Yet in some ways, Miles Russell is already showing some signs that he’s mature beyond his 17 years. The top-ranked junior golfer in the country has played in five pro events to date and offered a bit of a surprise when asked what he’s picking up by watching the pros. “I mean how boring they play,” Russell said. “You watch them play and you're, like, man, this guy plays pretty boring, and at the end of the round, you're seeing the score and he shoots like 65. You're like I did not see you shooting 65 out there, but it's just so kind of ho-hum and a lot of fairway greens. It's nothing special. Then when they have those special rounds, they'll go out and shoot 63, 62, and you say, that was fun to watch, and you shake their hand at the end of the day."

I've got more on Russell and the other 19 amateurs competing this week my annual primer on the amateurs who qualified for the U.S. Open.