Feats Of Strength
16-year-old golfer gets up and down from 342(!) yards at U.S. Amateur for eagle of the summer
It seems like everyone at Cherry Hills this week—even Bryson DeChambeau—has taken a crack at the 346-yard, par-4 first with a persimmon wood in honor of Arnold Palmer's famed shot at the 1960 U.S. Open. But one of the youngest players in the field at the U.S. Amateur showed off his power from a similar distance in a different way.
Introducing Bowen Mauss, a 16-year-old young buck from Utah who doesn't need driver to hit a golf ball that far. OK, yes, so elevation plays a slight role this week, but what Mauss did during his Thursday Round of 16 match was still mighty impressive. Emphasis on mighty.
Trailing by four in his match to Nick Dunlap on the long par-5 11th, Mauss went for the green in two and took an extra-big cut with a fairway wood from 342 yards away to find the putting surface. Have a look:
That's some serious pop right there. Even better? After the long approach, he cashed in on the long eagle attempt moments later:
Amazing. Although, it might be even more amazing that he barely reacted after pulling off one of the most incredible eagles of the year. Talk about acting like you've been there before.
Then again, even at 16, Mauss knew he had a lot of work left. And despite winning that hole and the next, his tournament dreams were ended with a 5-and-3 defeat.
But he'll always be able to say he advanced to the Sweet 16 when he was only 16. And he'll always have that prodigious highlight. Even the King himself would have been impressed.