#BMWPhillyAm: Stroke-Play Qualifying

Bradbeer secures #BMWPhillyAm medal

BLUE BELL, Pa.–Peter Bradbeer knew he needed to get serious about his golf game if he was going to take it to the next level. So last winter, Bradbeer, re-energized and re-focused, started the process. He improved his strength and speed training; found two new coaches – a swing coach and a short game savant; and maybe most importantly, re-found his loose and free attitude.

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In Monday’s 121^st BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship Stroke-Play Qualifying held at The 1912 Club (par 70, 6,836 yards) and Cedarbrook Country Club (par 72, 7,037 yards), Bradbeer put on a display en route to medalist honors. He finished the 36 holes, 18 at each site, at 5-under 137. He enters the 32-player match-play bracket as the No. 1 seed. Austin Barbin of Loch Nairn Golf Club, the 2019 GAP Junior Player of the Year, placed second at 2 under and is seeded No. 2.

Defending champion Zach Barbin of Loch Nairn Golf Club posted a 2-over 144 in qualifying to keep repeat hopes alive and is seeded No. 14.

The cutline for the 127-player field landed at 5-over 147. There was a 5-for-1 qualifying playoff. Marty McGuckin and Mark Miller, both of Philadelphia Cricket Club, were on the third playoff hole when severe weather delayed the conclusion. The pair will return at 7 a.m. Tuesday with the winner to face Bradbeer at 8:22 a.m. on No. 1.

“It is great. It’s nice to be back in the GAP. I talked to [Assistant Communications Director] Tony [Regina] at the Father & Son (Middle) and felt my game was in good shape and it translated to today,” said Bradbeer, who won that event with dad Brad. “It’s nice to be able to play well and have all the hard work I put in this off season start to pay off. I hope this is just the beginning. It’s great to be the medalist but I’m here for the big one (the J. Wood Platt Amateur Championship Trophy) so we are going to get after it tomorrow. My game is in really good shape. I struck the ball really well today.”

Bradbeer opened qualifying with a 4-under 66 at The 1912 Club in the morning. A round that included a spectacular eagle, four birdies and two bogeys. On No. 13 (par 4, 294 yards), Bradbeer laced a 5-wood that stopped four feet from the hole for a 2. In his afternoon round at Cedarbrook, Bradbeer’s first look at the Championship’s main venue, it was more steady than flashy. He posted three birdies and two bogeys before finishing 1 under.

The 23-year-old Rosemont, Pa. resident is not without GAP Championship pedigree. At age 19, the then-upstart captured the 2017 Joseph H. Patterson Cup – the Association’s stroke-play championship – at Wilmington Country Club’s South Course.

He is the seventh Amateur medalist to call Merion home. The first since Michael McDermott in 2014.

And a victory on Saturday would be just the fourth by a player from the famed Main Line institution. Past Amateur winners were McDermott (2008, 2013, 2016), Max Marston (1923) and Rodney Griscom (1905).

“Any [championship] experience you have on the golf course is massive,” said Bradbeer, who graduated from Bucknell University in 2020. “You keep grinding and keep fighting. You never when a good round is going to around the corner. I’m really excited to get out there tomorrow to see what I can do.

“For the Patterson Cup, I was so loose and relaxed and having fun out there. That’s when I play my best. I think I’ve matured a ton since that win and am ready to take the next step. This is a great start.”

This is Cedarbrook’s sixth time serving as the BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship host and first since 2005 when Clint Deibert of Doylestown hoisted the trophy.

BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship

Originating in 1897, the Amateur Championship is GAP’s premiere individual event. Philadelphia Cricket Club’s Albert H. Smith captured the first Amateur Championship by defeating J.D. Winsor of Merion Cricket Club in 37 holes at Bala Golf Club. The event’s format switched to medal play in 1938. J. Wood Platt went on to win two consecutive Amateurs 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 back to match play in 1941. The Amateur Championship wasn’t contested from 1943- 45 because of World War II. Overall, 37 courses have hosted the Amateur.

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 Association’s 300 Member Clubs and 80,000 individual members are spread across the Eastern half of Pennsylvania and parts of Delaware, Maryland and New Jersey. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.