NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – It took a conceded putt on the 18th hole by Stephen Fox, 60, of Huntington, W.Va., for stroke-play medalist Alan Fadel, 59, of Toledo, Ohio, to advance to Tuesday’s Round of 32 in the 2014 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship, being conducted at the par-72, 6,770-yard Big Canyon Country Club.
Fadel, who jumped out to a 4-up lead through six holes of Monday’s match, found himself all square after losing holes 7, 10, 11 and 13 to Fox, one of 13 players who survived a 15-man playoff earlier Monday for the final match-play spots.
I got 4-up and it’s been awhile since I have done match play, said Fadel. I got ‘steery.’ You start guiding it. I finally got control and it took me quite a long time, but I think it will help me going forward.
With a 7:15 a.m. PDT starting time against Rick Cloninger, 57, of Fort Mill, S.C. on Tuesday, Fadel has little time to dwell on the problems that could have ended his week. The medalist has not won the Senior Amateur since 1987, the longest drought in any USGA amateur competition.
I am going to go to the range and work on some things, said Fadel, who qualified at 7-under-par 137 over the weekend. I got real defensive and I got real cautious. At the end I finally started to commit to my shot and hit good shots when I needed to.
No. 2 seed Tim Jackson, 55, of Germantown, Tenn., had a slightly less stressful day as he took his match against Gary Van Sickle, 60, of Wexford, Pa., 3 and 2. Jackson credited consistency as the key to wearing down Van Sickle, a golf writer for Sports Illustrated magazine.
He was tenacious; he got up and down quite a bit on me, said Jackson, a two-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion. I got a little frustrated. I hit a couple of really good shots that didn’t pan out. I had to work on my patience today and make a bunch of pars. That is what it boiled down to.
Jackson will next face 2011 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Randal Lewis, 57, of Alma, Mich., who eliminated 2005 Senior Amateur winner, Mike Rice, 74, of Houston, 2 and 1.
Defending champion Doug Hanzel, 57, of Savannah, Ga., was happy with his play in a 4-and-3 win over Steven Poulson, 58, of North Salt Lake, Utah.
I hit it solidly and was in the fairway all day, said Hanzel. It’s tough when you get a couple of holes down to try and play catch-up. I was hitting greens and making pars. I played really good.
Hanzel, the low amateur in the 2012 and 2013 U.S. Senior Opens, is philosophical about what Tuesday will bring.
I take one day at a time, one match at a time, said Hanzel, the only golfer in history to make match play in the U.S. Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur and U.S. Senior Amateur in the same year (2012). You know you are not going to have your ‘A’ game every day. You just try and grind it out and stay in the game while hoping you are on the positive side in the end.
Hanzel will square off against Emile Vaughan, 58, of Pike Road, Ala., a 2-and-1 winner over Mark Nickeas.
Big Canyon Country Club member Don Dubois, 55, of Newport Beach, Calif., also advanced to the Round of 32 with a 2-and-1 victory over David Clement, 56, of Henderson, Ky.
It is good to do well here, said Dubois, who had a sizable gallery following his match. I got off to a slow start [Saturday]. I shot 40 in my first nine holes and that put me behind the 8-ball. I am just starting to get my rhythm. Anytime you are playing in a USGA event and you shot 40 on your first nine you have the pressure on you to produce after that.
Dubois next faces 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur runner-up Bryan Norton, 55, of Mission Hills, Kan..
Two-time champion Kemp Richardson, of nearby Laguna Niguel, did not advance, but fellow Laguna Niguel resident Mike Davis posted a 4-and-3 victory over Conrad Nillmeier, of Fresno, Calif.
Both the second and third rounds of match play are scheduled for Tuesday, followed by the quarterfinal and semifinal matches on Wednesday. The championship concludes with an 18-hole final on Thursday starting at 8:30 a.m. PDT.
The U.S. Senior Amateur is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.
Jeff Altstadter is a manager of media relations for the USGA. Email him at jaltstadter@usga.org.
