CHARLESTON, S.C. – The U.S. Amateur Championship has become an annual tradition for the College of Charleston men's golf program.
This will be the fourth-consecutive year a Cougar will play in the oldest national championship in the U.S. that has played host to past champions in all-time greats Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.
Rising senior Josh Lorenzetti (Blythewood, S.C.) and rising junior William Rainey (Charlotte, N.C.) will compete in their first-ever U.S. Amateur with Olympia Fields Country Club serving as the backdrop of the 115th edition on Aug. 17-23 in Olympia Fields, Ill.
“It is nice that we will be represented for the fourth year in a row at the U.S. Amateur,” CofC Head Coach Mark McEntire said. “Our team has had a tremendous summer and I look forward to it continuing into our fall season. It is a true testament that our players are improving every year and that we are recruiting golfers that can change our program.”
Sixteen of the 312 players in the tournament field have already played in either a major championship or a PGA Tour event this year including Oklahoma State's Jordan Niebrugge, who was the low amateur at the 2015 British Open.
Lorenzetti qualified with a runner-up finish at the U.S. Amateur sectional qualifier held in early July in Columbia, S.C. He will play alongside Philip Barbaree of Shreveport, La., who will try to become the first player in history to win the U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Amateur during the same year. Their group will tee off from the No. 1 of the North Course at 2:40 p.m. (ET) on Monday. Rainey also won his sectional qualifier this summer and will tee off the No. 1 on the South Course at 8:50 a.m. (ET).
“I hope Josh uses this opportunity to make him believe that he belongs with the best players in the world and springboard him to his best year as a Cougar,” McEntire said. “For the last three years, all I've wanted Josh to do is see how good he is. We see his potential and work ethic everyday at practice. I hope that playing on this stage will give him the confidence to reach his full potential this year.
“William has had as good of a summer as anyone in college golf. Winning the Rice Planters, Top-10 finishes in the North Carolina Amateur and the Cardinal Amateur and winning the sectional qualifier for the U.S. Amateur were just a few highlights. He has the perfect game for the U.S. Am and it would not surprise me for him to stay awhile in Chicago.”
CofC Assistant Coach Henry Smart (Epsom Surrey, England) will also be a part of the action, but this time on the other side of the ropes. The former University of Virginia star, who graduated and used his fifth year of eligibility to play for the Cougars during the 2011-12 season, will tee off the No. 1 at 8:40 a.m. (ET).
“Henry has become a wonderful coach, mentor and role model for our players,” McEntire said. “This also continues to give credit to our program. It shows future players and recruits that you can come play for coaches that have played on the highest level and can still play. Henry's game has matured since making the change into coaching and I hope that he can get into match play against some of the young guys in the field.”
All three follow a long line of CofC golfers to make the trek to the U.S. Am including Bruce McDonald (2003), John Duke Hudson (2010 and 2013), Zach Munroe (2012 and 2014) and Alex Ellis (2012, 2013 and 2014). Munroe is still the highest-ever finisher at a U.S. Amateur for the Cougars advancing all the way to match play and the Round of 16 at Cherry Hills in 2012.
Tournament play begins on Monday and Tuesday with 36 holes of stroke-play qualifying, with the field being narrowed to 64 players for the match-play bracket, starting on Wednesday, Aug. 19. The championship will conclude with a 36-hole final on Sunday, Aug. 23. Live coverage will be available on www.usga.org and Fox Sports beginning on Aug. 19.
The winner of the coveted amateur title will be invited to play in all of the professional majors except the PGA Championship. Additionally, the runner-up also receives an invitation to play in The Masters and the U.S. Open.
