On Friday, Gonzales took advantage of the opportunity, shooting rounds of 70 and 67 at Point O’Woods Golf and Country Club in Benton Harbor, Mich., to win medalist honors with a 3-under-par 277, 72-hole total, in the 103rd Western Amateur, presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf.

Gonzales, 22, of Olympia, Washington, heads the list of 16 players who played their way into Saturday’s first round of match play.

“This means a whole lot to me,” said Gonzales, who has yet to record a victory in his collegiate career. “I’ve been waiting for a breakthrough performance like this. Hopefully, it will jump start me. As far as amateur fields, this is the best in the country. To know I can go out there and beat the best players definitely gives me confidence.”

Gonzales finished two strokes in front of four players tied for second at 1-under-par 279: first- and second-round leader Brian Carroll, 22, of Crystal Lake, Illinois; 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Nathan T. Smith, 26, of Brookville, Pa.; four-time AJGA Junior All-American Randy Lowry, 18, of Spring, Texas; and 2001 Western Junior champion Jonathan Moore, 20, of Portland, Oregon. During the final 36 holes, Smith reached 6 under par and Lowry made it to 5 under, but both lost strokes on their final 18.

“It really firmed up in the afternoon,” said Smith. “The conditions changed. All of a sudden, the greens got really fast. I had to play conservative at the end … just try to make match play. I’ve been playing really well this summer, and it’s nice to be back.”

Lowry, who first played in the Western Amateur four years ago at age 15, made his first Sweet 16 in four tries. “I feel like all of the experience I’ve gained over the last three years has really paid off,” he said. I’ve been learning more about this course every year. I think I’ve played it 20 times now.”

Carroll lost a chance to for medalist honors with a third-round, 6-over-par 76 but bounced back with a final round 69. “I had five straight bogeys followed by a double bogey in my morning round,” said Carroll. “My tempo was off, I was coming out of it …(between rounds) I hit some drivers on the range and figured it out.”

An eagle on the par 5, 555-yard, 13th helped him recover in the afternoon round. “It made me feel that if I played well coming in, I would make it,” said Carroll, a senior at George Washington University. “I feel good right now. I’m definitely looking forward to match play.”

In a five-man playoff at 284 for the final three spots, Jamie Lovemark, 17, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., birdied the second hole, a par 5, 565-yard, par 5, making a 100-foot putt from the far back edge of the green. Brad Iles, 21, Tauranga, New Zealand, and Philip Frances, 16, Scottsdale, Ariz., both made par on No. 2 to fill the final two Sweet 16 spots.

Michael Sim, Golfweek’s No. 1 ranked amateur, bogeyed the first playoff hole, and Martin Ureta bogeyed the second playoff hole, to miss playing in Saturday’s match play. Sim, 20, of Perth, Western Australia, entered the day in second just three strokes back of Carroll, but a 77 in the morning round followed by a closing 70 forced him into the playoff. Ureta, 20, of Santiago, Chile, closed with a 69-73 to make the playoff.

Saturday’s first round of match play will start at 8 a.m., with medalist Gonzales playing Lovemark in one of eight matches. The quarter-finals will be played Saturday afternoon. The two semi-final matches will be Sunday morning starting at 8, with the 18-hole championship match set for Sunday afternoon.

Following are the final stroke play results in the 2005 Western Amateur and the pairings for Saturday’s first round.

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103rd Western Amateur – Final Stroke Play Results
Point O’Woods G. & C.C., Benton Harbor, Mich.
Par: 70 Yardage: 7,032