U.S. Amateur Golf Championship : Medalist Gump Scores 6-and-5 Victory in First Round

The spotlight at the 87th United States Amateur Championship continued to focus on medalist Scott Gump Thursday as the slender 21-year-old golfer trounced Orrin Vincent III to remain in the chase for the oldest golf title in the U.S.

Gump, of Merritt Island, Fla., defeated Vincent, 6 and 5, and was joined by two-time U.S. Amateur champion Jay Sigel, 1986 semifinalist Bob Lewis and 1986 medalist Len Mattiace as notable first-round, match-play winners at the Jupiter Hills Club.

Sigel, of Berwyn, Pa., beat Bradley Benbrook of Graver, Mo., 3 and 2; Lewis, of Warren, Ohio, survived a scare from Art Roberson of Zebulon, N.C., 1 up, and Mattiace, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., advanced with a 6-and-5 victory over David Wettlaufer of Canada.

The youngest player left in the tournament, Harry Rudolph III, a 17-year-old high school junior from La Jolla, Calif., also won. The medalist from this year’s U.S. Junior Amateur defeated Clemson Coach Larry Penley, 2 up.

Gump, a former University of Miami star, birdied the first hole on the par-72, 6,915-yard Hills course and was 4 up after nine holes.

“I think to win match-play you’ve got to be steady and put the pressure on your opponent, not yourself,” said Gump, who earned medalist honors this week with a 36-hole stroke-play score of three-under-par 141.

“I did what I had to do. When he (Vincent) was in trouble, I eased up and gave myself a chance to make a nice score,” he added. “You’ve got to know when to gamble and when to play it safe.”

The format shifted from stroke play to match play after Vincent eliminated defending champion Buddy Alexander of Baton Rouge, La., early Thursday in a playoff for the last berth in the final 64.

The playoff was a continuation of a 25-man scramble for nine positions that began just before nightfall Wednesday. Eight of the positions were determined before play was suspended because of darkness.

Vincent, of Incline Village, Nev., and Alexander both birdied the first playoff hole Thursday to eliminate 10 other golfers. Alexander bowed out of the tournament when he bogeyed the next hole and Vincent parred.

Among the others advancing Thursday were Billy Mayfair of Scottsdale, Ariz.; Nolan Henke of Fort Myers, Fla., and Miles McConnell of Tampa. Henke and McConnell finished second to Gump in the qualifying portion of the tournament.

Second-round winners this morning will play again in the afternoon, when the field will be cut to eight golfers. Two rounds will be played Saturday, with the 36-hole final Sunday.