One of the entrance signs at Gold Mountain Golf Complex promotes this week’s 64th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship as an opportunity to “Watch Tomorrow’s Legends Today!”
The names of the last two champions are both inscribed beneath the message.
But if the first three days of play were any indication, there might be different title recipient on Saturday.
That is because 16-year-old Beau Hossler from Mission Viejo, Calif., claimed medalist honors during the final round of stroke play Tuesday. He finished at 5-under 67 with a two-day score of 135 (9-under) to gain a four-stroke lead on first-round co-leader Will Starke.
Hossler was not quite as successful during the first round of match play Wednesday morning. He entered the day 0-1 in his career in match play and this one did not begin any better as he lost the first four holes against Miller Capps from Denver, N.C. But Hossler regrouped and was a 3-and-2 winner.
“I kind of figured out what I was doing out wrong with my golf swing and kind of got some confidence,” he said. “I made a lot of clutch, longer putts. And my short game has been good all week.”
Hossler said he simply was trying to drive the ball too much.
“My swing felt really good on the range,” he said. “I was hitting it well. Then, on the golf course it felt a bit off. I went back to some of my old swing thoughts — tried to keep the ball in play and not hit it as far.”
He said his game — and not the competition — keeps him focused.
“I’m not getting ahead of myself,” Hossler said. “There’s a long way to go.”
One of his primary challengers figures to be Dallas’ Jordan Spieth, the 2009 champion who finished tied for third at 4-under in stroke play with Yi Keun Chang from Walnut, Calif. Spieth, the fourth-ranked amateur in the world, will compete in the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club later this year in Maryland. He also made the cut in the last two Byron Nelson Classics on the PGA Tour.
“I felt calm and confident,” said Spieth, who signed to play at the University of Texas. “I think having gone through a lot of match play — and having success in the past — is huge. A lot of it is strategy and thinking around the course.”
An experienced match-play competitor, he never trailed during his 4-and-3 victory against his first match-play opponent — Blake Toolan of Phoenix. Toolan was the second lowest-ranked athlete in match play.
“I don’t know what an easy or hard match is out here,” Spieth said. “There’s so many players who can come out and (dominate). Match play is so much about momentum.”
Starke, who is from Chapin, S.C., could argue the same applies to stroke play. He perhaps was the biggest surprise among the 128-person field during stroke play. The 17-year-old shot a 1-under 71 after finishing at 68 in the opening round. But Starke needed 19 holes Wednesday to defeat Brian Bullington of Frankfort, Ill., and become one of 32 finalists.
“I don’t really know if I have a target on my back since no one here knows me,” Starke said.
“(Bullington) played well.”
While he said he was not nervous entering match play, he acknowledged that he was surprised to be ranked second.
“But I’ve had a pretty decent summer so far back home in a tough climate,” Starke said.
After two rounds Thursday, quarterfinals are set for 8 a.m. today. The 36-hole championship match is Saturday.
As of Wednesday afternoon, defending champion Jim Liu of Smithtown, N.Y., remained a contender to defend his title. The 15-year-old entered match play as the 26th seed. He did not outlast his first opponent in match play, Nicolo Galletti of Clayton, Calif., until he scored a birdie on No. 17.
“On this course, you’re going to make mistakes,” Liu said. “If I can limit those, I should be in pretty good shape.”
Both Liu and Spieth are trying to join Tiger Woods as just the second player in the championship’s history to earn more than one U.S. Junior Amateur title. Woods won the event from 1991-93.
