Aug. 3, 2010

2010 U.S. Amateur Championship Tournament Page

EVANSTON, Ill. -- A trio of current Wildcats are competing in the 2010 U.S. Amateur Championship Aug. 23-29 at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash. Ravi Patel (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley), Eric Chun (Ansung City, South Korea/International Christian School) and Sam Chien (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel) won three of the four available spots at an Aug. 2 qualifier at Northmoor Country Club in Highland Park, Ill.

The tournament begins today, Monday, Aug. 23 with 18 holes of stroke play. After the second round on Aug. 24, the field will be cut to the low 64 scorers and six rounds of match play begin on Aug. 25 to determine the champion. For results, link to USGA.org.

Patel finished at 2-under 140 in the 36-hole qualifier to place second overall. He shot a 2-under 69 in the opening round and an even-par 71 in the second. Chun was one shot behind Patel in third place at 1-under 141 (70-71) while both Chien and NU's David Lipsky found themselves in a four-way playoff for the final spot after firing totals of 1-over 143.

Chien won the playoff to secure the fourth-and-final U.S. Amateur berth, while Lipsky was third to become the second alternate. Current NU freshman Nick Losole (Scottsdale, Ariz./Scottsdale Notre Dame) also is an alternate for the tournament after falling in a playoff on July 28 at Wigwam Golf Resort in Litchfield Park, Ariz. Neither Lipsky nor Losole eventually gained entry into the field.

Patel's U.S. Amateur appearance is the second of his career, while Chien qualified for his second-straight. Chun, who competed in the 2010 British Open at St. Andrews in July and fell just one stroke shy of making the cut, qualified for the first time.

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