{"id":1299,"date":"2013-07-28T20:09:00","date_gmt":"2013-07-28T20:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/?p=1299"},"modified":"2013-07-31T23:35:00","modified_gmt":"2013-07-31T23:35:00","slug":"scheffler-wins-us-junior-am","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/golf\/1299\/scheffler-wins-us-junior-am","title":{"rendered":"Scheffler Wins U.S. Junior Am"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\"Scottie<\/a>

Scottie Scheffler with his U.S. Junior Amateur Championship trophy, with the Martis Camp Lodge in the background. (USGA Photograph)<\/p><\/div>\n

Truckee, CA: \u00a0<\/span>Taking four holes in a row to close out the final match in the 66th<\/sup> U.S. Junior Amateur, 17-year-old Scottie Scheffler of Dallas defeated 16-year-old David Riley, of Hattiesburg, Miss., 3 and 2. In his fourth and last appearance in this event – – since he\u2019ll no longer be an eligible junior – – Scheffler became the fifth different Texan to win Junior Amateur since 1999, a list that includes Hunter Mahan, Matthew Rosenfeld, Cory Whitsett and two-time winner Jordan Spieth.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the magnificent Martis Camp golf course in California\u2019s High Sierra, it was a well-played, well-run and well-attended final, as several hundred patrons followed the pair.\u00a0 <\/span>A reported 100 college coaches were here during the week, scouting prospects who commit to universities at ever younger ages.\u00a0 <\/span>The future talent was plainly obvious.<\/span><\/p>\n

During a match that featured booming drives, magnificent 200-plus yard approach shots and cat-burglar nerves on more than a few 10-foot putts, Riley led for the first 22 holes.\u00a0 <\/span>It fell to all-square on the 23rd<\/sup>, only to see the University of Alabama-bound Riley take back the lead and go two up with 9 to play.\u00a0 <\/span>Scheffler then went on his run, helped by two lipped-out Riley putts and an unfortunate penalty.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the 304-yard par 4 16th<\/sup> hole, Riley\u2019s ball that sat on the fringe of the green, 28 feet from a birdie and close to a water sprinkler.\u00a0 <\/span>He could have taken relief, but instead addressed the ball and saw it move. \u00a0<\/span>After consulting with USGA rules official Skip Gist, he took a one-stroke penalty.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI addressed it and it just rolled a little bit,\u201d said Riley. \u201cSo I got a one-stroke penalty. It is what it is. <\/span>I thought it was a pretty decent lie, so I just stuck with it.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><\/span>After lagging a putt that came up 8 feet short, Scheffler conceded Riley\u2019s bogey, two-putted for a par, and thus ended the match.<\/span><\/p>\n

Said Scheffler, who has committed to play his college golf at the University of Texas:\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cHe called a penalty on himself.\u00a0 <\/span>It takes a lot of heart to do that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Both players were among the early favorites.\u00a0 <\/span>Scheffler qualified for match play in each of the past three years, and is ranked 34th<\/sup> in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. \u00a0<\/span>A junior at Presbyterian Christian High School, Riley reached the round of 32 last year, and then ran into James Liu, the 2010 champion and 2012 runner-up. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Coolest Cat on the Course<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

\"Scottie<\/a>

Scottie Scheffler’s caddie, David Harmon, packed the bag for 11 rounds in 8 days.<\/p><\/div>\n

The U.S. Junior Amateur is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs. \u00a0<\/span>All rely heavily on volunteers.\u00a0 <\/span>And if the USGA has a Volunteer of the Year award, a prime candidate is Scheffler\u2019s caddie, David Harmon. <\/span><\/p>\n

A resident of the California town of Cool, about an hour\u2019s drive west of Truckee, the \u201clargely retired\u201d Harmon is a member of the Auburn Lake Trails Golf Club.\u00a0 <\/span>A year ago he caddied at U.S. Girls\u2019 Junior Championship at the Lake Merced Golf Club, near San Francisco. When he heard about Martis Camp, he again volunteered.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe next thing that happened is that I got an e-mail from Scottie\u2019s mother,\u201d recalls Harmon, \u201cand when she said OK, it was then up to the player and caddie to agree to work together from there on out.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

During the 36-hole finals, many in the gallery were mystified as Harmon lagged behind his player, struggling to keep up with the players, USGA officials and even the crowd.\u00a0 <\/span>Scheffler occasionally ran back, grabbed the clubs he needed, and ran back to his ball.\u00a0 <\/span>After the match, the champion praised his looper, albeit with a left-handed compliment. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u201cHe\u2019s probably the best caddie I ever had because he was probably the worst caddie, honestly. I mean, we talked, but he wasn\u2019t telling me how to play shots. \u00a0<\/span>Sometimes I start playing a little too quick when I’m nervous, but I couldn’t with him. I’d get to the ball, I\u2019d get my yardage and prepare for the shot. (Then) he would show up, I would grab the club and shoot.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Well, Harmon was a bit slow.\u00a0 <\/span>Then again, he hasn\u2019t played golf in two months because of a shoulder injury, faces surgery on it in two weeks, and won\u2019t play again for a half-year.\u00a0 <\/span>He had blisters on his feet during the final.\u00a0 <\/span>The Martis Camp course sits at an altitude of nearly 6,000 feet, and runs up and down mountainous terrain.\u00a0 <\/span>But including a pair of practice sessions, the 73-year-old Harmon ground it all the way out with Scheffler\u2019s bag on his shoulder, for 11 rounds in eight days!<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The man from Cool was clearly the coolest cat on the course, if not the toughest stud in the entire tournament.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Truckee, CA: \u00a0Taking four holes in a row to close out the final match in the 66th U.S. Junior Amateur,… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":1300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2013\/07\/49cf9075-f739-4ad3-a3a5-dced37fd02d4.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1299"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1299\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1316,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1299\/revisions\/1316"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}