Grant Forrest 74, Ewen Ferguson 78 in first stroke-play round at Olympia Fields

• alcarsongolf@btinternet.com

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NeSMITH LEADS U.S. AMATEUR AT 5-UNDER-PAR 65

OLYMPIA FIELDS, Illinois. – Matthew NeSmith, 21, of North Augusta, South Carolina, shot a 5-under-par 65 Monday to lead the field of 312 competitors in the 2015 U.S. Amateur Championship after the first day of stroke play at Olympia Fields Country Club.

Scotland's Grant Forrest and Ewen Ferguson shot 74 and 78 respectively.

NeSmith, a senior at the University of South Carolina who won The Players Amateur earlier this year, posted six birdies, including four in his first nine holes, and one bogey on the South Course for a one-stroke lead over four players.

“I got off to a good start, birdied 11,” said NeSmith, a third-team All-America selection in 2015 who won the Southeastern Conference Championship. “It was a birdie pin and I hit a good tee shot, so I kind of expected that after being in the middle of the fairway. And then hit it really close on 13 and got on a little bit of a run.”

NeSmith, who qualified for the 2015 U.S. Open at Chambers Bay and is playing in his third consecutive U.S. Amateur, leads a group of four players at 66 : Lee McCoy, 21, of Athens, Ga., a 2015 United States Walker Cup Team member, and Nathan Yankovich, 21, of Blacklick, Ohio, who both played the South Course; and Ryan Ruffels, 17, of Australia, and Kenta Kinoshi, 21, of Japan, who played the North Course, host to two previous U.S. Opens in 1928 and 2003.

“I think it helped playing the Open,” said NeSmith. “It kind of made this not as big – I mean, big, but I’m not as nervous, I’m not as fidgety. I was able to relax a little bit more and play a great round of golf.”

The 2015 U.S. Amateur Championship consists of 36 holes of stroke play (18 holes on each of Olympia Fields’ North and South Courses), followed by six rounds of match play (all on the North Course), with the championship scheduled to conclude with a 36-hole final on Sunday.

Ruffels, the son of two tennis professionals who played with 2015 PGA champion and fellow Aussie Jason Day in a practice round for the 2015 Canadian Open, admitted that his putting positioned him for his four-birdie, no-bogey round.
“I made a lot of 10- to 12-foot par putts, which is big just to keep a bit of momentum going,” said Ruffels, whose birdie putts ranged from 10 to 35 feet. “Around the North Course, which is so hard, if you drop [a shot], it's very easy to drop one on the next, too, and it kind of just rolls on from there. So the more you can save, the better.”

McCoy, who qualified for the 2015 U.S. Open and was co-medalist at the 2014 U.S. Amateur, tallied six birdies and two bogeys.

“I was hitting it about as crooked as I ever have, and honestly it was one of the best scoring nines I've ever had,” said McCoy, a first-team All-American at the University of Georgia, of his outward nine of 35. “I left a shot in a bunker on 1 and got up-and-down for bogey, and then, I was hitting it everywhere and just scraping pars like I've hardly ever done before. That was really what kept my momentum going. If I would have shot 3 or 4 over on the front, I don't think I would have gone and made as many birdies on the back. It was definitely a good mental test today.”

Trailing NeSmith by two at 3-under-par 67 are David Oraee, of Greeley, Colo.; Brett Coletta, of Australia; and Sepp Straka of Valdosta, Ga.

Among nine players at 2-under 68 are 2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Scott Harvey, of Greensboro, N.C.; Nick Hardy, a University of Illinois player from Northbrook, Ill.; and Robby Shelton, a first-team All-American at the University of Alabama from Wilmer, Ala., who finished third in the PGA Tour’s Barbasol Championship in July, the first top-three Tour finish for an amateur since Phil Mickelson in 1991.

OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill.  – Results from Monday’s first round of stroke play at the 2015 U.S. Amateur Championship, played at 7,234-yard, par-70 North (NC) and the 7,045-yard, par-70 South (SC) Courses at Olympia Fields Country Club.
Matt NeSmith, North Augusta, S.C. 34-31--65 SC
Kenta Konishi, Japan 35-31--66 NC
Lee McCoy, Athens, Ga. 35-31--66 SC
Nathan Yankovich, Blacklick, Ohio 35-31--66 SC

Ryan Ruffels, Australia 33-33--66 NC

Brett Coletta, Australia 35-32--67 SC

David Oraee, Greeley, Colo. 33-34--67 NC
Sepp Straka, Valdosta, Ga. 34-33--67 SC

Adam Ball, Glen Allen, Va. 34-34--68 SC

Dan Ellis, Lansing, Mich. 36-32--68 NC

Garrett Rank, Canada 34-34--68 SC

Hank Lebioda, Winter Springs, Fla. 36-32--68 SC

Nick Hardy, Northbrook, Ill. 34-34--68 SC

Reed Hrynewich, Muskegon, Mich. 36-32--68 SC

Robby Shelton, Wilmer, Ala. 36-32--68 NC

Scott Harvey, Greensboro, N.C. 34-34--68 SC

Stuart Macdonald, Canada 33-35--68 SC

Chase Koepka, West Palm Beach, Fla. 34-35--69 SC

Chris Harris, Atlanta, Ga. 35-34--69 NC

Cody Blick, Danville, Calif. 35-34--69 NC

Cole Hammer, Houston, Texas 34-35--69 SC

Conner Kumpula, Albany, Ore. 36-33--69 SC

Corey Pereira, Cameron Park, Calif. 31-38--69 SC

Curtis Luck, Australia 34-35--69 SC

David Snyder, McAllen, Texas 33-36--69 SC

Hudson Carpenter, Stillwater, Minn. 36-33--69 SC

Michael Nagy, Manistique, Mich. 38-31--69 SC

Robby Salomon, Monterey, Calif. 36-33--69 NC
Sean Crocker, Westlake Village, Calif. 33-36--69 SC
Alex Burge, Bloomington, Ill. 34-36--70 SC
Bryson DeChambeau, Clovis, Calif. 34-36--70 SC
Cheng Jin, People's Republic of China 35-35--70 SC
Christopher Hickman, Centreville, Md. 34-36--70 SC
Collin Morikawa, La Canada Flintridge, Calif. 36-34--70 NC

Jake Knapp, Costa Mesa, Calif. 37-33--70 SC

Jake Kneen, White Lake, Mich. 36-34--70 SC

Josh Munn, New Zealand 36-34--70 NC

Josh Whalen, Canada 35-35--70 NC

Matthew Perrine, Austin, Texas 37-33--70 NC

Miller Capps, Denver, N.C. 37-33--70 NC

Nicholas Cummings, Weston, Mass. 36-34--70 SC

Ryan Cole, Mount Airy, Md. 35-35--70 SC

Sam Stevens, Wichita, Kan. 35-35--70 SC

Sean Walsh, Keller, Texas 36-34--70 SC

Stoney Crouch, Mount Juliet, Tenn. 34-36--70 SC

Stuart Smallwood, Paris, Texas 36-34--70 NC

Will Zalatoris, Plano, Texas 35-35--70 NC

Zach Seabolt, Raleigh, N.C. 33-37--70 SC

Austin Connelly, Canada 36-35--71 SC

Ben Wolcott, Dickson, Tenn. 36-35--71 NC

Billy Kennerly, Alpharetta, Ga. 36-35--71 NC

Braden Thornberry, Olive Branch, Miss. 36-35--71 NC

Bryan Baumgarten, Granite Bay, Calif. 34-37--71 SC

Cameron Young, Scarborough, N.Y. 37-34--71 NC
Claudio Correa, Chile 37-34--71 NC
David Cooke, Bolingbrook, Ill. 37-34--71 SC
Davis Riley, Hattiesburg, Miss. 39-32--71 NC
Franklin Huang, Poway, Calif. 37-34--71 SC

