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U.S. Open 2019 sectional results: Firefighter Parziale punches ticket, as does a former World No. 1
Chris Keane
It is called the longest day in golf, a name bearing affection, excitement, drama and heartache. Ten U.S. Open sectional qualifiers were held on Monday, with invites to Pebble Beach on the line to 60 lucky individuals. To earn a trip to the Monterey Peninsula, players have to survive 36 holes and some of the stiffest competition the game has to offer. A sentiment underlined in Columbus, where half the field was comprised of players who compete the previous week in the Memorial.
Qualifier tickets had already been punched via regionals in Dallas and Japan. The Texas site produced notables such as 49-year-old former Masters winner Mike Weir, Web.com Tour player Scottie Scheffler (the 22-year-old has already locked up his PGA Tour card for the 2019-'20 season) and Oklahoma State's Austin Eckroat, while half the Japanese field withdrew before completing their round.
So which players will be teeing it up in California next week? Here is a round-up of Monday's U.S. Open sectional qualifying.
(Note: This post will be updated as results come in.)
Walton Heath Golf Club (England)
South African Dean Burmester lapped the field in Surrey, his 16-under performance four strokes better than the nearest competitor. Burmester made the Open field last year at Shinnecock, where he finished T-56.
Marcus Frazier and Thomas Pieters are two familiar names to the American audience, while Daniel Hillier was the only amateur to make it out of this sectional. Perhaps Walton Heath is better noted for who didn't make it, as Lee Westwood missed the cut, just the second time since 2007 he failed to qualify for the U.S. Open. Other players coming up short were Bernd Wiesberger, Ross Fisher and Andrew (Beef) Johnston.
Qualifiers: 1: Dean Burmester, Sam Horsfield, Marcus Fraser, Clement Sordet, Matthieu Pavon, Lee Slattery, Marcus Kinhult, Rhys Enoch, Adri Arnaus, Justin Walters, Daniel Hillier (a), Thomas Pieters, Merrick Bremner, Renato Paratore
Century Country Club & Old Oaks Country Club, Purchase, N.Y.
The most popular firefighter in golf is back on one of its biggest stages. Former U.S. Mid-Am Champ Matt Parziale, who finished tied for low amateur honors at Shinnecock, earned one of the four spots available at the Purchase venue, his one-over score good enough for T-2 with Andy Pope. Wake Forest's Cameron Young took medalist honors at four under, while Rob Oppenheim beat Kelly Kraft in the second hole of sudden death to capture the final slot.
Teenager Garrett Engle missed the playoff by two shots. PGA Tour players Jim Herman and J.J. Henry also missed out.
Qualifiers: Cameron Young (a), Matt Parziale (a), Andy Pope, Rob Oppenheim
Streamsong Resort, Streamsong, Fla.
It's a good thing Florida isn't suffering a heat wave, because the field at Streamsong could have burned the resort to the ground. Eleven under was the cut line, with Chile's Guillermo Pereira the last man in. Callum Tarren took the top spot at 14 under, while amateur Luis Gagne, who shared low-amateur honors with Parziale at Shinnecock Hills, finished second at 12 under.
Qualifiers: Callum Tarren, Luis Gagne (a), Guillermo Pereira
RattleSnake Point Golf Club, Milton, Ontario
Tom Hoge and Sepp Straka shared medalist honors at five under, while Harris English was the odd man out of a 3-for-2 playoff against Nathan Lashley and Alex Prugh. Hoge has two previous U.S. Open appearances; it will be the tournament debut for Straka, a rookie on the PGA Tour. Padraig Harrington came two strokes short of a playoff, as did Scott Langley, Austin Cook and Hudson Swafford.
Qualifiers: Tom Hoge, Sepp Straka, Austin Cook, Hudson Swafford
Hawks Ridge Golf Club, Ball Ground, Ga.
Hawks Ridge turned into a Yellow Jacket nest, as two Georgia Tech All-Americans—tour player Ollie Schniederjans and current amateur Noah Norton—tied for medalist honors at 11 under. Schniederjans has had a rough go in 2019, currently ranked 163rd in the FedEx Cup standings. Perhaps this is the jolt to get him on the right track.
