A field of 74 golfers, 37 teams, from around the country teed off Wednesday morning at Edgewood Country Club in Sissonville hoping to earn one of two qualifying spots or one of two alternate spots in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball qualifier. The West Virginia Golf Association (WVGA), in support and collaboration with the United States Golf Association (USGA), conducted the event.
Claiming the two qualifying positions were the team of Lucas Armstrong of Church Hill, Tenn. and Jason Milllard of Murfreesboro, Tenn., finishing first at nine under par (-9) 62, followed by the team of Paul Fitzgerald and Scott Hamel, both of Charlotte, NC, scoring eight under par (-8) 63. Fitzgerald and Hamel won a playoff to qualify.
Zachary Watterson of Beatyville, Ky., and Anders Larson of Pine Island, Minn., also finished at eight under par (-8) 63 to earn one of two alternate positions. The other alternates are Jackson Hill of Beckley and Dustin Demersseman of Athens, Ga., finishing at seven under par (-7) 64, who also secured their spot on a playoff.
“It’s always an honor to host USGA events and to see such great players from across West Virginia and the country come here,” said Edgewood’s Assistant Golf Professional David Scragg. “Kenny Eggleston and his crew are simply amazing. Weather conditions have been challenging throughout the year, but Kenny’s crew have the course in great shape. The greens were perfect today.”
“We are honored to host one of the US Amateur Four-Ball qualifiers across the country,” said WVGA Executive Director Chris Slack. “I’m always amazed to see where our participants call home. In our field of 74 players, just over 20 percent of whom were from West Virginia, we had players from California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia, plus Germany and India. We’re glad for the chance to let them experience the beauty and hospitality of West Virginia.”
Other West Virginians finishing in the top 10 were Jared Taylor of Bluefield and Jess Ferrell of Fairmont tied for fourth, and Mike Veres of Logan and Philip Reale of Ona in ninth.
Click here for Wednesday’s leaderboard.