoit, Chaska, Minn. 72-76--148
Mayson Petty, Charlotte, N.C. 73-75--148
Nick Moore, Seaside, Calif. 75-73--148
Joe Migdal, Ballwin, Mo. 74-74--148
Max Tylke, Rosemount, Minn. 72-76--148
Chris Collins, Tucson, Ariz. 74-75--149
Jacob Wilner, Reno, Nev. 73-76--149
Christopher Good, Denver, Colo. 76-73--149
Richard Donegan, Okeechobee, Fla. 76-73--149
Owen Butler, Fitchburg, Wis. 78-71--149
Daniel Chian, Indio, Calif. 76-73--149
Alexander Williamson, The Woodlands, Texas 78-71--149
Nick Pandelena, Atkinson, N.H. 71-78--149
Sean Packer, Auburn, Wash. 74-75--149
Michael Howe, Temecula, Calif. 78-72--150
Mark Sider, Chicago, Ill. 74-76--150
Alex Kline, Ramsey, Minn. 75-75--150
Landon Lyons, Baton Rouge, La. 81-69--150
Carson Stepler, McKinney, Texas 74-77--151
Jon Veneziano, Mt Dora, Fla. 75-76--151
Chris Cassetta, Winston Salem, N.C. 73-78--151
Zach Steffen, Des Moines, Iowa 74-77--151
Julio Vegas, Venezuela 74-77--151
Dennis Holub, Reminderville, Ohio 79-72--151
Nicholas Chianello, Gresham, Ore. 76-75--151
T. J. Shuart, Coral Springs, Fla. 76-76--152
David Griffin, Baton Rouge, La. 74-78--152
Ken Miyata, Kapaa, Hawaii 72-80--152
Mark Valliere, Canada 74-78--152
Chris Igawa, Hilo, Hawaii 76-76--152
Will Brink, Manteca, Calif. 71-81--152
David Cunningham, Park City, Utah 76-77--153
Derrick Bongjun Kim, Republic of Korea 78-75--153
Cory Gladstone, San Diego, Calif. 74-79--153
Tommy Higham, Provo, Utah 78-75--153
Nathan Kerns, Ironton, Ohio 74-79--153
Scott Sheldon, Omaha, Neb. 79-74--153
Jonathan Lai, Hong Kong China 79-75--154
Dalen Yamauchi, Hilo, Hawaii 75-79--154
Trent Wallace, Las Vegas, Nev. 80-74--154
Nick Tremps, Williamsburg, Va. 79-75--154
Lyle Middleton, Conway, Ark. 77-78--155
Trent Karlik, McKees Rocks, Pa. 75-80--155
John Yu, Fresh Meadows, N.Y. 75-81--156
Nikolaj Brons-Piche, Traverse City, Mich. 77-79--156
Jarred Garcia, Jacksonville, Fla. 74-82--156
Nathan Clark, Mason, Mich. 73-83--156
Jamey Salmon, Jacksonville, Fla. 78-78--156
Todd McDaniel, Lexington, Ky. 76-81--157
Sean Clifford, Philadelphia, Pa. 77-80--157
Jonathan Feldkamp, Cincinnati, Ohio 78-80--158
Carter Pool, San Diego, Calif. 81-77--158
Korey Smith, Murfreesboro, Tenn. 80-78--158
John Burke, Sacramento, Calif. 76-82--158
Taylor Montgomery, Las Vegas, Nev. 79-80--159
Mark Buchholz, Cumming, Ga. 77-82--159
Kamrin Allen, Sheridan, Wyo. 86-73--159
Bret Lawrence, Morris, Conn. 81-78--159
Dean Sakata, Diamond Bar, Calif. 80-80--160
David Shields, Philadelphia, Pa. 78-82--160
Michael Sharp, Kendallville, Ind. 77-83--160
Michael Slovitt, Chicago, Ill. 85-77--162
Jim Dufficy, Tinton Falls, N.J. 85-82--167
Kamaiu Johnson, Tallahassee, Fla. 76-WD--WD
Brendan McKinney, Cockeysville, Md. 74-WD--WD
Jacob Harper, Beulah, Ala. 78-WD—WD
Lorton, Va. – Pairings and starting times for the first round of match play at the 2013 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship being played at 7,022-yard, par-70 Laurel Hill Golf Club. (All times EDT):
