adminZIMBABWE’S leading amateur golfer, Sean Crocker, continues to lift the country’s flag high after qualifying to compete in the US Amateur Championship next month.
Crocker finished second at the 36-hole qualifier held at the La Purisima Golf Course in Lompoc, CA and will join a field of over 300 golfers from around the country at Olympia Fields Golf Club in the village of Olympia Fields, Illinois, on the southern edge of the Chicago suburb.
The tournament runs from August 17-23, with two days of strokeplay, whittling the field down to the final 64 players.
They will then go through five days of matchplay to determine the champion.
The final five days at Olympia Fields will be televised nationally by Fox Sports.
The most recent USGA event held at the course was the 2003 US Open, won by Jim Furyk.
The US Amateur Championships is the oldest golf championship in the country, as it is one day older than the US Open.
Throughout the history of the tournament, which began in 1895, the US Amateur has been one of the most coveted of all amateur titles.
Among the previous winners of US Amateur titles are five-time champion Bobby Jones, two-time champion Jack Nicklaus, 1990 champion Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, who is the only player to ever win the US Amateur title three years in a row.
Last year, Gunn Yang defeated fellow Canadian Corey Conners, 2 and 1 in 36 holes to win the title.
The winner of the US Amateur receives an automatic invitation to play in all of the major championships, except the PGA Championship, while the runner-up earns an invitation to play in both the Masters and US Open.
Crocker, who helped USC to its best-ever finish as the 2015 NCAA Championships runner-up, will be making his debut at the prestigious competition.
Last month he named to the 2015 GCAA All-Freshman team together with four other golfers.
It was the latest in the long list of accolade for the teenage star who was already a PING All-American third teamer and All-West Region selection, the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and an All-Pac-12 first team pick.
Crocker led the Trojans with a 70.39 stroke average in 2015, 19 rounds in the 60s and eight top 10 finishes.
His 19 rounds under 70 were the most by a Trojan since Jamie Lovemark had 20 as a 2007 freshman.
Crocker was USC’s top finisher in seven of 14 events.
He tied for first at the Jones Invitational with an 8-under 208 (69-73-66) before halling in the second hole of a playoff.
He was strong in the post-season, tying for sixth at the Pac-12 Championships at par 280 (72-68-72-68), taking ninth at the NCAA Bremerton Regional at 5-under 211 (66-72-73) and tying for 16th in the stroke play portion of the NCAA Championships at 1-over 289 (73-68-75-73). – Tee Time Golf Magazine.
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