WONDER BOY RYAN HITT FAILS TO ADVANCE TO MATCH PLAY ROUND IN THIS YEAR'S UNITED STATES AMATEUR GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

        SAN FRANCISCO, California – Arkansas Tech sophomore Ryan Hitt (Allen, Texas) failed to advance to match play after firing a 36-hole total of 173 after two rounds in the 107th Annual United States Amateur Men’s Golf Championships here at the Olympic Club. The projected cut for this year’s event is expected to be 7-over par 147.

Hitt, who is one of six returning letterwinners for the Wonder Boys this coming season, earned one of 315 spots in this year’s prestigious event after finishing second in the sectional qualifying at the Sky Creek Ranch Golf Club in Keller, Texas, on July 23. Hitt shot a 138 for the 36-hole qualifier and finished three shots behind sectional champion, Scott Sikes of Dallas, Texas. 

At this year’s U.S. Amateur, Hitt, who was one of 315 competitors, struggled in the first round as he fired a 22-over par 92 on the 6,929-yard Lakeside Course at the Olympic Club. In Tuesday’s second round, Hitt rebounded to shoot an 11-over par 81 on the 6,786-yard Ocean Course at the Olympic Club. After recording bogeys or worse on 16 of the 18 holes in the first round, Hitt had just nine in the second round and had nine pars.

As a freshman last season at Tech, Hitt competed in six tournaments and averaged 77.4 in 11 rounds of golf. Shot a season-best 147 at the Derrall Foreman Invitational enroute to finishing in 14th place and shot a season-best low round of 76 at the Tech Collegiate Classic at Chamberlyne Country Club, where he finished in a tie for seventh place.

According the USGA website (www.usga.org), the U.S. Amateur Championship was born in 1895 and is the oldest golf championship in the country – one day older than the U.S. Open. The championship format has always been match-play, except for an eight-year period from 1965-72, when it was a stroke play event. The website goes to say that throughout its history, the U.S. Amateur has been the most coveted of all amateur titles. Some of the famous previous winners of the Havemeyer Cup include Bobby Jones, who won the U.S. Amateur title five times, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Lanny Wadkins, Craig Stadler, Jerry Pate, Mark O’Meara, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, to name a few. The championship is open to any amateur golfer who has a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 2.4.

The winner of the U.S. Amateur Championship receives an exemption into the 2008 U.S. Open and British Open and a probable invitation to play in the 2008 Masters Tournament in Augusta, Ga., if he remains an amateur. The winner also receives a 10-year exemption in the U.S. Amateur field so long as he remains an amateur.

This year’s U.S. Amateur Field began with 315 players and the field will be cut to the top 72 golfers for match play, which will begin on Wednesday. All match play matches will be 18 holes, except the final match, which is scheduled for 36 holes on Sunday, Aug. 26.

          107th United States Amateur Men's Golf Championship Scores

          -- Tech Athletics --