MALVERN, Pa. — It’s been a decade of frustration when it comes U.S. Open qualifying for John Lynch. No, not the famous hard-hitting safety with an accomplished NFL career. The teaching professional at Peninsula Golf & Country Club with a longstanding desire to take golf’s toughest test.
Lynch finally shattered that torment to move one step closer to grabbing a No. 2 pencil. He carded a 1-under-par 70 to earn medalist honors in a U.S. Open Local Qualifier at Applebrook Golf Club (par 71, 6,810 yards) Thursday. Lynch led a field of 132 players trying to grab one of eight available qualifying positions.
Also advancing to the Sectional stage are fellow professionals Brandon Knaub, David Sanders and Michael Tobiason, Jr., who punched their tickets in regulation. Pros Joey Bonargo of Mechanicsville, Pa., Zak Drescher of Landisville, Pa. and Chad Wilfong of Charlotte, N.C., as well as amateur Cory Siegfried of Villanova, Pa., survived an eight-for-four sudden-death playoff to secure the remaining qualifying spots.
The 113th U.S. Open is set for June 13-16 at Merion Golf Club.
“I managed my game well,” Lynch, 37, of Selbyville, Del., said. “I made some nice putts and got a couple of lucky breaks. I made some really important up-an-downs, too.”
One of those breaks occurred on the reachable par 4, 310-yard No. 3. An aggressive drive placed Lynch in the face of tall fescue. He then executed a delicate chip that tracked into the bottom of the jar for eagle. Lady Luck also stood by Lynch on No. 9 (par 3, 149 yards). He came up short of a front hole location with a pitching wedge. After taking relief from a sprinkler head, he sent a putt that navigated the upslope and dropped in for birdie. Lynch moved to 3 under after hitting a knockdown 8-iron 140 yards to 10 feet for birdie on No. 12 (par 4, 370 yards).
As he strolled down the 18th (par 4, 454 yards) fairway with red figures intact, Lynch nearly lost his qualifying status. He blocked a 5-iron into the front right bunker and couldn’t escape a tough lie. Lynch found the green on his fourth stroke and two-putted for a safe 6.
“I don’t know if the pressure got to me or what,” Lynch said of the approach. “I don’t really like that second shot. Back right pin, right-to-left wind, uphill — it’s a very challenging golf shot. I just didn’t pull it off.”
Lynch will travel to Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Md. for Sectionals. Knaub, a teaching professional at Hillendale Country Club in Maryland, Sanders, who competes Mini Tour events and Monday qualifiers, and Tobiason, a teaching pro at Applecross Country Club, will join Lynch there. They carded respective even-par 71s to advance Thursday.
“I played great golf today from tee to green,” Knaub, 31, of York, Pa., said. “I bombed some drives and hit a lot of fairways.”
The only two bogeys Knaub carded, oddly enough, were products of poor approaches from the middle of the fairway. On No. 2 (par 4, 366 yards), Knaub hit a wedge 65 yards and came up yards short of a front hole location. He made a similar error on the par 5, 573-yard 10th hole, this time nuking a 77-yard wedge shot over the green. Knaub washed away those bogeys with a pair of birdies. He drove the No. 3 (par 4, 310 yards) green and two-putted from 40 feet. On No. 13 (par 4, 453 yards), Knaub drilled a 9-iron 155 yards to four feet.
Prior to Hillendale, Knaub spent time among the professional tour circuit, competing in eGolf, Gateway and Mini Tour events. He played in the 2010 Pennsylvania Golf Association’s Open Championship at Applebrook.
“This was a close enough drive,” Knaub said. “I knew what I was getting into with the course. Every time I’ve been here, it’s been in phenomenal shape.”
Knaub estimates that he’s advanced to Sectional qualifying “four or five” times in his career. He hopes to break through that barrier in Sectionals. Sanders will be there with the same mindset. The Mount Laurel, N.J. resident is now six for eight when it comes to U.S. Open Local qualifiers, but has never advanced past Sectionals.
“I was actually going for medalist today, but fell a little short of that,” the 22-year-old said. “I casually hit every green on the front. I think I only had one up-and-down.”
