PINEHURST
Kevin Tway took another step toward establishing himself, while a former NCAA champion made an earlier-than-expected exit from the U.S. Amateur.
Tway, the son of Bob Tway, a former PGA champion, defeated Philip Francis 2-up yesterday in the first round of match play, winning a matchup of former U.S. junior amateur champions on the renowned No. 2 course at Pinehurst Resort.
"My dad's making me play real smart," Tway said.
2007 NCAA medalist Jamie Lovemark is headed home early after being eliminated 1-up by Matt Hill of N.C. State.
Lovemark, a 20-year-old junior at Southern California, held a 1-up advantage on Hill through 16 holes, before Hill birdied the 17th and parred the 18th to eliminate Lovemark, who earlier this summer at Pinehurst finished second at the North & South Amateur.
Kevin Tway, who won the 2005 U.S. junior amateur, took the lead for good in his match by making par on the 15th while Francis, the junior-amateur winner in 2006 from UCLA, bogeyed. Francis, a 20-year-old Oklahoma State sophomore, then sealed his victory when Francis made par on the 18th and he finished his round with his third birdie.
The elder Tway carried his son's clubs around the same course where he tied for 78th at the 2005 U.S. Open and tied for 62nd at 23 over in 1999.
"He's been through everything, and he can help me out when I get nervous and talk to him," Kevin Tway said.
He advanced to a second-round matchup against Robbie Fillmore, who won the stroke-play portion of the tournament with a total of 6-under 134.
Fillmore, a BYU junior who spent two years away from golf while on a Mormon mission, defeated Ross Beal, a Youngstown State senior, 3 and 2. Beal was one of the two players who emerged yesterday morning from a 26-person playoff after they were tied at 5-over 145 through 36 holes of stroke play.
Other notables advancing to the round of 32 include:
o Louisville player Derek Fathauer, who defeated Venezuelan Jhonattan Vegas 1-up in a matchup of 2007 U.S. Amateur quarterfinalists.
o Brady Exber, a 52-year-old Southern Nevada Golf Hall of Famer who is the oldest player left in the field, outlasted redshirt freshman Josh Anderson of Pepperdine in 20 holes.
o Top-ranked amateur Danny Lee had a 4 and 3 victory over David Bartman, a 37-year-old investment banker.
Lee rushed to Pinehurst after playing in his first PGA tournament and making the cut at the Wyndham Championship, 75 miles away in Greensboro. Initially, he had trouble getting a feel for the tournament's two Pinehurst courses.
Now he's figuring it out, and that could be a bad sign for the remaining 31 players.
"I'm starting to now know all that stuff, like which spot is the best place to be in, and around the greens, and it's helped me play a little bit better each day," Lee said.
Two separate rounds of match play are set for today. Eight players advance to Friday's quarterfinals. Six rounds of match play are scheduled over the five-day span that concludes Sunday.
U.S. Amateur Championship
(At Pinehurst, Par 70, 7,281 yards)
First Round, Match Play
Upper Bracket
Robbie Fillmore, Provo, Utah (134) def. Ross Beal, Uniontown, Ohio (145), 3 and 2; Kevin Tway, Edmond, Okla. (143) def. Philip Francis, Scottsdale, Ariz. (142), 2 up; Peter Uihlein, Bradenton, Fla. (140) def. Trent Leon, Dallas, Texas (144), 1 up; Derek Fathauer, Jensen Beach, Fla. (140) def. Jhonattan Vegas, Venezuela (144), 1 up; Matthew Swan, Montgomery, Ala. (139) def. Rob Chappell, Cincinnati, Ohio (144), 4 and 2; Drew Kittleson, Scottsdale, Ariz. (143) def. Eddie Olson, Aptos, Calif. (142), 3 and 2; Jeff Edelman, Southlake, Texas (139) def. Carl Santos-Ocampo, Naples, Fla. (144), 5 and 3; Paul Woodbury, Lake City, S.C. (143) def. David McDaniel, Tucson, Ariz. (141), 4 and 3; Adam Mitchell, Chattanooga, Tenn. (144) def. Corey Nagy, Charlotte, (137), 2 up; Mike McCoy, West Des Moines, Iowa (142) def. Adam Hadwin, Canada (143), 19 holes; Rickie Fowler, Murrieta, Calif. (144) def. Isaiah Telles, Tualatin, Ore. (140), 4 and 2; Jake Koppenberg, Everett, Wash. (141) def. Sam Smith, Turlock, Calif. (143), 2 and 1; Erik Flores, Grass Valley, Calif. (138) def. Mark Anderson, Beaufort, S.C. (144), 3 and 2; Charlie Holland, Dallas, Texas (143) def. Tyler Gann, Houston, Texas (142), 1 up; Sihwan Kim, Buena Park, Calif. (140) def. Sam Saunders, Orlando, Fla. (144), 19 holes; Matt Hill, Canada (141) def. Jamie Lovemark, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (143), 1 up.
Lower Bracket
Wesley Bryan, Chapin, S.C. (136) def. Jason Bittick, Coto De Caza, Calif. (145), 4 and 3; Morgan Hoffmann, Saddle Brook, N.J. (143) def. Jason Millard, Murfreesboro, Tenn. (142), 1 up; Andrew Landry, Groves, Texas (144) def. Scott Langley, St Louis, Mo. (140), 2 and 1; Billy Horschel, Grant, Fla. (140) def. Drew Lethem, Camdenton, Mo. (144), 3 and 2; Kyle Stanley, Gig Harbor, Wash. (138) def. Seung-Su Han, Irvine, Calif. (144), 4 and 3; Connor McHenry, Jefferson City, Mo. (142) def. Barden Berry, Kinston, (143), 2 and 1; Jacob Burger, Orangeburg, S.C. (140) def. Michael O'Neal, Jacksonville, Fla. (144), 2 and 1; Danny Lee, New Zealand (141) def. David Bartman, Los Angeles, Calif. (143), 4 and 3; Patrick Reed, Augusta, Ga. (144) def. Dan Woltman, Beaver Dam, Wis. (137), 19 holes; Brady Exber, Las Vegas, Nev. (142) def. Josh Anderson, Murrieta, Calif. (143), 20 holes; Brian Harman, Savannah, Ga. (140) def. Kevin O'Connell, Cary, (144), 1 up; Brandon Detweiler, Akron, Pa. (140) def. Conrad Shindler, Westlake, Texas (143), 19 holes; Skip Berkmeyer, St. Louis, Mo. (144) def. Andrew Putnam, University Place, Wash. (138), 1 up; Graham Hill, Canada (142) def. J.C. Horne, Daytona Beach, Fla. (143), 2 and 1; Nick Taylor, Canada (140) def. Trent Sanders, Scottsdale, Ariz. (144), 3 and 2; Kevin Marsh, Henderson, Nev. (141) def. David Vanegas, Colombia (143), 1 up.
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