Cline, Gaudreau and Russell Advance to U.S. Mid-Amateur
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Tyler Cline earns medalist honors at Mohawk Golf Club and punches his ticket to the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. He’ll be joined by Francis Gaudreau and Travis Russell who also qualified on Thursday.
Related: Results / U.S. Mid Amateur Championship
Cline, of Tuxedo, had a near-perfect front-nine as he birdied the third, sixth, and eighth holes. His only major slipup of the day came on the 10th hole where he bogeyed. Cline, a former Clarkson University golfer who now coaches his alma mater, went on to birdie 14 and 17. His round of four-under, 67, was comfortably the best in the 71-man field.
In one of the earliest tee-times, Gaudreau and Russell both went low. Both players birdied the first hole, bogeyed the third, but had consecutive birdies on holes five and six. The back nine was similar as they each birdied 11.
Russell, a former University of California Irvine golfer, bogeyed the 17th and parred 18 to turn in a round of two-under, 69. Gaudreau, on the other hand, was still recovering from an early double-bogey and birdied 16 and 18 to tie his playing partner.
Carl St. Arnaud had a later tee time but got off to a fast start with an eventful front-nine. He found one of the four birdies that the par-3 2nd hole offered. St. Arnaud also birdied 3, 6 and 8 as two bogeys put him at two-under making the turn. He’d go on to par the nine remaining holes leaving himself, Gaudreau, and Russell tied with only two qualifying spots available.
In the playoff, Gaudreau and Russell managed par while St. Arnaud bogeyed. This meant Gaudreau and Russell, after waiting more than three hours for the playoff, successfully qualified for the U.S. Mid-Am. St. Arnaud was named first alternate. 2007 NYS Men’s Am champion John Duthie shot one-under and claimed the second alternate spot in a playoff. Duthie birdied the 18th hole to give himself a chance for the alternate spot.
The 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship will be held at Sand Valley Resort in Wisconsin. The tournament will take place September 26th through October 1st.
