Omar Khalid, Pakistan’s top junior golfer, shot 73 at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon, United States, to remain in contention to become the first Pakistani to advance to the matchplay stage of the 74th US Junior Amateur Championship. Omar got off to a poor start at the Bandon Trails course, but he made amends with a birdie on the par-5 18th hole on Tuesday, when the wind was quite strong. He is one shot away from making the cut in the most prestigious and challenging junior golf competition in the United States, the US Junior Amateurs.
After players exchange courses, the field of 264 will be reduced to the 64 golfers with the lowest scores for the second round of match play. The remaining positions in the draw will be filled by a playoff on the first, second, and 18th holes of Bandon Trails on Wednesday. All of the competitions will take place in Bandon Dunes. The greatest players from twenty-five countries compete in the United States Junior Amateurs.
Omar Khalid hunts 73 to keep US Junior Amateurs hopes alive
Omar was scheduled to play the par-72 course during the second stroke play round at Bandon Dunes. Even with a 75 at Bandon Trails, Yashal Shah had a chance to go to the matchplay rounds. The event will include 264 of the greatest junior players in the globe. Only the top 64 players will be eligible to participate in the four-day matchplay rounds, which will only be accessible to them. On the tenth hole, Omar missed a rather simple putt, which set the tone for the remainder of the round.
On the second hole, a 212-yard par three, he recorded a birdie to bring his score to 38 at the halfway mark. Jack Cantlay, younger brother of PGA TOUR Player of the Year Patrick Cantlay, established a championship nine-hole record with a score of 28 on the front nine of Bandon Dunes. This was the top story of the day. Cantlay recorded eagle 3s on both par 5s during his second nine-hole round. He made shots from 45 and 65 feet on the third and ninth holes, respectively. Cantlay got out to a poor start, but he finished with a 5-under 67 after playing the final 11 holes in 9 under par.
Tiger Woods is one of just three players to have simultaneously won the US Junior Amateur and US Open. Tiger Woods has won the Junior Amateur Championship and the US Open three times each during the course of his career. After winning the Junior Amateur in 1964, Johnny Miller won the US Open the following year. In 2009 and 2011, Jordan Spieth won the Junior Amateur Championships.
