News
British Open 2019: Gamble pays off for Stanford's Brandon Wu, who flies to U.K. and qualifies for second straight major
Brandon Wu, No. 6 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, is going to be playing in another major championship, and this time he won’t have to worry about having any scheduling conflicts come the final round.
The 22-year-old, who qualified for last month’s U.S. Open and made the cut at Pebble Beach—only to have to miss his college graduation at Stanford because it was also being held on Father’s Day Sunday—went overseas to take a shot at Final Qualifying for the Open Championship. On Tuesday, 72 golfers finished up 36 holes at four different U.K. sites, all hoping to grab one of three spots available at each course. Wu, competing at Fairmont St. Andrews, shot 64-67 to finish at nine under, taking medalist honors by three strokes over Scotland’s Connor Syme and earning a trip to the British Open at Royal Portrush.
A product design major during his time in Palo Alto, Wu went on to finish T-35 at Pebble Beach and still received his Stanford diploma after the round, USGA president-elect (and Stanford MBA grad) Stu Francis handing it to him behind the 18th hole.
Qualifying for the British Open continues an impressive run of play for Wu. Before teeing it up at the U.S. Open, he helped the Cardinal win their final five tournaments of the spring college season, including capturing the team’s ninth NCAA title when Stanford defeated Texas in the finals at Blessings Golf Club in Arkansas. Wu led the team in scoring average during the 2018-'19 season and was named a second-team All-American. He then played for the United States in the Arnold Palmer Cup shortly after NCAAs, earning the competition's Michael Carter Award for sportsmanship and spirit, before advancing through U.S. Open Sectional Qualifying.
“It has been a crazy run, and today was fantastic, playing on a beautiful course with beautiful views,” Wu said. “It is like a dream come true to qualify for the Open having watched all the greats play in it. This was the only competition I played over here on this trip, though I came over a week ago and got acclimated, as we say in the U.S. Today, I kept it out of the long stuff and holed everything in the second round.”
Unlike many college seniors who decided to turn pro after the end of the college season last month, Wu elected to remain an amateur in hopes of earning a spot on the U.S. Walker Cup team that will compete at Royal Liverpool in September. Qualifying for both the U.S. Open and British Open will likely be enough to clinch him a spot on __captain Nathaniel Crosby’s 10-man roster.
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL QUALIFYING RESULTS
Fairmont St. Andrews
Brandon Wu (a), -9/131
Connor Syme, -6/134
Sam Locke, -4/136
Prince's
Curtis Knipes (a), -9/135
Callum Shinkwin, -9/135
Austin Connelly, -8/136
St. Annes Old Links
Jack Senior, -10/134
Garrick Porteous, -10/134
Matthew Baldwin, -9/135
Notts (Hollinwell)
Andrew Wilson, -7/137
Thomas Thurloway (a), -6/138
Ashton Turner, -5/139