Billy the Kid still firing

   It's been nine years since Billy Stewart, then a member at Llanerch Country Club, became the youngest player in more than a half century to win the Golf Association of Philadelphia's Amateur Championship. The ink was barely dry on Stewart's Malvern Prep diploma when he blitzed John Robinson of Commonwealth, 8 and 7, in the scheduled 36-hole final.
    Well, Stewart, who continues to play the mini-tours as a professional, was back in the area Thursday and grabbed one of the seven berths available in a local U.S. Open qualifying event held at Applebrook Country Club in East Goshen, Chester County.
   Stewart matched par at the 6,799-yard, par-71 Applebrook layout and then survived a three-for-one playoff for the final spot. Stewart now moves on to a 36-hole sectional qualifying tournament of his choice in the second step of the process that makes the U.S. Open truly "Open." The 2011 edition of the National Open will be held June 16 to 19 at Congressional C.C. in Bethesda, Md.
   The co-medalists, both of whom carded 4-under 67s, were Gary Carpenter Jr., a 36-year-old amateur who lives in Maryland not far from Congressional, and Marcello Santi, a native of Italy whose long and winding golf career includes 11 years on the European Tour and his current gig as a project manager for a golf-course development firm.
    Several familiar names took their U.S. Open shot at Applebrook and came up short.
   Braden Shattuck, who is about to finish his junior year at Sun Valley, fired an outstanding 2-over 73 to miss out on the playoff by just two shots. Shattuck has been one of the county's top scholastic players the last two falls, but hasn't been able to get over the hump in the postseason. Clearly, Shattuck has his game in good shape as the summer approaches.
    Also at 2-over 73 was Stephen Seiden, the Strath Haven All-Delco who started playing under the Llanerch banner last year after previously playing out of Concord C.C.
   James Kania Jr., the 2005-06 Daily Times Player of the Year as a junior at The Haverford School, was another shot back at 3-over 74 as was Adam Cohan, the 2002 PIAA champion and three-time Daily Times Player of the Year at Radnor. Kania's younger brother Michael advanced in Open qualifying earlier in the week at Hidden Creek G.C. near the Jersey Shore. The Kanias both play out of the links powerhouse that is Overbrook G.C.
Elliott leads the way at Merion
   This time last year, Catherine Elliott, the former Notre Dame standout, was teeing it up with the Penn Quakers at the NCAA regionals at Stanford.
   Last week Elliott was holding down the No. 1 position on Merion Golf Club's top team in the Women's Golf Assocation of Philadelphia Inter-Club Team Matches as Merion clinched the Philadelphia Cup title with a 5-2 victory over Philadelphia Cricket Club that completed a 5-0 sweep through the top tier of the annual team matches.
   Elliott, who reached the semifinals of the Women's Golf Association of Philadelphia Amateur Championship and fell in the Pennsylvania Women's Amateur final to Chichester senior Aurora Kan while playing some excellent golf in the summer of 2010, edged the Cricket Club's top gun, Kelly Rutan, 1-up.
   Other winners for Merion included Nancy Porter, Kim Simmons, Katie Sibel and Vinny West. Porter is the daughter of Dorothy Porter, winner of the 1949 U.S. Women's Amateur at Merion. Rounding out the powerhouse Merion lineup in Tuesday's final match were Liz Haines, one of the top amateur players in the Philadelphia area for many years, and Loraine Jones, who was known as Loraine Connolly when she was a PIAA Tournament qualifier at Haverford High.