PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) –Western Pennsylvania again hosting championship golf this week with the 2021 US Amateur at Oakmont and Longue Vue Club.
Stroke play qualifying begins Monday at both Oakmont and Longue Vue as they work down the field to 64 who begin match play at Oakmont Wednesday. A total of 40 states and 24 countries represented along with a dozen WPIAL graduates in the field of 312.
Oakmont Country Club caddy Neal Shipley enters his sophomore year at James Madison University and in his first USGA championship after qualifying in Columbus. Shipley won a pair of state titles at Central Catholic. Jimmy Meyers is another former Viking golfer who went on to play at Penn State.
No one in the field has the experience of Sean Knapp. The 59-year-old is in his 52nd USGA championship and 17th US Amateur. The Oakmont native advanced to the quarterfinals in 1998 and the Round of 16 in 1995, losing to Tiger Woods. Also a former caddy at Oakmont Country Club, Knapp is the 2017 US Senior Amateur champion and the second-oldest player in the field.
Sewickley native Jason Li is a three-time All-American at Carnegie Mellon. A two-time finalist for the NCAA Division 3 Jack Nicklaus Award, Li won the 2014 state championship for Sewickley Academy. Li needed a playoff in New York to qualify for this opportunity. Li is one of two Sewickley Academy, Carnegie Mellon connections joining Ian Bangor.
North Allegheny grad Kevin O'Brien birdied the final hole of the qualifier in Dayton to make his first US Amateur field. The 26-year-old is an investment analyst in Ohio. He will honor his father Patrick who died in February, making his ball with a 'P'. Fellow NA grad Grant Martens also qualified.
Michael Brown from Indiana, Mark Goetz from The Kiski School, Franklin Regional grad Palmer Jackson, owns the lowest career stroke average in Notre Dame history after two years at 71.67. He played in the 2018 US Amateur at Pebble Beach.
Peters Township's Jake Sollon averaged 74.10 for the University of Oregon last year and a 2014 West Penn Junior Champion. Seneca Valley's Matt Vogt competed a couple of years for Butler University, also a two-time letter winner in basketball at SV.