George Cunningham, Tucson, Ariz. 38-33--71 NC

Hunter Stewart, Lexington, Ky. 35-36--71 SC

Jacob Solomon, Dublin, Calif. 37-34--71 NC

Jake Koppenberg, Bellingham, Wash. 36-35--71 SC

Jake Staiano, Cherry Hills Village, Colo. 35-36--71 SC

Joey Savoie, Canada 38-33--71 SC

John Oda, Honolulu, Hawaii 36-35--71 NC

Jonah Texeira, Porter Ranch, Calif. 37-34--71 SC

Jordan Gold, Orange, Calif. 36-35--71 SC

Kyle Suppa, Honolulu, Hawaii 35-36--71 NC

Luis Fernando Barco, Peru 35-36--71 NC

Matthew Dunn, Houston, Texas 34-37--71 NC

Michael Muehr, Potomac Falls, Va. 37-34--71 NC

Nathan Smith, Pittsburgh, Pa. 35-36--71 SC

Paul Dunne, Republic of Ireland 35-36--71 NC

Roman Robledo, Harlingen, Texas 35-36--71 SC

Spencer Painton, Aurora, Colo. 35-36--71 SC

Taylor Hancock, Clearwater, Fla. 36-35--71 SC

Will Grimmer, Cincinnati, Ohio 34-37--71 NC

Adrian Meronk, Poland 37-35--72 SC

Andrew Kozan, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. 36-36--72 SC

Andy Ogletree, Little Rock, Miss. 39-33--72 SC

Blair Hamilton, Canada 35-37--72 NC

Brett Viboch, Moraga, Calif. 36-36--72 NC

Chelso Barrett, Surry, N.H. 37-35--72 SC

Corby Segal, Santa Clarita, Calif. 34-38--72 SC

Cormac Sharvin, Northern Ireland 34-38--72 NC

Denny McCarthy, Rockville, Md. 39-33--72 SC

Derek Bard, New Hartford, N.Y. 37-35--72 NC

Doug Hanzel, Savannah, Ga. 35-37--72 NC

Edwin Yi, Beaumont, Calif. 37-35--72 SC

Gabriel Lench, Lake Mary, Fla. 38-34--72 SC

Gary Hurley, Republic of Ireland 36-36--72 NC

Ian Holt, Stow, Ohio 36-36--72 NC

Jacob Hicks, Mebane, N.C. 37-35--72 NC

Jared Bettcher, Auburn, Ala. 36-36--72 SC

Jonathan Garrick, Atherton, Calif. 35-37--72 SC

Matt Oshrine, Baltimore, Md. 35-37--72 SC

Maverick Antcliff, Augusta, Ga. 34-38--72 NC

Maverick McNealy, Portola Valley, Calif. 36-36--72 NC

Michael Balcar, Toledo, Ohio 36-36--72 NC

Michael Johnson, Birmingham, Ala. 40-32--72 NC

Nicholas Ross, Canada 39-33--72 SC

Noah Goodwin, Corinth, Texas 38-34--72 SC

Robbie Ziegler, Madison, Wis. 37-35--72 SC

Romain Langasque, France 38-34--72 NC

Roman Aragon, Mission Viejo, Calif. 34-38--72 SC
Ryann Ree, Redondo Beach, Calif. 40-32--72 SC
Sam Burns, Shreveport, La. 35-37--72 NC
Sam Horsfield, England 34-38--72 SC

Sean Kelly, Staten Island, N.Y. 34-38--72 SC

Shad Tuten, Augusta, Ga. 36-36--72 NC
Taylor McCullum, Hoover, Ala. 37-35--72 SC
Thomas Detry, Belgium 37-35--72 NC
Todd White, Spartanburg, S.C. 36-36--72 NC
Victor Wiggins, Gastonia, N.C. 38-34--72 NC
Will Thomson, Pittsford, N.Y. 36-36--72 SC
Alex Lee, Sacramento, Calif. 37-36--73 SC
Arthur Kim, Tigard, Ore. 38-35--73 SC

Austin Bautista, Australia 37-36--73 NC

Austin James, Canada 39-34--73 NC

Billy Walthouse, Longmeadow, Mass. 37-36--73 NC

Brad Nurski, St. Joseph, Mo. 37-36--73 SC

Brett McIntosh, Canada 38-35--73 SC

Bryan Norton, Mission Hills, Kan. 37-36--73 SC

Caleb Proveaux, Lexington, S.C. 34-39--73 NC

Cameron Willis, Eaton, Ohio 38-35--73 SC

Charles Wang, People's Republic of China 37-36--73 NC

Chris Petefish, Danville, Calif. 38-35--73 SC

Dan Stringfellow, Roselle, Ill. 38-35--73 NC

Daniel Wetterich, Cincinnati, Ohio 37-36--73 NC
Francesco Ruffino, Bloomfield Village, Mich. 37-36--73 NC
Gunn Yang, Republic of Korea 37-36--73 NC
Jake Harpe, Griffin, Ga. 37-36--73 SC
Jake Yount, Danville, Calif. 38-35--73 SC
Joe Parkinson, Alpine, Utah 36-37--73 SC
John Jackopsic, West Hartford, Conn. 36-37--73 NC
Jordan Niebrugge, Mequon, Wis. 40-33--73 SC

