English and Henley advance to 2nd Round of Match Play

Harris English at Erin Hills

Harris English and Russell Henley each won their first round matches at the U.S. Amateur. 

English, who had 5 birdies in an 8 hole stretch, won his match 3&1 vs Andrew Yun. 
English almost put the match away on the par-3 16th when his 7-iron from 192 yards landed 10 feet in front of the hole and grazed the hole for a near ace. The two men halved with pars. But matters were settled on No. 17 when Yun, after pushing a drive into the right rough, came up short of the green and couldn’t get up and down. Yun’s lone bogey of the round sent English into the second round of the Amateur for the second time.    Harris will play Bobby Leopold in round 2, match scheduled to start at 11:00 am.

Henley defeated Kevin Dougherty 3&1 to advance to the second round.  Henley will play Patrick Cantlay, who is currently the top ranked amateur in the world, in the round of 32.  That match is scheduled to begin at noon.  

The Golf Channel will have coverage of the second round today from 1-3 pm.  Live scoring can be followed at:
 http://www.usga.org/ChampEventScore.aspx?id=17179869326&year=2011&type=match2

English and Henley Advance to Match Play at U.S. Amateur

2011 U.S. Amateur at Erin Hills

Former Bulldogs, Russell Henley and Harris English, finished in the top 64 of stroke play at the U.S. Amateur and will advance on to the match play portion of the tournament. 

Henley stood at 7 under par after 36 holes and tied for third while English finished at 2 under and tied for 31st. 

Harris will be seeded 32 in match play and Russell will be the 5th seed in the match play bracket.

Harris will face Andrew Yun in the first round of match play.  Russell will be paired against Kevin Dougherty in his first round match.

The 111th U.S. Amateur is being played at Erin Hills in Erin, Wisconsin. 

The matches can be followed live on the U.S. Amateur website:
http://www.usga.org/ChampEventScoringIndex.aspx?eid=17179869326&year=2011&id=2147493610

Dawgs to Begin Play at U.S. Amateur



2011 U.S. Amateur at Erin Hills


The 2011 U.S. Amateur will begin today with 3 current and 2 former Bulldogs in the field.  Erin Hills will serve as the host for the championship with Blue Mound Country Club will serve as the second stroke play course for the first two rounds. 
Erin Hills, located in Erin, WI, will also be the host of the 2017 U.S. Open.  Playing to a yardage of 7,760, Erin Hills will be the longest course in USGA history by playing 18 yards longer than last year's U.S. Amateur venue, Chambers Bay.

Harris English and Bryden Macpherson will both play their first rounds at Erin Hills.  English will tee off at 7:30 with Macpherson following him at 7:40.

Russell Henley, Michael Cromie, and Keith Mitchell will begin their first rounds at Blue Mound Country Club.  Henley will start at 7:50, Cromie at 9:00, and Mitchell at 1:15.

The first two rounds of the U.S. Amateur are played to determine the low 64 players who will advance to match play.  Scoring can be followed live at:
http://www.usga.org/ChampEventScore.aspx?id=17179869326&year=2011&type=stroke

Swafford Claims First Professional Win

Hudson Swafford wins the HGM Hotels Classic

Former Georgia golfer Hudson Swafford notched his first professional victory on Saturday, claiming the eGolf Professional Tour's HGM Hotels Classic at Rock Barn.
Swafford entered the final round trailing by four shots, but had two birdies and an eagle over the last five holes to finish at 21-under 266 for a 1-shot win over Fernando Mechereffe.
Swafford earned the $30,000 first prize in just his sixth professional event.

“I was playing really well entering the week,” Swafford said. “I had a great practice round on Monday with (former Bulldogs) Brian Harman and Adam Mitchell, then came out slow with a 69 on the easier of the two courses. But I remained patient and was able to stick with it through the week.”
For Swafford, the win moved him up to No. 11 on the tour’s money list, thus solidifying his PGA Tour Q-School bonus – paid annually to the top 20 members on the regular-season-ending member money list.

“That bonus is huge. To be honest with you, that was the only thing I was really worried about coming down the stretch,” Swafford said. “That is such a huge deal at this time of year, to not have to worry about that $4,500 payment. It means a lot to me.”
In other results of ex-Bulldogs, Harman came in third at 19-under 268, Richard Scott placed 21st at 12-under 275 and Mitchell finished 31st at 10-under 277.

Swafford’s victory extended what has been a strong last few months for players associated with the Georgia golf team. Russell Henley and Harris English became just the second and third amateurs to win Nationwide Tour events and were named to the Walker Cup Team, while Bryden Macpherson claimed the British Amateur title and secured berths in the British Open and the Masters. Ex-Bulldogs Bubba Watson and Chris Kirk have wins on the PGA Tour this season, and Erik Compton posted a Nationwide Tour victory.

Bulldogs Henley and English Selected to U.S. Walker Cup Team

Former Georgia All-Americans Harris English and Russell Henley were chosen for the United States' Walker Cup Team on Sunday, according to the United States Golf Association.

The USGA picked four players on Sunday for Team USA: English, Henley, Patrick Cantlay of UCLA and Peter Uihlein of Oklahoma State. The remainder of the 10-man USA team that will compete against 10 amateurs representing Great Britain and Ireland will be named later this summer.

The Walker Cup will be played Sept. 10-11 at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club in Scotland.

"This is a tremendous accomplishment for Harris and Russell," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "They set their sights on making the Walker Cup team, and that's exactly what they did. All their hard work has paid off with this selection. I could not be prouder of them. I know they will represent the University of Georgia and the United States in a first-rate manner in Scotland."

With the selections of English and Henley, Georgia now has been represented in the Walker Cup by 15 golfers, including Vinny Giles (1969, 1971, 1973, 1975 and 1993), Danny Yates (1989, 1993, 1999 and 2001) and Jimmy Gabrielsen (1971, 1981 and 1991). Brian Harman and Adam Mitchell helped the United States win the Walker Cup in Ardmore, Pa., in 2009.

The biennial Walker Cup match consists of 18 singles matches and eight foursomes (alternate-shot) matches over the competition’s two days. Team USA has won the last three matches and leads the series overall, 34-7-1.