USGA Championship • Quarterfinals Wrap

Live · Semifinals Wednesday

2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball: Everything to Know After the Quarterfinals

Desert Mountain Club • Scottsdale, Arizona • May 16-20

Final Four

(8) Long Bros · (11) Massa Bros
(18) Allan/Brame · (29) Bale/Bowen

Highest seed remaining: 8

SF1 · 7:00 a.m.

Long Bros (8) vs Wales (29)

Alternates vs giant-killers

SF2 · 7:20 a.m.

Allan/Brame (18) vs Massa Bros (11)

Coach vs trainer; last AZ side alive

18-Hole Final

Wed. 1:00 p.m. MST

Cochise · Live →

AmateurGolf.com Staff

Updated May 19, 2026 · Round of 16 & Quarterfinals Recap

Tournament hub: 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Coverage · prior: After the Round of 32 · see also: U.S. Amateur · Desert Mountain Club

The 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball will be decided Wednesday between four sides no one was talking about a week ago. The highest seed remaining is the No. 8. The lowest is the No. 29. Every storyline favorite is gone.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Two full rounds of match play at Desert Mountain’s Cochise course Tuesday eliminated every contender who walked into the week wearing a target. Defending champion Tyler Mawhinney fell to Welsh duo Jonathan Bale and Tomi Bowen in the Round of 16. Twice runners-up and hometown favorites Drew Kittleson and Drew Stoltz lost in 19 holes to Lawrence Allan and Grady Brame Jr., who then took out the senior side Bryan Hoops and Jeremy Defalco 4-and-3 in the quarterfinals. Two-time champions Chad Wilfong and Davis Womble were already gone Monday. The medalists, the 2025 runners-up, the 2024 champions — all out before the semis.

What’s left is a final four that reads like a regional qualifier bracket: Alpharetta, Georgia brothers Craig Long II and William Long (No. 8 seed, alternates who got the call eleven days ago), Cave Creek/Dallas brothers Cody and Bobby Massa (No. 11 seed, the last Arizona side standing), Lawrence Allan and Grady Brame Jr. (No. 18 seed, the Southeastern Louisiana University teammates who went 19 holes to beat Kittleson/Stoltz and then dispatched the senior side 4-and-3 in the same day), and Wales’ Jonathan Bale and Tomi Bowen (No. 29 seed, 4-0 across the 4, 20, and 12 seeds in three rounds of match play and now 24-under-par in cumulative match-play scoring).

Semifinals begin Wednesday at 7 a.m. MST. The 18-hole championship match tees off at 1 p.m. By sundown, two players you have never heard of will be U.S. Amateur Four-Ball champions.

“We’ve been trying to get here for, what, this is our sixth year to try. Winning a normal tournament is amazing. Nothing on this.”

— Cody Massa, after reaching his first USGA semifinal with brother Bobby

Massa brothers and other 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball semifinalists at Desert Mountain Club

Quarterfinal action at Desert Mountain’s Cochise course, where the Massa brothers, Long brothers, Allan/Brame, and Bale/Bowen advanced to the semifinals of the 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball. PHOTO · EAKIN HOWARD / USGA

Quarterfinal Results

Winners advance to Wednesday’s semifinals at Cochise

Winner	Result	Defeated
(8) William & Craig Long II brothers, Alpharetta, Ga. · alternates 11 days ago	3 & 2	(32) Beckman / Erlandson last seed in, eliminated the medalists
(29) Jonathan Bale & Tomi Bowen Wales · 4-0, now 24-under cumulative	3 & 2	(12) Edwards / Parker
(18) Lawrence Allan & Grady Brame Jr. Southeastern Louisiana teammates	4 & 3	(7) Defalco / Hoops senior side run ends one match short
(11) Cody & Bobby Massa brothers, Cave Creek / Dallas · last Arizona side	3 & 2	(3) Healy / Larkin Jr. Larkin Sr. caddie story ends

Round of 16 Results: Where the Bracket Broke

The R16 played at sunrise Tuesday; QFs followed at 1 p.m.

Winner	Result	Defeated
(32) Beckman / Erlandson	2 & 1	(17) Miller / Pinili
(8) Long brothers UPSET 2025 RU	19 holes	(9) Beck / Walters 2025 runners-up
(29) Bale / Bowen DEFENDING CHAMP OUT	3 & 2	(20) Colton / Mawhinney defending champion
(12) Edwards / Parker	2 & 1	(28) Lisle / Zhou HK 16-year-olds’ run ends
(18) Allan / Brame Jr. HOMETOWN STORY ENDS	19 holes	(2) Kittleson / Stoltz 2x runners-up, Scottsdale
(7) Defalco / Hoops	4 & 2	(23) McGuire / Watson
(3) Healy / Larkin Jr. 2024 CHAMPS OUT	2 & 1	(14) Blanchard / Engel 2024 champions
(11) Massa brothers	3 & 2	(6) Dougherty / Gill

Full bracket at USGA.org →

Five Stories Heading into Wednesday

1 · The Cinderella Field

No past champion. No defender. No medalist. No top-7 seed.