9:10 a.m. Garrett Rank, Canada (132) vs. To Be Determined ()
8:00 a.m. Jon Trasamar, Minneapolis, Minn. (142) vs. Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa. (142)
8:10 a.m. Anton Arboleda, La Canada, Calif. (139) vs. Thomas Lim, Moorpark, Calif. (144)
8:20 a.m. Austin Smotherman, Loomis, Calif. (140) vs. Andy Drohen, Granville, Mass. (143)
8:30 a.m. Nicholas Scott, Union, Ohio (137) vs. Payne Gniewek, Austin, Texas (145)
8:40 a.m. Zachary Wright, Phoenix, Ariz. (141) vs. Mario Clemens, Mexico (143)
8:50 a.m. James Erkenbeck, San Diego, Calif. (137) vs. Justin Wenger, Greenwood, Ind. (145)
9:00 a.m. Zac Blair, Ogden, Utah (141) vs. Brandon Cigna, Arlington, Va. (143)
9:20 a.m. Sam Horsfield, United Kingdom (136) vs. To Be Determined ()
9:30 a.m. Taeksoo Kim, Republic of Korea (142) vs. Nick Brothers, Crystal River, Fla. (142)
9:40 a.m. Sam Saunders, Albuquerque, N.M. (139) vs. Ryan Nagy, Raleigh, N.C. (144)
9:50 a.m. Zecheng Dou, People's Republic of China (141) vs. Cameron Harrell, Colorado Springs, Colo. (143)
10:00 a.m. Talor Gooch, Midwest City, Okla. (137) vs. Justin Shin, Canada (145)
10:10 a.m. John Oda, Honolulu, Hawaii (142) vs. Mitchell McLeroy, Mansfield, Texas (142)
10:20 a.m. Jordan Niebrugge, Mequon, Wis. (138) vs. Michael Schmitmeyer, St Marys, Ohio (144)
10:30 a.m. Kyle Weldon, St. Louis, Mo. (141) vs. Paul Misko, Thousand Oaks, Calif. (143)
10:40 a.m. Ian Davis, Edmond, Okla. (134) vs. To Be Determined ()
10:50 a.m. Trevor Cone, Concord, N.C. (142) vs. Mark Cusic, California, Md. (142)
11:00 a.m. Robby Shelton IV, Wilmer, Ala. (139) vs. Brett Patterson, McMinnville, Tenn. (144)
11:10 a.m. Jonathan Hauter, Morton, Ill. (140) vs. Derek Fribbs, Boulder, Colo. (143)
11:20 a.m. Michael Kim, Del Mar, Calif. (137) vs. Brandon Hortt, Spring Valley, Calif. (145)
11:30 a.m. Lucas Kim, Canada (142) vs. Ricky Desantis, San Marcos, Calif. (143)
11:40 a.m. Kyle Jones, Taylor, Ariz. (137) vs. Mitchell Rutledge, Creve Coeur, Mo. (145)
11:50 a.m. Nick Sherwood, Albany, Ore. (141) vs. Addison Lambeth, Browns Summit, N.C. (143)
12:00 p.m. Eric Sugimoto, San Diego, Calif. (135) vs. To Be Determined ()
12:10 p.m. Kevin Josephson, New Britain, Conn. (142) vs. Tanner Owens, Claremore, Okla. (142)
12:20 p.m. Cameron Peck, Olympia, Wash. (139) vs. Zachary Moore, Orlando, Fla. (144)
12:30 p.m. James Glenn, Houston, Texas (140) vs. George Cunningham, Tucson, Ariz. (143)
12:40 p.m. Paul McConnell, Garland, Texas (137) vs. Sam Straka, Valdosta, Ga. (145)
12:50 p.m. Carlson Cox IV, Church Hill, Tenn. (142) vs. Andrew Bailey, Cleveland, Ohio (142)
1:00 p.m. Xander McDonald-Smith, R. Park, N.Y. (138) vs. Kyle Henning, Brookfield, Wis. (145)
1:10 p.m. P. J. Samiere, Kailua, Hawaii (141) vs. Sean Kelly, Staten Island, N.Y. (143)