Jorge Garcia, Venezuela 36-37--73 SC

Kyle De Silva, Orange, Calif. 40-33--73 NC
Kyle Mueller, Watkinsville, Ga. 37-36--73 SC
Matthew Giovannelli, Ocala, Fla. 38-35--73 NC
Michael Hyland, Medford, N.J. 40-33--73 SC

Noah Woolsey, Pleasanton, Calif. 34-39--73 SC

Patrick Moriarty, Rockville, Md. 39-34--73 NC

Philip Knowles, Bradenton, Fla. 37-36--73 SC

Ricky Castillo, Yorba Linda, Calif. 36-37--73 SC

Stephen Franken, Raleigh, N.C. 35-38--73 SC

Tom Vining, Sioux Falls, S.D. 37-36--73 NC

Troy Johnson, Maple Grove, Minn. 37-36--73 NC

Tyler Collier, Chico, Calif. 36-37--73 SC

Zachary Olsen, Cordova, Tenn. 39-34--73 NC

Broc Johnson, Auburn, Wash. 40-34--74 NC

Bryce Geraghty, Cantonment, Fla. 38-36--74 SC

Byron Meth, San Diego, Calif. 37-37--74 NC

Erick Alonso, Haworth, N.J. 38-36--74 SC

Eugene Hong, Sanford, Fla. 38-36--74 NC

Fred Wedel, The Woodlands, Texas 41-33--74 NC

Garett Reband, Fort Worth, Texas 37-37--74 SC

Grant Forrest, Scotland 37-37--74 NC

Jackson Juerling, Indianapolis, Ind. 37-37--74 SC

Jake Istnick, Dallas, Texas 36-38--74 NC

John Michael O'Toole, Pinson, Ala. 38-36--74 SC

Johnny De Los Reyes, Antioch, Calif. 39-35--74 NC

Johnny Decker, Verona, Wis. 38-36--74 SC

Jon Rahm, Spain 37-37--74 NC

Jonathan Diianni, Kernersville, N.C. 38-36--74 SC

Jonny Hogan, Santa Barbara, Calif. 38-36--74 NC
Jordan Woolf, Fort Worth, Texas 35-39--74 SC
Joseph Winslow, Overland Park, Kan. 38-36--74 NC
Keegan Vea, Evansville, Ind. 38-36--74 NC
Keith Unikel, Potomac, Md. 40-34--74 SC
Kyle Cornett, Mill Creek, Wash. 37-37--74 NC
Kyle Jones, Snowflake, Ariz. 35-39--74 SC
Lucas Herbert, Australia 37-37--74 NC
Max Greyserman, Short Hills, N.J. 38-36--74 NC
Peter Jones, Owatonna, Minn. 36-38--74 SC
Richard Gilkey, Bakersfield, Calif. 38-36--74 SC
Robin Sciot-Siegrist, France 35-39--74 NC