A birdie-birdie start eased Sanders into the round. He converted a 15-footer on No. 1 (par 5, 521 yards) and a 10-footer on No. 2 (par 4, 366 yards). Seven pars later, Sanders birdied the par 5, 573-yard 10th hole following a routine wedge to 10 feet. He stumbled a bit coming in to fall out of red figures. Sanders left an 8-iron from 150 yards short of the No. 16 (par 5, 578 yards) green, chipped on and failed to convert a 15-footer for par. He flew the No. 17 (par 3, 178 yards) green with a 6-iron, and a gnarly lie led to a 5. Sanders executed a clutch 15-foot double-breaker to save par on No. 18 (par 4, 454 yards) and to avoid a playoff.
Tobiason, too, is in the midst of quite a U.S. Open qualifying streak. He’s advanced thru the local stage three straight years, including an appearance in the Championship proper in 2011 at Congressional Country Club.
“I didn’t make any major mistakes,” Tobiason, 29, of Wilmington, Del., said. “I hit the ball really well today. I put myself in good positions to make some birdies. I didn’t have a lot of putts fall. I just managed my game real well.”
“I expect to be playing at Merion,” he said. “I really have no excuses. I’ve been playing really well. My game’s there.”
Siegfried, 23, a graduate student at Villanova University, is thrilled to advance to Sectionals. He qualified for the U.S. Amateur last year at Applebrook.
”It’s pretty nice,” he said. “It feels good to move on, especially because I’ve never done it. It’ll be interesting to see what the second stage is like. I can imagine it’s a lot harder.”
The Golf Association of Philadelphia of Philadelphia administered a pair of U.S. Open Local Qualifiers prior to Thursday. Mikel Martinson, a professional on the eGolf tour, and Oliver White, an amateur out of Manufacturers Golf & Country Club, shared medalist honors in a qualifier at Waynesborough Country Club last week. Philadelphia Publinks GA’s Michael R. Brown, the 2010 William Hyndman, III Player of the Year, topped an event held Monday at Whitford Country Club.
Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 143 Member Clubs and 57,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
Qualifiers
Name
City
Scores
John Lynch
Selbyville, DE
70
Brandon Knaub
York, PA
71
David Sanders
Mount Laurel, NJ
71
Michael Tobiason Jr
Wilmington, DE
71
*Chad Wilfong
Charlotte, NC
72
*Zak Drescher
Landisville, PA
72
*Joey Bonargo
Mechanicsville, PA
72
*(a) Cory Siegfried
Wayne, PA
72
Alternates (in order)
*Rich Steinmetz
Gilbertsville, PA
72
*(a) Nelson Hargrove
Haverford, PA
72
Failed to qualify
*John Dimarco
Cherry Hill, NJ
72
*(a) Michael Johnson
Ambler, PA
72
(a) Devin O’Grady
Ephrata, PA
73
(a) Juan Candela
Bogota
73
(a) Craig Hornberger
Lancaster, PA
73
(a) Sean Fahey
Villanova, PA
73
(a) James Kania
Haverford, PA
73
Eric Onesi
Bear, DE
74
Vince Alessi
Jupiter, FL
74
(a) David Denlinger
Lancaster, PA
74
Kevin King
Cranford, NJ
74
Dave McNabb
Newark, DE
74
Neil Maurer
Ocean View, DE
74
Robert Rohanna
Waynesburg, PA
74
(a) Brady Goodling
Manheim, PA
74
(a) Nick Iacono
Hockessin, DE
74
(a) Christopher Fuga
Phoenixville, PA
74
Christopher Gray
Newark, DE
74
(a) Robert Galbreath Jr
Huntingdon Valley, PA
74
John Pillar
Hawley, PA
74
(a) Christopher Crawford
Bensalem, PA
74
(a) J. D. Dornes
Lancaster, PA
75
(a) Stephen Kidron
