Finished are the quarterfinal and semifinal matches at the U.S. Junior Amateur at Inverness Club and all that remains is the 36-hole championship round Saturday between Bo Jin and Preston Summerhays.
Jin, 17 years old and the highest-ranked seed remaining in the field at No. 8, defeated No. 21 Kelly Chinn 1 up in the semifinal round after making a birdie on the 17th hole. Jin, from the People’s Republic of China, defeated No. 16 Deven Ramachandran during the morning’s quarterfinal match also by a score of 1 up after once again making a birdie on 17 and par on 18.
“Before the putt I was thinking I had exactly the same putt in the morning,” Jin said of the winning putt in the semifinal round. “I left it a little bit short then, so I just gave it a little bit more speed. Yeah, definitely excited to see it go in.”
Summerhays defeated Joseph Pagdin 4-and-3 in the semifinal Friday afternoon. Summerhays, No. 11, fell behind early, recording bogeys on holes 2-4, but began the back nine with three birdies on his first four holes to take the lead, 3 up. Pagdin, the 23 seed, then bogeyed the 14th hole, allowing Summerhays to take the round with a par on 15.
Summerhays, a 16-year-old from Scottsdale, Ariz., advanced to the semifinal round after defeating No. 19 Austin Greaser 2 up Friday morning. Tied entering the last five holes, Greaser recorded three bogeys as the round finished while Summerhays made five straight pars for the win.
The finalists tee off Saturday’s first championship round at 6:40 a.m. ET.
The winner of the U.S. Junior Amateur will earn a spot in the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y. and the U.S. Amateur at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club in August. The runner-up of Saturday’s championship round will also earn a spot in the U.S. Amateur.
