BEND, OR (July 13, 2011) — Today the top 64 seeded players began the match play portion of the 110th Pacific Northwest Men’s Amateur Championship conducted by the Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA). The Round of 64 finished with 8 of the top 10 seeded players advancing including the #1 - #4 seeds.
Medalist and #1 seeded David Fink of Kailua, Hi was up against Tyler Parker the #64 seed from Portland, Ore. in a match that stayed very close and was all square through hole No. 11 before Fink won Nos. 12, 13 and 17 to cap off a first round 3&1 victory.
Matt Rawitzer the #2 seed from Bellingham, WA and a teammate of Fink at Oregon State University, regained his focus after losing a playoff for medalist honors late last night and easily won his opening match against Johnny Miller the #63 seed from Portland, Ore.
Rawitzer only trailed briefly after losing the 2nd hole but squared the match back up with a par on the difficult par-4 4th hole and never again looked back, winning holes Nos. 5, 9, 12, 13, and 14 for a 5&4 win.
The recent U.S. Open Qualifier and Sahalee Players Championship winner Chris Williams of Moscow, Idaho had no problem today as the #3 seed against #62 seed Bobby Kent of Los Gatos, Calif.
Williams would play just 13 holes of bogey free golf and won holes No. 1, 3, 4, 7, 9, 10, and 13 without losing a single hole en route to a 7&5 win.
Nick Sherwood of Albany, Ore. another member of the Oregon State Golf Team and seeded #4 as he went up against the #61 seed, Jon VanDyk of Eagle, Idaho. Sherwood got off to a hot start winning six of the first ten holes and closed out his match 6&4.
In the Round of 32, Fink will compete against #33 seed Joseph Harrison of Boulder City, Nev., Rawitzer will face #31 seed Scott Kim of Richland, Wash., Williams will meet #35 seed Bobby Monaco of Eugene, Ore., and Sherwood will go against #36 seed Zac Blair of Ogden, Utah.
The Championship began with 36-holes of stroke play qualifying followed by a cut to the low 64 players who advanced to single elimination match play. The Round of 32 will commence Thursday morning at 7:30 a.m. off of the #1 tee.
Tetherow, which boasts a distinctive layout by David McLay Kidd is playing host to their first PNGA Championship this week. The 7,298-yard links-style course features imaginative routing lined by fescue grasses flowing with the natural terrain. Players are sure to find a diverse mix of holes framed by ragged bunkers, knobs and knolls, and panoramic views of Oregon’s high desert and Central Cascade Mountains.
ABOUT THE
PNGA Amateur
First held in 1899, the Pacific Northwest Men’s
Amateur
is one of the country’s longest running amateur
championships. Held annually at world-class courses
throughout the Pacific Northwest, this championship
is
played in the same format as the U.S. Amateur and
features an impressive list of past champions that
include; Nick Flanagan, Ben Crane, Jeff Quinney, Bill
Sander, and Tiger Woods. Eligibility is open to
members
of the Pacific Northwest Golf Association and top
amateurs throughout the world invited via
Presidential
Invitation. Each year’s champion earns a hosted
exemption in to the Pacific Coast Amateur and
Sahalee
Players Championship.
The Championship will be conducted in two stages:
Stroke Play – All players must complete the 36-hole
stroke play qualifying in order to determine the 64
players who will advance to match play. In the event
of a tie for the final qualifying spot(s), a sudden-
death playoff will be used to determine the qualifiers.
In the event of a tie for the Qualifying Medalist, a
sudden-death playoff will commence.
Match Play – The General Numerical Draw will be in
effect. Single elimination match play. 36-hole
Championship Final Match. All other matches are 18
holes.
View Complete Tournament Information