Roth Medals, Another Four Minnesotans Qualify for U.S. Mid-Amateur in Pennsylvania

By Nick Hunter
nhunter@mngolf.org


  HOPKINS, Minn. – Aaron Roth managed to put together a 3-under par 67 Wednesday at Oak Ridge Country Club to earn medalist honors and qualify for his first U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship.

But he did so after benching the longest club in his bag late in his round, telling his caddy not to give him the driver despite playing the first 13 holes at 1-under par.

“After I snapped hooked my driver [on No. 14] I handed it to my caddy and said, ‘I’m not taking that out again today,’” Roth said Wednesday. “This year has been such an up and down year—it’s either been really low or the opposite, so I had no expectations whatsoever.”

Roth instead relied on his 1-iron and strung together three consecutive birdies on the final three holes to shoot 67, advancing to the national championship, September 10-15 at Stonewall Golf Links in Elverson, Pa.

“I think I hit 1-iron off the tee eight times; I used it a majority of the day,” Roth said. “It’s my favorite club in the bag—I never thought I’d say that. The driver is usually one of my better clubs. When I’m playing really well, I’m hitting the driver phenomenal.”

“This feels great. I tried the [U.S. Amateur qualifier] at Dacotah Ridge the last two years and it’s been tough to not only find the time to play in them, but to get out and practice. The last two weeks I’ve been hitting the ball pretty well. I’m really excited—I’m going to enjoy the moment. Not only making the tournament, but medaling—I can’t believe that happened.”

Roth, Chaska, Minn., got his round started by taking advantage of the par-5 fifth, hitting what he called his only good drive of the round. He wrapped a 5-iron around trees and on to the green where he would two-putt for birdie. He couldn’t get up-and-down for par at the eighth and would turn at even par.

“Going into the back, I knew I was in a good spot—it was pretty stress-free and I needed to make those longer putts coming in and when I got to 18, I knew I needed to put the pedal down.”

Converting his birdie opportunity at the 12th after hitting his approach over tees to inside three feet, Roth would get back to 1-under for the round. At even par following a bogey at the 14th, Roth would birdie his final three holes to shoot 67. He rolled in a 15-footer at the 16th before making two short birdie putts on 17 and 18.

“It’s good to get back and play in some of these tournaments,” Roth said. “You hear the pros say that it takes reps and reps and that was certainly the case for me. My goal early on was to make pars because par in these qualifiers has done fairly well.”

Troy Johnson fired a 2-under par 68 Wednesday to grab one of five qualifying positions, while Jesse Bull and Jordan Hawkinson each carded rounds of 69 to punch tickets to this year’s championship as well.

Johnson, Maple Grove, Minn., carded a single birdie on his front nine Wednesday to turn at 1-under before rolling in a pair of birdies with one bogey over the final nine to shoot 68 to qualify for his fourth U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship.

He qualified for the U.S. Amateur a year ago and made two appearances at the U.S Amateur Public Links Championship in 2008 and 2010.

Hawkinson, Stillwater, Minn., got off to a fast start Wednesday, sinking birdies on his first two holes as he began his round on the 10th tee. He would move to 3-under after a birdie at the par-5 14th but would turn at 2-under after a bogey at the 18th.

Back-to-back bogeys early on his back nine, Hawkinson fell to even par for the round but rebounded by sinking his birdie look at the par-5 fifth and would finish the day at 69.

“I got some good breaks today and took advantage of them,” Hawkinson said Wednesday. “I hit some good irons on the back. I played solid on the back. I turned and got a little squirrely but settled down. I was trying to keep it simple. It’s nice to get some confidence and hit fairways.

“I’ve been trying to go back to the basics and feel what’s natural to me, which might not look pretty. It feels good to go back. It’s fun to see when you put in the time and see a result like that.”

Hawkinson qualified for the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship in 2010 as well as the U.S. Amateur Public Links. He made his last appearance at the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship in 2012.

Bull, Hopkins, Minn., carded a pair of birdies at the third and fifth holes to quickly move to 2-under, but would turn at 1-under following a bogey at the eighth.

He traded an early birdie with a bogey to begin the final nine holes to remain at 1-under before dropping a stroke with bogey at the 16th. Sinking his fourth birdie of the round at the 17th, Bull would finish the day at 1-under par 69.

Winning the 2014 MGA Amateur Champion on his home course at Golden Valley Golf and Country Club, qualified for back-to-back U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships in 2011 and 2012, and advanced to the U.S. Amateur in 2013.

Michael Christensen survived a three-way playoff to claim the final spot Wednesday to qualify for his second consecutive U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship after shooting even par 70.

Joel B. Johnson and Alex Kolquist finished as first and second alternates, respectively.


For complete tournament results go to: www.mngolf.org/Tournament/US_Mid-Amateur_Sectional_Qualifying_36