Norton wasn't the only collegiate player to make it through, joined by Duke's Chandler Eaton, who finished at nine under. Roberto Castro, another former Georgia Tech star, also finished at nine, with Jaime Lopez Rivarola and Joey Garber grabbing the alternate slots at eight under. PGA Tour rookie Anders Albertson (yes, another Yellow Jacker) was just outside the noise at seven under.
Qualifiers: Ollie Schniederjans, Noah Norton, Chandler Eaton, Roberto Castro
Woodmont Country Club, Rockville, Md.
Billy Hurley III, playing down the road from his home in Annapolis, made a seven-footer for birdie on the final hole to secure medalist honors at three under. Hurley is currently playing without a PGA Tour card, making his Open invite—the fourth of his career and first since 2016—all the more sweet.
Joseph Bramlett and Ryan Sullivan advanced out of a 3-for-2 playoff against Tee-K Kelly. Bramlett, a 31-year-old Stanford grad from San Jose, also qualified for the U.S. Open in 2010, when it was last played at Pebble Beach, as an amateur. NHL referee Garrett Rank missed getting in the sudden death action by two shots.
Qualifiers: Billy Hurley III, Joseph Bramlett, Ryan Sullivan
Brookside Golf & Country Club and Scioto Country Club, Columbus, Ohio
This field was so loaded the OWGR should award points. However, in spite of its star power, it was a Web.com player atop the leader board in Luke Guthrie. The 29-year-old is making his third U.S. Open appearance thanks to an 11-under performance. Eight players finished in a tie for seventh at five under, securing the final of the 14 spots up for grabs in Columbus. That group included amateur Brandon Wu, who just helped Stanford win an NCAA men's team title, and recent Cal-Berkeley grad Collin Morikawa, who makes his pro debut this week at the RBC Canadian Open, as well as former World No. 1 Luke Donald. 2013 PGA champ Jason Dufner also earned an invite from this sectional.
Cameron Champ, Joel Dahmen and Kevin Tway missed out by a shot. Kevin Streelman, who turned in a 66 at the Memorial on Sunday to finish fourth, withdrew after a 75 on his opening 18 holes.
Qualifiers: Luke Guthrie, Anirban Lahiri, Sam Saunders, Jhonattan Vegas, Rory Sabbatini, Jason Dufner, Chesson Hadley, Erik Van Rooyen, Luke Donald, Aaron Baddeley, Brandon Wu (a), Ryan Fox, Collin Morikawa, Kyoung-Hoon Lee
Big Canyon Country Club/Newport Beach Country Club, Newport Beach, Calif.
Amateurs shinned in California, with rising Arizona State standout Chun An Yu taking medialist honors. And former U.S. Mid-Amateur champ Stewart Hagestad qualified for the second straight year and will be making his third straight U.S. Open start.
Qualifiers: Chun An Yu (a), Haydn Shieh, Richard Lee, Stewart Hagestad (a), Andreas Halvorsen
Springfield Country Club, Springfield, Ohio.
Matching 67s allowed Zac Blair to be among a foursome to tie for medalist honors in Springfield. Troy Merritt, in the hunt last week at Memorial, missed out of qualifying by three strokes while Valero Texas Open winner Corey Conners was six strokes out of a spot at Pebble Beach.
Qualifiers: Zac Blair, Chip McDaniel, Brian Stuard, Nick Hardy, Brett Drewitt
Wine Valley Golf Club, Walla Walla, Wash.
To have Connecticut native Eric Dietrich play all the way across country for the U.S. qualifier, then win medalist honors by four strokes, is an intriguing story. But there's a good explanation: He plays now on the Canadian Tour. Meanwhile, Michael Putnam, who has qualified three of the last four years for the U.S. Open, missed out by a stroke.
Qualifiers: Eric Dietrich, Matthew Naumec, Spencer Tibbits (a)