Horsham, PA
75
Billy Stewart
Devon, PA
75
(a) Matthew Teesdale
Maple Glen, PA
75
(a) Thomas Timby
Doylestown, PA
75
(a) Jacob Gurock
West Windsor, NJ
75
(a) Chris Lange
Newtown Square, PA
76
Jakob Gerney
Sewell, NJ
76
(a) Dan Arison
Norristown, PA
76
(a) Jamie Slonis
Sewell, NJ
76
Casey O’Reilly
Annandale, NJ
76
(a) Patrick Simmons
Hockessin, DE
76
(a) Ross Feldman
Philadelphia, PA
76
Hugo Mazzalupi
King Of Prussia, PA
76
David Fields
Macungie, PA
76
Jeffrey Bishop
Rowayton, CT
76
(a) Zachary Falone
Mickleton, NJ
76
Bill Britton
Rumson, NJ
76
(a) Ted Brennan
Newtown Square, PA
76
(a) Matthew Gaffney
Sewell, NJ
76
(a) Sam Pancoast
West Chester, PA
77
Andy Watters
King Of Prussia, PA
77
(a) John Samaha
Ambler, PA
77
George Forster
Villanova, PA
77
(a) David Shields
Erdenheim, PA
77
Gregory Pieczynski
Kingston, PA
77
(a) James Wolfe
Pottstown, PA
77
Gregory Matthias
Wilmington, DE
78
Eric Kennedy
Newtown Square, PA
78
(a) Nick Chladek
Menlo Park, CA
78
(a) Anthony List
Havertown, PA
78
(a) Zachary Melnick
Blue Bell, PA
78
(a) Geoffrey Cooper
Philadelphia, PA
78
(a) Daniel Myers
West Chester, PA
78
Mark Sheftic
Blue Bell, PA
78
Greg Farrow
Marlton, NJ
78
(a) Marc Mandel
Plymouth Meeting, PA
78
Steve Sieracki
Cherry Hill, NJ
78
Tim Wagner
Narberth, PA
79
Jordan Gibbs
Lawrenceville, NJ
79
(a) Jason Loehrs
Drexel Hill, PA
79
Jonathan Rusk
Yardley, PA
79
Bertus Wessels
Philadelphia, PA
79
(a) Cole Willcox
Berwyn, PA
79
(a) Evan Thornton
Wyomissing, PA
79
(a) Conrad Von Borsig
Swarthmore, PA
79
(a) Bin Kwon
Cherry Hill, NJ
79
(a) Matthew Hardman
Gettysburg, PA
79
Andrew Mason
Huntingdon Valley, PA
79
(a) Brian Gardner
Chester Springs, PA
79
(a) Freddy Henriquez
Kirkwood, PA
80
Justin Riegel
Conshohocken, PA
80
Bob Lennon
Greeneville, DE
80
(a) Josh Isler
West Chester, PA
80
(a) Alexander Kane
Unionville, PA
81
Luke Lanzetta Vargo
Chadds Ford, PA
81
John Phillips
Lakeland, FL
81
Mike Dynda
Blue Bell, PA
81
Leo Nebbia
Hamilton, NJ
81
Jason Krier
Morrisville, PA
81
(a) Jimmy Pokorny
Havertown, PA
81
(a) Richard Umani
West Chester, PA
81
John J. Cooper Jr.
Lansdale, PA
82
Eric Figueroa
Kennett Square, PA
82
Robby Walizer
King Of Prussia, PA
82
(a) Patrick Dougherty
North Wales, PA
82
Ed Gibson
Lansdale, PA
82
Cavan Birmingham
Voorhees, NJ
83
Tim Godshalk
Exton, PA
83
(a) Ryan Malloy
Dover, DE
83
(a) Matt Kocent
Bala Cynwyd, PA
83
Doug Delaney
Cape May Court House, NJ
83
Shawn Hall
West Chester, PA
83
(a) George Henry
Avondale, PA
83
Ryan Felpel
Lancaster, PA
84
(a) Paul Carbone Jr.
Huntingdon Valley, PA
84
(a) Nicholas Calabrese
Newtown Square, PA
84
(a) Bradley Roberts
Mount Laurel, NJ
84
(a) Matthew Bastian
Media, PA
84
Andrew Dawes
Palmyra, PA
84
(a) Chris Burns
Kennett Square, PA
84
Ciaran Carr
Myrtle Beach, SC
85
(a) Blake Hinckley
Kennett Square, PA
85
(a) Will Flood
Blue Bell, PA
85
Grant Griffiths
Conshohocken, PA
85
Robert Kownacky
Lumberton, NJ
87
(a) Ryan Jones
Bristol, PA
87
Dustin McCormick
East Stroudsburg, PA
88
Wesley Hollis
Glenmoore, PA
89
(a) Zach Bach
Bayville, NJ
90
Jason Wiegand
Galloway, NJ
91
Robert Passarelli
Kennett Square, PA
95
Christopher Carr
Douglassville, PA
100
(a) Arthur Kania
Haverford, PA
WD
(a) Walter Lucki
Jim Thorpe, PA
NC
(a) Zack Mullock
Cape May, NJ
WD
Paul Poandl
Skillman, NJ
WD
Kevin Nicholson
Schwenksville, PA
WD