Every story we had been telling all week ended in a single day. The medalists fell in the Round of 32. The defending champion fell in the Round of 16. The twice runners-up fell in the Round of 16. The 2025 runners-up fell in the Round of 16. The 2024 champions fell in the Round of 16. The senior side fell in the quarterfinals. The hometown side fell in the quarterfinals. What remains: an alternate side, a Welsh side, a Cajun-coast giant-killing side, and the last Arizona side standing. The highest seed remaining is the No. 8. Two of the four semifinalist sides are pairs of brothers.

2 · The Welsh, Sizzling in the Desert

Bale and Bowen are 4-0, 24-under cumulative, and Walker-Cup-eligible.

Jonathan Bale (38, a Royal Porthcawl member who played college golf at Louisiana Tech and now lives in Jupiter, Fla., working for a hedge fund) and Tomi Bowen (23, who skipped college to pursue full-time amateur golf while working in his father’s window-fitting business) met through the Wales National Team and represented their country together at the 2025 World Amateur Team Championship in Malaysia. Both rank inside the top 400 of the World Amateur Golf Ranking and entered Desert Mountain exempt from qualifying. Through three matches they’ve been 24-under cumulative — including a Bowen eagle on the par-5 15th from an 8-iron to 30 feet in the QF. They have a real shot at GB&I Walker Cup selection for September’s match at Lahinch; a U.S. Amateur Four-Ball trophy this week would make the case for them. Bowen is also eyeing DP World Tour Q-School in the fall.

3 · The Alternates Reach the Semis

Two weeks ago, William was prepping for the Georgia State High School Tournament. Now he’s a match from a national championship.

William Long (17, Georgia Tech ’27 commit) was preparing for the Georgia State High School Tournament. Craig Long II (20, Northern Illinois) was planning practice rounds with his college teammates in suburban Chicago. Then the USGA email arrived: Miami of Ohio had won the MAC over Craig’s NIU team, the conference champ took the automatic bid to NCAA regionals, and the two Red Hawks who’d held the alternate spots above the Longs had to withdraw. Asked about taking the bracket spot from a conference rival, Craig was philosophical: “The NIU Huskies, we got second at MAC and they got first, so I feel like they got whatever they needed. I’m not salty at all.” The brothers responded by going 3-0 in match play and making four birdies in a five-hole stretch from No. 8 to put away the Cinderella side of Beckman and Erlandson 3-and-2 in the quarterfinal.

4 · The Massa Brothers Finally Break Through

Six years of trying. An eagle-out from 103. A comeback for the last Arizona side.

Bobby Massa — 38, an athletic trainer who helps golfers gain speed, and a player on a remarkable USGA-championship run — was the 2024 U.S. Mid-Amateur runner-up. The man who beat him in that final? Evan Beck, the 2025 Four-Ball runner-up the Long brothers just eliminated in 19 holes. Bobby also reached the quarterfinals of the 2024 U.S. Amateur and again at the 2025 U.S. Mid-Am at nearby Troon Country Club. This is now his third consecutive year reaching a USGA quarterfinal or beyond. He and older brother Cody Massa (Cave Creek, Ariz.) went the long route Tuesday: a 3-and-2 morning win over Dougherty/Gill keyed by Bobby’s holed-out eagle from 103 yards on the par-4 5th, then a comeback from 1-down to 3-up in the afternoon QF against No. 3 seed Healy/Larkin via four birdies in an eight-hole stretch from No. 6. As Cody put it: “This is our sixth year to try.”

5 · The Coach and the Insurance Man

A Scottish college coach and his old teammate became bracket-busters in 24 hours.

Lawrence Allan, 31, is a native of Scotland and a reinstated amateur who went straight from European mini-tours to the head men’s golf coach job at Southeastern Louisiana University, where he previously played. Grady Brame Jr., 33, of Baton Rouge, works in the commercial insurance industry and was Allan’s SLU teammate. They qualified for their first U.S. Amateur Four-Ball last fall. Tuesday they knocked off two of the loudest sides in the bracket: twice-runners-up Kittleson/Stoltz in 19 holes in the Round of 16, and the senior side Defalco/Hoops 4-and-3 in the quarterfinals. Brame’s father, Grady Sr., is an accomplished amateur in his own right — he’s playing the Senior Trans-Mississippi Amateur this same week. The mutual-respect quotes between them are the warmest in the bracket: “Without him I would’ve been beaten 5-and-4 this morning,” Allan said. Brame’s reply: “And vice versa this afternoon.”

Wednesday’s Semifinal Bracket

SF1 tees off 7:00 a.m. MST · SF2 at 7:20 a.m. · Championship match 1 p.m.

