Walker Cup: GB&I leads USA, 2 1/2 to 1 1/2
- USGA photo
There was a brief moment this morning when the scoreboard showed GB&I leads in all four foursomes matches. After Cory Whitsett and Bobby Wyatt lost the 15th hole one down, a GB&I sweep looked entirely possibly.
But Whitsett and Wyatt bounced back with a quick birdie, then two putted for a tough par on the 18th to secure a halve against Nathan Kimsey and Max Orrin.
The next two matches went to the GB&I.
First it was Garrick Porteous and Rhys Pugh beating the elder statesman of the team, 45-year old school teacher Todd White and his partner Michael Weaver 3 and 1 with a birdie at No. 17.
Recent U.S. Amateur camp Mathew Fitzpatrick and Neil Raymond squeaked by the veteran Nathan Smith and partner Jordan Niebrugge (the 2013 USGA Public Links champ) 1-up with a par on the 18th. Smith and Niebrugge had fought hard all morning, clawing back to all square with a birdie on No. 16 after falling 2-down more than once earlier in the match.
The USA got a big lift in the final match, as Patrick Rodgers and Justin Thomas held off Gavin Moynihan and Kevin Phelan. After going 1-up with a par on the 15th, Rodgers and Thomas secured a 2 and 1 victory with a birdie on the 17th.
Standing with Todd White, the other mid-amateur on the USA team after the match, Smith was anything but worried. There is a lot of golf to play between now and Sunday afternoon.
Singles play tees off at 1pm.
View results for The Walker Cup
ABOUT THE The Walker Cup
The Walker Cup Match is a biennial 10-man
amateur
team competition between the USA and a team
composed of players from Great Britain and
Ireland
and selected by The R&A. It is played over two
days
with 18 singles matches and eight foursomes
(alternate-shot) matches.
The first United States Walker Cup Team, which
in
1922 defeated the GB&I side, 8-4, at the
National Golf
Links of America, is considered among the best
teams
ever and included Francis Ouimet, Bob Jones,
Charles
“Chick” Evans and Jess Sweetser. Many of the
game’s
greatest players have taken part in Walker Cup
competition, including U.S. Open champions
Jack
Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth for
the
USA
and Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy and Justin
Rose
for Great Britain and Ireland.
View Complete Tournament Information