Adam Scott ended his longest day in golf with a playoff loss against Cam Davis in a US Open qualifier, and now Scott has to wait a week to see if his alternate status will allow him to extend the longest active streak of playing the majors.
Davis gave his fellow Australian a second chance by making bogey on the final hole in the Springfield, Ohio, qualifier, sending them to a playoff for the fourth and final spot. Scott chipped in for birdie and Davis matched him with an 18-foot birdie putt. Both made par on the next hole, and then Davis hit his approach to 2 feet and Scott couldn't match the birdie.
Scott, who has played in every major starting with the 2001 British Open, can still get to Pinehurst No. 2 for the US Open on June 13-16. The USGA has held back six spots in case there are late qualifiers through the world ranking.
That was just one snapshot of a day of 36-hole qualifying that stretched from coast to coast, even crossing the northern border into Canada, to provide a chance for 687 players to earn one of 44 spots.
Willie Mack III earned his first US Open appearance when Brendan Valdes had a 30-inch putt spin out of the cup in a 3-for-1 playoff in Florida. Justin Lower was in tears when he qualified for his first US Open at age 35.
"The Sunday of the US Open usually falls on Father's Day and I lost my dad when I was 15," Lower said "Just to be able to play on that day in the US Open will be really cool."
LIV Golf players had a rough time at five of the qualifying sites.
Only two of the 17 players from the Saudi-funded league reached the US Open — Dean Burmester in Florida, and David Puig in San Francisco. It was a clutch performance by Puig. He is narrowly holding down the second and final Olympic spot representing Spain, but without the US Open, he would have no other chance to earn ranking points.
AP