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – Results from Monday’s first round of match play at the 2014 U.S. Senior Amateur, being conducted at the 6,770-yard, par-72 Big Canyon Country Club. (All times PDT):
Round of 64
Upper Bracket
Alan Fadel, Toledo, Ohio (137) def. Stephen Fox, Huntington, W.Va. (149), 1 up
Rick Cloninger, Fort Mill, S.C. (147) def. Kemp Richardson, Laguna Niguel, Calif. (147), 2 and 1
Don Reycroft, Norfolk, Mass. (144) def. Doug Snoap, Apopka, Fla. (148), 2 and 1
David Szewczul, Farmington, Conn. (144) def. Don Marsh, Alpharetta, Ga. (148), 5 and 4
John Hornbeck, Saratoga, Wyo. (141) def. Jim Knoll, Sunnyvale, Calif. (149), 19 holes
Frank Dial, Auburn, Ala. (148) def. Adam Kugler, Closter, N.J. (146), 1 up
James Gallagher, Yorktown, Va. (149) def. John McClure, Austin, Texas (141), 2 and 1
Stewart Alexander, Gainesville, Fla. (148) def. Peter Herzog, Norwalk, Conn. (146), 1 up
Tom Brandes, Bellevue, Wash. (139) def. Pat O’Donnell, Happy Valley, Ore. (149), 5 and 3
Jeff Burda, Modesto, Calif. (147) def. Doug Roxburgh, Canada (146), 20 holes
Mike Bell, Indianapolis, Ind. (149) def. Vinny Giles, Richmond, Va. (143), 1 up
Michael Turner, Sherman Oaks, Calif. (145) def. Mark Bemowski, Mukwonago, Wis. (148), 1 up
Patrick Tallent, Vienna, Va. (149) def. Chip Lutz, Reading, Pa. (140), 1 up
Mike Davis, Laguna Niguel, Calif. (146) def. Conrad Nilmeier, Fresno, Calif. (147), 4 and 3
Bob Baker, Little Rock, Ark. (142) def. Kenneth Bakst, Riverhead, N.Y. (149), 1 up
Ron Carter, Monticello, Ind. (145) def. Richard Marlowe, Youngstown, Ohio (148), 3 and 2
Lower Bracket
Tim Jackson, Germantown, Tenn. (138) def. Gary Van Sickle, Wexford, Pa. (149), 3 and 2
Randal Lewis, Alma, Mich. (147) def. Mike Rice, Houston, Texas (147), 2 and 1
Emile Vaughan, Pike Road, Ala. (144) def. Mark Nickeas, Westlake Village, Calif. (148), 2 and 1
Douglas Hanzel, Savannah, Ga. (145) def. Steven Poulson, North Salt Lake, Utah (148), 4 and 3
Lee Sandlin, Dallas, Texas (149) def. Scott Mayne, Harrisburg, Pa. (140), 2 and 1
Gary Carpendale, Las Vegas, Nev. (148) def. Neil Vanleeuwen, Tarpon Springs, Fla. (146), 4 and 2
Raymond Thompson, Drexel Hill, Pa. (141) def. Jerry Hudgins, Tyler, Texas (149), 6 and 4
Jack Hall, Savannah, Ga. (146) def. Alan Thielemann, Woodstock, Ga. (148), 4 and 3
Chris Hall, Mableton, Ga. (139) def. Paul Zarek, Burlington, Wis. (149), 4 and 2
Allan Small, Florham Park, N.J. (147) def. Tim Sorrows, Liberty Twp., Ohio (147), 1 up
Kelly Miller, Southern Pines, N.C. (143) def. Ted Zurkowski, Chicago, Ill. (148), 2 up
Peter Wegmann, Ft Lauderdale, Fla. (148) def. Jeff New, Scottsdale, Ariz. (145), 3 and 2
David Nelson, Reno, Nev. (140) def. Jim Lehman, Minnetonka, Minn. (149), 2 and 1
Todd Hendley, Greer, S.C. (146) def. Randy Haag, San Francisco, Calif. (148), 2 and 1
Bryan Norton, Mission Hills, Kan. (141) def. Randy Reifers, Columbus, Ohio (149), 4 and 3
Don Dubois, Newport Beach, Calif. (148) def. David Clement, Henderson, Ky. (145), 2 and 1
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – Starting times and pairings for Tuesday’s second round of match play at the 2014 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship, being conducted at the 6,770-yard, par-72 Big Canyon Country Club. (All times PDT)
Round of 32
Upper Bracket
7:15 a.m.: Alan Fadel, Toledo, Ohio (137) vs. Rick Cloninger, Fort Mill, S.C. (147)
7:25 a.m.: Don Reycroft, Norfolk, Mass. (144) vs. David Szewczul, Farmington, Conn. (144)
7:35 a.m.: John Hornbeck, Saratoga, Wyo. (141) vs. Frank Dial, Auburn, Ala. (148)
7:45 a.m.: James Gallagher, Yorktown, Va. (149) vs. Stewart Alexander, Gainesville, Fla. (148)
7:55 a.m.: Tom Brandes, Bellevue, Wash. (139) vs. Jeff Burda, Modesto, Calif. (147)
8:05 a.m.: Mike Bell, Indianapolis, Ind. (149) vs. Michael Turner, Sherman Oaks, Calif. (145)
8:15 a.m.: Patrick Tallent, Vienna, Va. (149) vs. Mike Davis, Laguna Niguel, Calif. (146)
8:25 a.m.: Bob Baker, Little Rock, Ark. (142) vs. Ron Carter, Monticello, Ind. (145)
Lower Bracket
8:35 a.m.: Tim Jackson, Germantown, Tenn. (138) vs. Randal Lewis, Alma, Mich. (147)
8:45 a.m.: Emile Vaughan, Pike Road, Ala. (144) vs. Douglas Hanzel, Savannah, Ga. (145)
8:55 a.m.: Lee Sandlin, Dallas, Texas (149) vs. Gary Carpendale, Las Vegas, Nev. (148)
9:05 a.m.: Raymond Thompson, Drexel Hill, Pa. (141) vs. Jack Hall, Savannah, Ga. (146)
9:15 a.m.: Chris Hall, Mableton, Ga. (139) vs. Allan Small, Florham Park, N.J. (147)
9:25 a.m.: Kelly Miller, Southern Pines, N.C. (143) vs. Peter Wegmann, Ft Lauderdale, Fla. (148)
9:35 a.m.: David Nelson, Reno, Nev. (140) vs. Todd Hendley, Greer, S.C. (146)
9:45 a.m.: Bryan Norton, Mission Hills, Kan. (141) vs. Don Dubois, Newport Beach, Calif. (148)
Note: Third-round matches are scheduled to begin Tuesday at 1 p.m.