PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa. – Youth is served in the BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship. Collegians Jake Haberstumpf of Saucon Valley Country Club and Eli Spaulding of Briarwood Golf Club advanced to Saturday’s Final at Sunnybrook Golf Club. The 36-hole championship match begins at 7:30 a.m., with the second 18 holes scheduled for noon.
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Either player will claim his first BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship title.
Haberstumpf, 23, of Bethlehem, Pa. is a senior at Liberty University. Spaulding, 20, of Freeport, Maine is a junior at Loyola University Maryland.
Haberstumpf earned his spot in the Championship Match with a victory over LuLu Country Club’s Christian Matt, 3&2, in the Semifinal. The tense match featured strong play from both right-handed swingers with each making just one bogey in the 16 holes completed.
The storyline essentially revolved around a two-hole stretch, Nos. 9-10, that culminated with a spectacular plot twist.
The match was tied. The only action came early when the two exchanged victories on hole Nos. 2 and 3.
On No. 9 (par 4, 382 yards), Haberstumpf flighted a chippy no spin 54-degree wedge from 72 yards to three feet. Matt caught a flyer from the left rough with his gap wedge from 138 yards. His ball stopped 30 feet above the hole right. The putt: straight downhill. Matt’s effort rolled out to six-feet. The par putt missed. Haberstumpf’s conceded birdied moved him 1-up.
On No. 10 (par 4, 365 yards), Matt blocked his tee ball a bit right but negotiated some tree trouble with a magnificent second shot and had eight feet for birdie. He used the green’s contour to maneuver the ball like a marble in a soap dish with his approach. Haberstumpf wasn’t to be outdone. He “purposely” launched his driver into the large, front green-guarding bunker. Haberstumpf next hit a chunk-and-run bunker blast from 50 yards out that landed on the front of green and rolled into the cup for eagle. Haberstumpf, 2-up.
“I wanted to drive it into that bunker. I’m a good long-distance bunker shot player,” said Haberstumpf, 23, of Bethlehem, Pa. “People hate it, but I love it. I thought if I hit it where I hit it I could get it close and have a good look for birdie. It was just tracking after I hit it and ended up going in the hole. It was huge for momentum.”
“It’s really tough to judge that bunker shot [Jake had] to get it close,” said Matt, 22, of Lower Gwynedd, Pa. “I figured he would have a good look at birdie as well but I liked my chances. I had a similar putt in my morning match and made it. I was feeling confident walking up to that putt that I was going to win that hole and even the match.”
Haberstumpf was a 2024 Amateur Semifinalist. A valuable lesson was learned.
“Rest and recovery,” said Haberstumpf. “Prioritizing that. If you didn’t hit it great, don’t worry. It’s going to get better tomorrow. Go home and sleep. These matches are so much stress on your body.”
He knows has a two-day break to get the body right. And possibly be the first Saucon Valley member to hoist the J. Wood Platt Trophy.
Haberstumpf, the No. 16 seed, advanced to the Semifinal with a 2-up triumph over John Curran of Chester Valley Golf Club.
Spaulding bests Vannucci on final hole
Spaulding’s first BMW Philadelphia Amateur experience will result in his first Final.
Spaulding, the No. 11 seed, defeated No. 14 seed Dane Mohap of Lehigh Country Club, 1-up, in the Quarterfinals and three-time GAP Major Champion Troy Vannucci of Little Mill Country Club, 1-up, in the Semifinals.
Both victories came as a result of savvy scrambles for par on the uphill demon closer (No. 18, par 4, 460 yards) at Sunnybrook Golf Club, which pushed Spaulding to the 126th BMW Philadelphia Amateur Final. He got up-and-down from the right greenside bunker against Mohap and the front of the green against Vannucci. Both resulting in the same three-footer.
“It means a lot to make the Philadelphia Amateur Final,” Spaulding, 20, said. “I didn’t really have super high expectations going into this week. I had a disappointing week down at the Maryland Amateur and missed the cut. The format is the same so not playing match play for a while I wasn’t sure how I was going to do. I wanted to keep an open mind and I stayed patient in the Stroke-Play Qualifying. I’ve gotten on a roll in match play.”
