USGA Amateur Championship: Finals Don't Matter for Knost, Thompson

That’s not entirely true, but it makes for a good headline. I can now suggest unambiguously and unequivocally that the USGA should select Michael Thompson and Kyle Stanley for their 2007 Walker Cup side. I like Thompson and Stanley over, say, Rickie Fowler based on age alone. Fowler is easily as talented as the other two, but his failure to make match play at the Am reveals an inability (immaturity?) that we don’t want creeping in on Sunday of the matches.

Stanley got through to round two before losing to unheralded David McDaniel, who would go on one round hence to lose to Thompson. Had Stanley eaked out a win, we would have had a match of immense change in round three. Thompson might never have completed his run to the final. Stanley’s qualifying 140, three off the medal, ought to be enough to win his spot on the team.

Alex Prugh is simply the victim of bad timing. He’s had a solid year, finds himself #7 on the Golfweek list and #21 on the Scratch Players sheet. A case could be made for his candidacy over those of Kuehne and Moore, but that ship has sailed. Prugh needed to step higher than Thompson and Stanley, but could only reach the first round of match play after qualifying second.

Golfweek List
1. (1) Chris Kirk
1. (1) Dustin Johnson
3. (3) Webb Simpson
4. (4) Rickie Fowler
5. (5) Billy Horschel
6. (6) Kyle Stanley
7. (7) Colt Knost
7. (7) Alex Prugh
9. (9) Michael Thompson
10. (14) Rob Grube

Scratch Players List (Missing numbers are overseas players)
1 Johnson Dustin
2 Kirk Chris
3 Lovemark Jamie
4 Stanley Kyle
5 Horschel Billy
7 Simpson Webb
9 Knost Colt
13 Fowler Rickie
19 Grube Rob
20 Thompson Michael

Stanley’s combined 10 places him higher than Fowler’s 17. Thompson is behind Fowler currently, with a combined 30, but his Am result will certainly push him inside both top 10s, ahead of Fowler. Fowler and Prugh are your alternates, and the book is closed.