UTC's Hodge Advances to Match Play at U.S. Amateur

Chaska, Minn. -- University of Tennessee at Chattanooga sophomore Jonathan Hodge survived an 11-player playoff to advance to the match play portion of the U.S. Amateur.

Hodge followed Monday’s 73 at the Chaska Town Course with a 74 at the difficult Hazeltine National Golf Club and is 4-over par after completion of stroke play. Hodge ended stroke play as one of 11 players tied for 55th place at 4-over, meaning one needed to be eliminated to trim the field to the 64 competitors needed for match play. Hodge and three others made par on Hazeltine’s 410 yard, 10th hole to advance to match play.

Hodge, who is the first golfer in UTC history to play in the U.S. Amateur, will face LSU’s Beck Troutman in a match teeing off at 8:20 (CDT). Beck is the fifth seed after a 1-under par performance in stroke play.

“Jonathan has taken his game to another level this summer” said Mocs’ coach Mark Guhne. “He got off to a great start as low amateur at the True Temper in Memphis, and has stayed at that high level. It’s gotten to the point where nothing he does surprises me any more.”

The United States Golf Association received 7,182 entries for this year’s U.S. Amateur. Sectional qualifying was conducted over 36 holes at 98 sites to narrow the field to the 312 players who participated in stroke play over the last two days at Hazeltine National Golf Club and the Chaska Town Course. Now that the field has been cut to 64 players, the remaining players will be seeded and match play will begin Wednesday with one round of 18-hole matches, followed by two rounds on Thursday and single rounds on Friday and Saturday. Sunday’s final round will be a 36-hole match.

The Golf Channel will have two hours of coverage Wednesday-Friday from 4-6 p.m. (EDT). NBC will carry two hours on Saturday and Sunday, also from 4-6 p.m. (EDT).