Vannucci burst out to a 2-up lead through three holes. Spaulding would hold a 1-up advantage at the turn as a result of Vannucci missing the green long with a wedge on No. 9 (par 4, 382 yards) that resulted in bogey.
Vannucci, the 2023 William Hyndman, III Player of the Year, took back a 1-up advantage with a par on No. 12 (par 4, 425 yards) after Spaulding hit his tee shot out of bounds and a birdie on No. 15 (par 4, 416 yards).
“I didn’t know Troy nor do I know many players in the field,” Spaulding said. “I got a great idea about him on the first few holes. He is a really good competitor. I knew it was going to be a challenge for me.”
Spaulding’s charge to the Final began with an eagle on No. 16 (par 5, 553 yards). He stoned a 5-iron from 225 yards to 12 feet. Vannucci spun his approach a half a ball outside Spaulding’s mark. On No. 6 (par 4, 285 yards), Spaulding drove the green and Vannucci’s approach finished inside Spaulding’s 15-footer.
Vannucci learned and canned his putt to halve with birdie after Spaulding two-putted.
“Troy had been putting really well today,” Spaulding, the reigning two-time Maine Amateur champion, said. “I drove the sixth green and showed Troy the line on my eagle putt. He made his 12-footer on my line. So I thought on No. 16 that it would be my time to take advantage of a timely break. I knew I needed to make it.”
He did to tie the match. They halved with bogey on No. 17 (par 3, 195 yards) after Vannucci couldn’t get down in two from the fringe.
After Vannucci missed a 20-footer for par, Spaulding sealed the deal with his brilliant par after being in the right fairway bunker off the tee.
“I just made too many mistakes out there,” Vannucci, 34, Marlton, N.J., said. “Eli played well and hit the shots when he needed to. You just have to tip your cap.”
Now comes the waiting period. Two days pondering what winning the J. Wood Platt trophy would mean.
“I definitely need to rest a bit,” Spaulding, the reigning New England Amateur Champion, said. “I could feel my legs losing it a little coming up the last. I just want to stick to what I am doing. I’m sure I’ll still play and practice the next two days and maybe go to Loyola to see the guys in Baltimore. This week has been about patience and having trust in myself and trust in the shot at hand. I honestly don’t know where I’ll be staying. I didn’t think I would make it this far. It’s a good problem to have for sure.”
Additionally, the BMW Philadelphia Amateur runner-up as well as the two semifinalists from that championship earn exemptions into the U.S. Amateur Final Qualifying for 2026.
Semifinals
16. Jake Haberstumpf, Saucon Valley Country Club, d. 29. Christian Matt, LuLu Country Club, 3&2; 11. Eli Spaulding, Briarwood Golf Club, d. 7. Troy Vannucci, Little Mill Country Club, 1-up.
Quarterfinals
16. Haberstumpf d. 9. John Curran, Chester Valley Golf Club, 2-up; 29. Matt d. 5. John Barone, The 1912 Club, 4&3; 7. Vannucci d. 2. Cael Ropietski, Huntsville Golf Club, 2-up; 11. Spaulding, Briarwood Golf Club d. 14. Dane Mohap, Lehigh Country Club, 2-up.
BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship
Originating in 1897, the Amateur Championship is GAP’s premier individual event. Albert H. Smith of Philadelphia Cricket Club won the first Amateur Championship, then known as the GAP Individual Championship, by defeating J.D. Winsor, Jr. of Merion Cricket Club in 37 holes. The event’s format switched to medal play in 1938. J. Wood Platt went on to win two consecutive Amateur titles under that format. His brother William “Zimmer” Platt earned the 1940 title at Philadelphia Cricket Club by being the only competitor to finish all 72 holes. The event’s format reverted to match play in 1941. The Amateur Championship wasn’t contested from 1943-45 because of World War II. Overall, 34 courses have hosted the Amateur. GAP Magazine Editor-in-Chief Martin D. Emeno, Jr. and Senior Writer Tony Regina chronicled the event’s history in the Summer 2017 edition of the publication.
GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The organization’s 345 Member Clubs and 145,000 individual members are spread across Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
