Whitemarsh Valley CC’s McCrossen tops Junior Boys’ Championship Qualifier at Riverton CC

CINNAMINSON, N.J.–Edward McCrossen, Jr. of Whitemarsh Valley CC carded a 3-under-par 68 to earn medalist honors at Tuesday’s Junior Boys’ Championship Qualifier at Riverton CC (par 71, 6,253 yards).

   The Ambler, Pa., resident leapt to a strong start by firing birdies on Nos. 1 (par 4, 350 yards), 3 (par 4, 390 yards) and 5 (par 4, 356 yards). With a 70-yard wedge in, McCrossen, 17, knocked it to about 15 feet on No. 1 and converted the ensuing putt for birdie. For McCrossen’s second shot on No. 3, he went 9-iron and drilled it about 18 feet short of the flagstick. McCrossen continued his birdie barrage on No. 5 by hitting his 9-iron about 147 yards to the right-side of the green and draining a 22-footer.

   “I was just hitting fairways and greens and I knocked a couple of putts in,” he said.

   McCrossen continues to stay hot on the GAP circuit. Last week, he qualified for match play in the 109th Amateur Championship.

   “It gave me a lot of confidence,” McCrossen said. “Going into the Amateur, I wasn’t hitting my irons very well, and then in the Amateur, I was hitting everything stiff.”

   Though he topped Tuesday’s field of 95, McCrossen doesn’t want to get ahead of himself entering match play.

   “I’m just going to take it round-by-round, keep hitting it on the green and try to make my putts,” he said. “I just got to try and carry my momentum. I’m playing well right now.”

   Andrew Keeling of Yardley CC will be seeded No. 2 after carding a 2-under-par 69. The Langhorne, Pa., resident relied on his short game Tuesday.

   “I putted well. I got up and down when I needed to, and the driver was there,” Keeling said.

   Keeling, 17, carded birdies on Nos. 4 (par 4, 360 yards), 7 (par 5, 510 yards) and 9 (par 5, 485 yards).

   “I didn’t three-putt. I think I missed two greens,” he said.

   Mike Amole of Huntingdon Valley CC registered a 1-under-par 70 to place third. The 16 year old felt that he played “pretty smart.”

   “I made a lot of 10-footers for par and birdie,” he said. “I hit my irons pretty well. I just stuck with a gameplan not to hit driver much. I just wanted to put it down the middle and just not make a big number.”

   Overall, Amole, of Huntingdon Valley, Pa., believes his chipping and putting anchored his steady play.

   “I didn’t hit many greens,” he said.

   Amole posted birdies on Nos. 2 (par 4, 375 yards), 8 (par 4, 319 yards), 9 (par 5, 485 yards) and 16 (par 3, 150 yards). On No. 2, his 7-iron sailed about 150 yards and landed about 20 feet from the flagstick. He converted a two-footer for birdie on No. 8 and knocked a sand wedge to about 10 feet on No. 9. On No. 16, his 8-iron deflected off the top of the hill and settled about 10 feet from the flagstick.

   Amole senses that tomorrow’s match play portion will prove challenging.

   “I don’t expect to have another day like this,” he said. “I made some lucky putts. I made a few mistakes, but they weren’t major.”

   Thirty-two players qualified for match play, which is split into two flights: Championship and First. McCrossen, the No. 1 seed in the Championship Flight, will tee off against No. 16 seed Greg Jarmas of Philadelphia Publinks GA at 7:30 a.m.

   Jericho National GC won the Team Championship, which runs concurrently with the qualifier. Teams consist of three or four players with the low three scores counting toward the final total.