Crawford's 66 at Moselem Springs makes him U.S. Open qualifying medalist

   Chris Crawford, the reigning Patterson Cup champion who just completed the best career in the history of Drexel golf, fired a sparkling 4-under 66 at Moselem Springs Golf Club in Berks County Thursday to claim medalist honors in a local qualifier for next month’s U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club.

   The USGA is visiting Pennsylvania a lot this year and no event is bigger than the U.S. Open, which returns to Oakmont, the one and only Henry Fownes design in suburban Pittsburgh, for the ninth time.  The last time the Open was at Oakmont was 2007 when Argentina’s Angel Cabrera captured the title with a 5-over 285 total. The USGA is also staging the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Rolling Green Golf Club, the William Flynn gem in Springfield, Delaware County, and the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at the Stonewall Golf Links, a Tom Doak design in northwest Chester County.

   But the focus for Crawford and his fellow competitors Thursday was on Oakmont. And Crawford, starting on the 10^th hole, got his day started with three straight birdies. He made his only bogey of the day at the 18^th to turn in 2-under 33. He then added birdies at the first and fourth holes to finish at 4-under.

   Crawford, a Holy Ghost Prep product, recently completed his Drexel career with a third-place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association Championship. With eight career victories, there isn’t much argument that Crawford is the finest player in the history of the Drexel program.

   Crawford will set his sights on the 36-hole sectional qualifying June 6, “Golf’s Longest Day,” with 10 36-hole events scheduled at 10 sites throughout the country. It’s what makes the Open truly open.
   Steven Delmar, the assistant golf coach at Maryland, finished a shot back of Crawford in second at 3-under 67. Brent Studer, the 51-year-old director of golf at Metedeconk National Golf Club in Jackson, N.J., was third with a 2-under 68 and Alex Blickle, a fledgling professional from Reinholds, Berks County, fnished fourth at 1-under 69.
   It is the 12th time Studer has advanced out of local qualifying. The only time he made it out of the sectional qualifying was in 1994 when the Open was played at Oakmont.

   Six players finished in a tie for fourth at even-par 70, necessitating a six-for-two playoff. The survivors were Dave Quinn, the veteran golf director at Links Golf Club in Marlton, N.J., and Cole Miller, a freshman at Penn State and former Northwestern Lehigh standout. Miller and the Nittany Lions are set to tee off Monday in an NCAA Regional at Blackwolf Run’s Meadow Valleys Course in Kohler, Wis.

   The two alternates are Jared Texter of Millersville and Spring-Ford High standout Ben Pochet.

One of the casualties in the playoff was Vince Covello, who developed his game growing up at Llanerch Country Club and is an Episcopal Academy product. Covello, who resides in Ponte Vedra, Fla., has turned the local qualifier into a homecoming week each year with quite a bit of success. He was the qualifying medalist the last two years.

   There is another local qualifier set to tee off Monday at Silver Creek Country Club in Hellertown.

   There was also a local qualifier Monday at Lebanon Country Club and Whitford Country Club assistant pro Andrew Turner claimed medalist honors with an even-par 70. Turner is a product of Warwick High in Lancaster County.

   Kyle Sterbinsky, a Peddie School product who is having a solid freshman season at Wake Forest, also advanced to sectionals with a 1-under 71. That left him in a tie for second with another amateur, J.D. Hughes, a former Carlisle High standout who is coming off his sophomore season at Kent State.

   Sterbinsky, who was the qualifying medalist as a 16-year-old at the BMW Philadelphia Amateur at Aronimink Golf Club in 2013, finished in a tie for 13^th at the recent ACC Championship. The Demon Deacons are seeded second at the NCAA regional at the Gallery Golf Club in Marana, Ariz., which tees off Monday. There’s no guarantee that Sterbinsky, a member at Yardley Country Club, will be on the Wake team that travels to the regional, but I’m guessing a top-15 finish at the conference tournament will merit some serious consideration.

   The fourth and final qualifying berth went to Brody Goodling, a Manheim Central product who birdied the third hole of a playoff to advance.