Chinese Duo Keep US Amateur Hopes Alive

Parker, Colorado, United States: While Sampson Zheng bowed out in the Round of 32, Andi Xu and Paul Chang Rui kept alive China’s hopes in the 123rd US Amateur Championship.

On a gruelling day at Cherry Hills Country Club, Xu posted two victories to book himself a quarter-final showdown with American Neal Shipley on Friday.

Hoping to join him in the last eight is compatriot Chang. His Round of 16 match with American John Marshall Butler played to a stunning stalemate over 18 holes.

The match, which will resume at 8 am on Friday, featured a 147-yard hole-out by Chang on the 16th hole for eagle and a one-up lead, an approach to within a foot for birdie by Butler to tie the match on 17, and a remarkable par by Butler on 18 after he hit his tee shot into the lake bordering the 18th fairway.

After taking a drop, Butler hit an iron shot to within four feet to save par and match Chang’s conventional two-putt four. With darkness descending it was not possible to continue.

The unheralded Chang, who does not even feature in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), caused a major upset on Thursday morning when he ousted Caleb Surratt in the Round of 32.

The 21-year-old Chinese lost the 17th to a par to go one-down but birdied the difficult 18th to send the match to extra holes. After ‘halving’ the first three play-off holes, Chang prevailed with a birdie at the 22nd, the par-four fourth, to eliminate Surratt, seventh in the WAGR, sixth seed here and selected to represent the US in next month's Walker Cup.

In comparative terms, 21-year-old Xu had a quiet day, the senior at the University of San Diego earning a pair of two-up victories over Americans Cole Anderson and Connor Gaunt.

“I did not think I would get this far, because there are so many good players in this field,” said Xu, 252nd in the WAGR, only the 15th highest ranked China player.

“There is just so much that could happen on this course with the rough and all the difficulties that are presented. I should have probably had more confidence, but I’m glad I got this far,” added Xu, who was four-up against Gaunt with five holes to play but went to the 18th tee with his lead having been trimmed to one hole. A par on 18 secured the win for Xu, who will face Ohio State graduate student Shipley in the quarter-finals.

Shipley outlasted Scotland’s Calum Scott in 20 holes on Thursday morning, then earned a 3&2 victory over fellow-American Cooper Jones. On Wednesday, Shipley ended the hopes of China’s Ding Wenyi, winning their Round of 64 clash one-up.

A member of the triumphant Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation Bonallack Trophy team that defeated Europe in the Ryder Cup-style match play contest in Spain a fortnight ago, Zheng continued his excellent form by sharing co-medallist honours in the stroke play qualifying here.

He progressed from the Round of 64 on Wednesday by fell 2&1 to Mexican Jose Islas in the Round of 32.

“There’s a certain expectation, from you and everybody else around you, to perform and play well. There’s a little bit of pressure. But for me, the pressure comes from within, and nobody can give me more pressure than myself,” said WAGR number 49 Zheng, when asked about a medallist not winning this championship since Ryan Moore in 2004

In defeat, Zheng, a rising senior at the University of California-Berkeley, who captured the US Amateur Four-Ball title in late May, was philosophical. He said: “A few bad breaks here and there, but match play could be anyone’s game. The 63rd seed won the last time it was here, so that just tells you, if it’s your day, it’s your day.”