|
|
Woods making strong bid to hang on to No. 1 ranking
by Associated Press
MAMARONECK, N.Y. (AP) - Danny Green, the oldest player in the field, moved into the quarterfinals of the U.S. Amateur with a 2-up victory over Spencer Levin on Thursday, and NCAA champion Ryan Moore also advanced by rallying in the final five holes to beat Aron Price 1-up.
The 47-year-old Green, from Jackson, Tenn., defeated James Allenby of Canada 4 and 3 in a morning match, and then surprised the 20-year-old Levin, who finished tied for 13th at the U.S. Open in June.
Moore, the top-seeded player who also has wins in the U.S. Amateur Public Links and Western Amateur this year, was three down with five holes to play. But Price, an Australian who attends Georgia Southern, finished with two double bogeys and three bogeys at Winged Foot Golf Club to give away the match.
The match came down to the par-4, 18th hole. Price pulled his second shot into the sand, blasted out into the fringe below the hole, but missed his chip shot by a foot. Moore, from Puyallup, Wash., was an inch short on his 45-foot birdie attempt, and Price conceded.
"Today was a gift, not a win," the 21-year-old Moore said after his 41st win in his last 43 matches. "It was a question of who would last. I am not sure if I was tired from the first match."
Moore won his morning match, 6 and 4 over Greg Peterson, from Rochester, Minn.
Moore takes on Jason Hartwick, from Sacramento, Calif., in one of four quarterfinal matches. Hartwick eliminated Tim Hogart, from Northridge, Calif., 3 and 2 in the third round.
The semifinals are Saturday, and the 36-hole final Sunday.
"I didn't feel nervous at all - not all day," Price said. "That's why it is just stupid. That's why I am so frustrated. I got fooled by the wind coming in and lost my concentration a bit."
Green, runner-up in the 1989 U.S. Amateur, said he feels confident he can hang in with the kids.
"It is one match tomorrow and I will feel fine," Green said. "It is another on Saturday and if I were to make the finals I am sure that would be a struggle. It might look like I am getting tired, but I am not."
Said Levin, who has won four amateur tournaments this year, "I just didn't play that well. I hate to lose, and, obviously, I'm not in a very good mood. But you have to give Danny credit."
Other quarterfinalists are four-time Winged Foot club champion Andrew Svoboda, from Stamford, Conn.; British Amateur semifinalist Luke List, from Ringgold, Ga.; Big Ten Conference player of the year Jeff Overton; Chris Nallen of Hackettstown, N.J.; and Dayton Rose of Midwest City, Okla.
All news |
|
