Baxter and Buchanan win USA four-ball championship

 

USGA NEWS RELEASE

MAMARONECK, New York  – Thanks to stellar play on the inward nine, the side of Benjamin Baxter and Andrew Buchanan defeated Brandon Cigna and Ben Warnquist 3 and 2  in the final match of the 2016 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship on the par-70, 6,728-yard East Course at Winged Foot Golf Club.

Teammates at Southern Methodist University, Baxter, 20, of Flower Mound, Texas, and Buchanan, 21, of Los Altos, Calif., were literally unbeatable on the second nine throughout the day. Baxter and Buchanan trailed the formidable mid-amateur duo of Garrett Rank and Patrick Christovich, 4 down, through eight holes in the morning semi-final before recording birdies on seven of the next nine holes, including wins on 15, 16 and 17 for a 2-and-1 victory. That dominance extended into the final, as the duo sprinted to the finish line with wins on 12, 14 and 15.

Throughout the five match-play rounds, Baxter and Buchanan played 40 holes on the inward nine in 14 under par, given match-play concessions.

LAST DAY RESULTS 

Played at the 6,728-yard, par-70 Winged Foot Golf Club (East Course).

Qualifying scores in brackets.

SEMI-FINALS

Benjamin Baxter, Highland Park, Texas and  Andrew Buchanan, Los Altos, California. (133) bt Patrick Christovich, New Orleans and Garrett Rank, Canada (130) 2 and 1

Brandon Cigna, Arlington, Virginia and  Ben Warnquist, Olney, Maryland (136) def. Otto Black, Pinckney, Michigan and Colin Joseph, Loveland, Ohio (134) 2 holes.

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

(18 holes)

Baxter and Buchanan bt Cigna and Warnquist 3 and 2.