Side A	Tee Time	Side B
(8) William & Craig Long II Alpharetta, Ga. · brothers · alternates 3-0 in match play (2 up · 19 holes · 3&2)	7:00 a.m.	(29) Jonathan Bale & Tomi Bowen Wales · ages 38 / 23 3-0 in match play (1 up · 3&2 · 3&2)
(18) Lawrence Allan & Grady Brame Jr. Southeastern Louisiana teammates 3-0 in match play (19 holes · 19 holes · 4&3)	7:20 a.m.	(11) Cody & Bobby Massa brothers · Cave Creek, Ariz. / Dallas, Texas 3-0 in match play (2 up · 3&2 · 3&2)

All four sides advanced through match play undefeated. None has previously held a USGA championship trophy. The Wednesday afternoon champion will be a first-time U.S. Amateur Four-Ball winner.

What Wednesday’s Champions Will Earn

The Wednesday afternoon winners receive a gold medal, a 10-year exemption back into the championship, and exemptions for each member of the winning side into the 2026 U.S. Amateur at Merion Golf Club — one of the hardest tickets in the amateur game — plus U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur, and U.S. Senior Amateur exemptions if age-eligible. The four sides eliminated in Tuesday’s quarterfinals also earned a consolation prize: an exemption into the 2027 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Erin Hills, in Erin, Wis. (May 22-27, 2027), provided the side remains intact.

Sides Eliminated Tuesday of Note

(2) Drew Kittleson / Drew Stoltz — Scottsdale, twice runners-up at this championship, lost in 19 holes to Allan/Brame in the Round of 16. The hometown story of the week ends.
(3) Zach Healy / Jack Larkin Jr. — Atlanta, Georgia alums, with Jack Larkin Sr. (1979 U.S. Junior Amateur champion) on the bag. Beat 2024 champions Blanchard/Engel in the R16, then lost 3-and-2 to the Massa brothers in the QF.
(7) Bryan Hoops / Jeremy Defalco — the oldest side in the field, ages 57 and 53. Lost 4-and-3 to Allan/Brame in the quarterfinals, one match shy of becoming the first senior pair to reach a U.S. Amateur Four-Ball semifinal in eleven editions of the championship.
(9) Evan Beck / Dan Walters — 2025 runners-up, with Beck holding the 2024 U.S. Mid-Amateur title. Eliminated by the Long brothers in 19 holes in the Round of 16.
(14) Brian Blanchard / Sam Engel — 2024 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball champions, Scottsdale. Eliminated by Healy/Larkin in the R16, 2-and-1.
(20) Luke Colton / Tyler Mawhinney — the defending champion with new partner. Eliminated by Wales’ Bale/Bowen 3-and-2 in the R16, ending Mawhinney’s bid to become the first back-to-back champion in championship history.
(32) Jacob Beckman / Charlie Erlandson — the Wisconsin teammates who chip-shot their way into the playoff Sunday, won it Monday morning, took out the medalists Monday afternoon, and snapped a driver mid-round. Lost to the Long brothers 3-and-2 in the QF. The most unlikely four-day run of the championship.

Notable

The 16th hole was set up drivable Tuesday. The USGA moved the tee up to make the par 4 reachable at 293 yards — a clear short-par-4 risk-reward decision that paid dividends across multiple Tuesday matches.
Six matches have gone extra holes this week. That puts the 2026 championship within striking distance of the championship record of eight, set in 2021 at Chambers Bay.
Bale is a Royal Porthcawl member. Wales’ classic links course hosted the 1995 Walker Cup Match (Tiger Woods on the USA Team), the 2025 AIG Women’s Open, and will host the 2026 British Senior Open. Bowen, by contrast, is playing desert golf for the first time this week. As he put it: “As long as you keep it on the grass the fairways are great, greens are great.”
Mawhinney’s former partner is leading an NCAA Regional. Will Hartman, the Vanderbilt sophomore who won the 2025 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball with Mawhinney at Plainfield, holds a three-stroke lead going into Wednesday’s final round of the NCAA Athens Regional — in a field that includes world No. 1 amateur Jackson Koivun.
The Arizona contingent: from 16 to 1. Sixteen Arizonans entered Desert Mountain in the field. Five of the six players eliminated Tuesday were Scottsdale residents: Kittleson, Stoltz, Hoops (Scottsdale-tied), Blanchard, and Engel. The Massa brothers’ Cody (Cave Creek) is the last man with Arizona ties still playing.

About the 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball

The 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball at Desert Mountain Club is the 11th edition of the championship and the first USGA event held at Desert Mountain since the 1999 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur. The field of 128 sides was cut to 32 after two rounds of stroke play across Cochise (Par 71, 7,042 yards) and Outlaw (Par 72, 7,090 yards). All match play this week is contested at Cochise.

For tournament background, full bracket, daily coverage, and complete history, see our 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Coverage Hub →

What’s Next

Wednesday, May 20 — Semifinals + 18-Hole Championship Match

7:00 a.m. MST — Semifinal 1: (8) Long Bros vs (29) Bale/Bowen
7:20 a.m. MST — Semifinal 2: (18) Allan/Brame vs (11) Massa Bros
1:00 p.m. MST — 18-hole championship match
Free admission · all play at Cochise Course

Round of 16 and quarterfinal reporting by AmateurGolf.com Staff with reporting from USGA Communications. Coverage of the 2026 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship concludes Wednesday with the semifinals and championship match recap. Photography by Eakin Howard / USGA.