Ross Kronberg, Norwalk, Conn. 37-37--74 SC

Ryan Pelletier, Mansfield, Mass. 38-36--74 SC

Stewart Hagestad, Newport Beach, Calif. 38-36--74 NC

Todd Mitchell, Bloomington, Ill. 36-38--74 NC

Turner Southey-Gordon, Canada 37-37--74 NC

Zach Healy, Peachtree Corners, Ga. 37-37--74 SC

Aaron Whalen, Ephrata, Wash. 38-37--75 NC

Aaron Wise, Lake Elsinore, Calif. 35-40--75 SC

Andrew Price, Lake Bluff, Ill. 37-38--75 NC

Antonio Murdaca, Australia 37-38--75 SC

Austin Eckroat, Edmond, Okla. 37-38--75 SC

Beau Hossler, Mission Viejo, Calif. 40-35--75 NC

Ben Griffin, Chapel Hill, N.C. 39-36--75 NC

Carter Jenkins, Raleigh, N.C. 37-38--75 SC

Charles Danielson, Osceola, Wis. 40-35--75 SC

Dylan Wu, Medford, Ore. 36-39--75 SC

Garrett Browning, Imperial, Pa. 38-37--75 SC

Harrison Shih, Saddle River, N.J. 38-37--75 SC

Jack Sparling, Dublin, Ohio 37-38--75 NC

Jake Fendt, Suwanee, Ga. 35-40--75 NC

John Clare, Camillus, N.Y. 40-35--75 SC

Josh Irving, Fort Worth, Texas 36-39--75 SC

Kieran Purcell, Nutley, N.J. 38-37--75 SC

Kolton Crawford, Mansfield, Texas 38-37--75 NC

Lee Whitehead, Knoxville, Tenn. 40-35--75 NC

Marcus Kinhult, Sweden 39-36--75 NC

Max Rottluff, Germany 41-34--75 NC

Philip Barbaree, Shreveport, La. 37-38--75 NC

Sam Gillis, San Jacinto, Calif. 39-36--75 SC

Seokwon Jeon, Draper, Utah 36-39--75 NC

Shotaro Ban, San Jose, Calif. 40-35--75 NC

Tanner Napier, Paris, Texas 35-40--75 NC

Tom Bayliss, England 39-36--75 NC

Travis Rose, Nicholasville, Ky. 37-38--75 NC

Troy Moses, Australia 39-36--75 SC

Tye Waller, Griffin, Ga. 37-38--75 SC

Vince Whaley, Fayetteville, Ga. 35-40--75 NC

William Rainey, Charlotte, N.C. 37-38--75 SC

Alex Franklin, San Rafael, Calif. 39-37--76 NC

Andrew Levitt, Ladera Ranch, Calif. 36-40--76 NC

Andrew Orischak, Hilton Head Island, S.C. 39-37--76 SC

Austin Smotherman, Loomis, Calif. 38-38--76 SC

Brandon Mancheno, Jacksonville, Fla. 37-39--76 SC
Chris Babcock, Shoreline, Wash. 39-37--76 NC
Conner Koberg, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 39-37--76 NC
Daniel Hudson, Western Springs, Ill. 38-38--76 NC
Doug Ghim, Arlington Heights, Ill. 40-36--76 NC
Eric Banks, Canada 40-36--76 SC
Eric Ricard, Shreveport, La. 40-36--76 SC
Evan Katz, Washington, D.C. 35-41--76 SC
Evan Russell, Grantham, N.H. 36-40--76 NC
Freddy Thomas, Lakeville, Minn. 39-37--76 SC
Hagen Fell, Austin, Texas 37-39--76 SC
Jack Maguire, St Petersburg, Fla. 38-38--76 NC
James Holley, Chatsworth, Calif. 39-37--76 SC
Jimmy Hervol, Hopkinton, Mass. 40-36--76 NC
Jimmy Jones, Tampa, Fla. 37-39--76 SC
Kenneth Fadke, Hobbs, N.M. 38-38--76 SC
Kyler Tate, Winter Garden, Fla. 35-41--76 NC

Logan Lagodich, Canton, Ohio 39-37--76 NC

Micah Rodgers, Odessa, Texas 38-38--76 NC
Michael Brown Jr., Maple Shade, N.J. 38-38--76 NC
Michael VanDeventer, Columbus, Ind. 43-33--76 NC

Mike McCoy, Des Moines, Iowa 40-36--76 NC

Nick Eberhardt, Lake Wylie, S.C. 38-38--76 SC
Rico Hoey, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. 40-36--76 NC
Rylee Iacolucci, Cle Elum, Wash. 37-39--76 NC
Steve Irwin, Arvada, Colo. 38-38--76 NC
Sydney Chung, Jackson, Tenn. 39-37--76 SC
Will Long, Gastonia, N.C. 38-38--76 SC
Alejandro Tosti, Argentina 42-35--77 NC
Broc Everett, West Des Moines, Iowa 38-39--77 NC

