Kelly Chinn of Great Falls, Va. joined an elite group Tuesday as he won medalist honors in qualifying for match play in the U.S. Junior Amateur at The Country Club of North Carolina in Pinehurst Village, N.C. for the second time in his outstanding junior career.
Chinn, who was the qualifying medalist three years ago at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J., added a 3-under-par 68 at The Country Club of North Carolina’s Cardinal Course to the spectacular competitive course record 8-under 64 he fired in Monday’s opening round at the Dogwood Course.
The 18-year-old Chinn, who will join the program at Atlantic Coast Conference power Duke next month, ended up with an 11-under 132 total, three shots clear of runnerup Andrew Goodman of Norman, Okla., who matched Chinn’s course-record 64 in Tuesday’s second round at the Dogwood Course.
The short list of players who have been multiple qualifying medalists includes that Tiger Woods fella, Willie Wood and Jim Liu. Any time you can put your name on a golf list that includes Woods, you’re doing something right.
Chinn made a strong opening statement Monday when he had an eagle, six birdies and nary a bogey on his scorecard in his 8-under round at the 7,140-yard, par-72 Dogwood Course layout. Chinn did have a couple of bogeys Tuesday after starting off the 11th tee at the 7,164-yard, par-71 Cardinal Course layout, one at the 439-yard, par-4 18th hole and another at the 188-yard, par-3 seventh hole. But he made birdies at the 13th, 15th, 17th, second and third holes to match the U.S. Junior Amateur record for a qualifying total at 132.
Chinn lost in the second round of match play after winning medalist honors three years ago at Baltusrol and made a run to the semifinals at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio two years ago. There is only one goal left to accomplish in Chinn’s final summer as a junior golfer: Win the thing.
The two courses were needed to accommodate the expanded field of 264 players and, trust me, there are easily 264 deserving junior golfers out there – and then some.
The local contingent at The Country Club of North Carolina struggled in qualifying and none of them will be sticking around for match play or even the playoff Wednesday morning among the 13 players who landed on 4-over 147 and will play off for the final 10 berths in the match-play bracket.
John Peters, a recent Carlisle graduate who is also headed for Duke next month, added a 4-over 75 at the Cardinal Course Tuesday to the opening round of 3-over 75 he posted Monday at the Dogwood Course for a 7-over 150 total. Peters was a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier.
Dallas senior Logan Paczewski, who emerged from a Golf Association of Philadelphia-administered qualifier at Doylestown Country Club, added a 3-over 74 Tuesday to his opening round of 5-over 77 Monday at the Dogwood Course and ended up at 151. Paczewski has qualified for the PIAA Class AAA Championship in each of his first three years at Dallas. He plans to join the program at Rutgers of the Big Ten at the end of next summer.
North Pocono senior Billy Pabst, who finished in a tie for sixth in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort, last fall, was in the group a shot behind Paczewski at 152 as he carded a solid 1-over 73 in Tuesday’s second round at the Dogwood Course after struggling to a 79 in the opening round at the Cardinal Course.
Evan Barbin of the golfing Barbin family of Elkton, Md. couldn’t get it going in Tuesday’s second round at the Cardinal Course as he posted an 80 to finish with a 155 total. Barbin, who has had a solid summer on the golf course, had given himself a shot to make the match-play bracket with a 3-over 75 at the Dogwood Course in Monday’s opening round.
Barbin had also earned his ticket to The Country Club of North Carolina out of the qualifier at Doylestown.
Reigning PIAA Class AAA champion Calen Sanderson, a Holy Ghost Prep senior, also gave himself a shot at a spot in match play with a 3-over 74 in Monday’s opening round at the Cardinal Course. But Sanderson, who will join the Notre Dame program next summer, struggled to an 82 at the Dogwood Course in Tuesday’s second round for a 156 total.
Sanderson was another player who came out of the local qualifier at Doylestown.
Logan Wagner, a junior at Solanco, added an 81 at the Dogwood Course Tuesday to the opening-round 84 he posted at the Cardinal Course for a 165 total. Wagner earned the fourth ticket out of the Doylestown qualifier in a playoff.
Jolo Timothy Magcalayo is a native of the Philippines, but he had tuned up for runs to the U.S. Junior Amateur in 2018 at Baltusrol and again in 2019 at the Inverness Club by teeing it up Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stops in the spring. Magcalayo reached the second round of match play at Baltusrol.
Haven’t seen Magcalayo around these parts lately, but he did earn a trip to The Country Club of North Carolina. He failed to earn a spot in the match-play bracket as he added a 78 at the Dogwood Course to his opening-round 81 at the Cardinal Course for a 159 total.
Although the local guys didn’t make it into match play, at least this year they got a shot after the U.S. Junior Amateur was a casualty of the coronavirus pandemic and was not played in 2020. There is nothing quite like the experience of playing in a USGA championship in the development of a junior player.
Goodman, who will join the program at Big 12 power Oklahoma next month, matched Chinn’s performance from Monday in Tuesday’s second round at the Dogwood Course, registering six birdies and an eagle in a sizzling 8-under 64 after matching par with a 71 at the Cardinal Course in Monday’s opening round.
Goodman’s 8-under 135 total left him alone in second place, three shots behind Chinn at 8-under 135.
David Ford of Peachtree Corners, Ga., who teamed with Chinn to win medalist honors in qualifying in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash. in May, finished a shot behind Goodman in a tie for third place with a 7-under 136 total. Ford, who will join the North Carolina program next month, added a 3-under 69 at the Dogwood Course to his solid opening round of 4-under 67 at the Cardinal Course.
Ford was joined at 7-under by Nicholas Dunlap of Huntsville, Ala., who had matching 68s, 4-under at the Dogwood Course in Monday’s opening round and 3-under in Tuesday’s second round at the Cardinal Course.
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