These Amateurs! We've Seen Some Shots Through 36 At Congressional

Patrick Cantlay, a 19-year old sophomore at UCLA, shot minus-four on Friday at Congressional and is tied for 15th at the halfway post; Russel Henley from UGeorgia, a Nationwide tour winner this year, sits in the same position midway gone after a minus-two performance on Friday. They figure to be joined by Brad Benjamin, the USGA Public Links champion, as three of a kind still on the course after the cut is made in the 2011 US Open.

What’s their connection? They could care less about the spinach, the broccoli, the greens. These guys don’t show for flow, don’t itch for scratch, don’t sing for jing. This trio is amateurish in the only sense of the word that defines their play: monetary. The rest of the way around the course, these tres amigos have been professing the professional, from tee one to green last.

This isn’t exactly easy, as you might guess. To get to Thursday of the US Open, you need to at least survive 36-holes in a day of sectional qualifying, and possibly 18 previous ones at local qualifying. Some guys get right in, though, without q-courses. The winner and runner-up at last year’s US Amateur, Peter Uihlein and David Chung, both missed the cut. Seven others from the play-for-glory band of brothers also failed to make it through to round three.

So what does this do for Cantlay and Henley, and possibly Benjamin? Guarantees them a spot on the US Walker Cup team in Scotland next Fall, that’s all. To read more from Cantlay, click here.