Bryan Shin, Republic of Korea 40-37--77 NC

Cameron Davis, Australia 40-37--77 SC
Carson Young, Pendleton, S.C. 40-37--77 NC
Chris Guglielmo, Cumming, Ga. 42-35--77 NC
Connor Campbell, Orange, Calif. 38-39--77 NC
Daniel Whelan, Coral Springs, Fla. 39-38--77 NC

David Kocher, Charlotte, N.C. 40-37--77 NC

Henry Smart, England 39-38--77 NC

Hide Yoshihara, Japan 39-38--77 NC

Joshua Baskins, Reno, Nev. 37-40--77 SC

Mark Cusic, California, Md. 38-39--77 NC

Paul Pastore, Greenwich, Conn. 38-39--77 NC

Roberto Lebrija, Mexico 40-37--77 SC
Sam Bernstein, New York, N.Y. 41-36--77 NC
Tyler Saunders, Canada 38-39--77 SC
Tyler Strafaci, Davie, Fla. 38-39--77 NC
Zac Dittmer, Kansas City, Mo. 41-36--77 NC

Ashton Van Horne, Georgetown, Ky. 41-37--78 SC

Bill Carlson, Fargo, N.D. 37-41--78 NC
Braden Bailey, Groves, Texas 43-35--78 NC
Brian Scherer, Midland, Texas 39-39--78 SC

Christopher Kupniewski, Erie, Pa. 39-39--78 SC

Daniel De La Garza, Mexico 37-41--78 SC

David Weisfeld, New York, N.Y. 40-38--78 NC

Drew Lethem, Olathe, Kan. 39-39--78 SC

Ewen Ferguson, Scotland 38-40--78 SC

Hayden Wood, Edmond, Okla. 40-38--78 NC

Matthew Yun, Flushing, N.Y. 40-38--78 SC

Michael Tolladay, Fresno, Calif. 38-40--78 NC

Pep Angles, Spain 41-37--78 SC

Rigel Fernandes, Tampa, Fla. 41-37--78 NC

Ryggs Johnston, Libby, Mont. 39-39--78 NC

Stanhope Johnson Jr., Greensboro, N.C. 42-36--78 NC

Zach Gaugert, Waunakee, Wis. 39-39--78 SC

Adam Wood, Zionsville, Ind. 40-39--79 SC

Cole Miller, New Tripoli, Pa. 40-39--79 NC

Cristobal Del Solar, Tallahassee, Fla. 36-43--79 NC

Dave Szewczul, Farmington, Conn. 39-40--79 SC

Mack Foster, Knoxville, Ill. 38-41--79 SC

Marc Chandonnet, Lowell, Mass. 38-41--79 SC

McKinley Slade, Saunderstown, R.I. 38-41--79 NC

Michael Bernard, Huber Heights, Ohio 40-39--79 SC
Scottie Scheffler, Dallas, Texas 39-40--79 NC
Tyler Lewis, Grand Blanc, Mich. 43-36--79 SC
Alec Bone, Phoenix, Ariz. 41-39--80 NC
Jordan Lewis, Marion, Ill. 39-41--80 SC
Josh Lorenzetti, Blythewood, S.C. 40-40--80 NC
Kyle Danford, Fort Collins, Colo. 39-41--80 SC

Patrick Tallent, Vienna, Va. 40-40--80 SC

Sean McGuire, Twinsburg, Ohio 43-37--80 NC
Troy Evans, Barre, Vt. 41-39--80 SC

Vinay Ramesh, Newtown, Pa. 43-37--80 SC

Ethan Farnam, Crystal Lake, Ill. 39-42--81 NC

Jack Wallace, Beverly, N.J. 41-40--81 SC

Nick Marsh, England 39-42--81 SC

Nick Paxson, Cincinnati, Ohio 39-42--81 NC

Shane Barnes, Bloomington, Minn. 39-42--81 NC

Alex Weiss, Pickerington, Ohio 42-40--82 NC

Will Echelmeier, Columbia, Mo. 42-41--83 NC

Ryan Prokay, Grove City, Pa. 44-40--84 NC

Doug Kleeschulte, Kingston, N.Y. 47-38--85 NC

Kyler Dunkle, Larkspur, Colo. 43-43--86 NC

Jordan Wetsch, St. Charles, Ill. 41-48--89 NC

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