Quarterfinal Matches Set at Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play
Azle — During Friday morning’s Round of 32 matches, eight of the top ten seeded players advanced to the afternoon’s Round of 16. The Round of 32 matches included five upsets with the higher seed winning and advancing. One stroke play qualifying medalist and three past champions advance to Quarterfinals after Friday afternoon’s Round of 16 matches.
Click here for full leaderboard
Round of 32: In Match 1, No. 1 seed Dave Davis of Saginaw defeated No. 32 seed James DeWitt of Dallas. Davis won the match 4 & 3 and was the first player to secure his spot in Friday afternoon’s Round of 16.
In Match 2, No. 31 seed Jared Jimenez of Heath upset No. 2 seed Jacob Walsh of Montgomery winning the match 5 & 4. The third match of the day was between No. 3 seed Aaron Hickman of Tyler and Richardson’s Bob Forneris. Hickman, a past Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play champion defeated No. 30 seed Forneris 4 & 2.
In Match 4, No. 4 seed Gant Bills of Plano defeated No. 29 seed Chris Pena of Rockwall 2 & 1. In the fifth match, No. 5 seed Scott Maurer of Dallas defeated No. 28 seed Jeffrey Juillerat of Fort Worth. Maurer closed out the match on the par-5 15th to win 4 & 3.
In Match 6, No. 6 seed Matt Miller of McKinney defeated Justin’s Harris Graham 2 & 1. Graham was the No. 27 seed heading into match play. In Match 7, No. 7 seed Kendrick Vinar of Richardson defeated No. 26 seed Logan Fox of Harker Heights 3 & 2.
In Match 8, two-time past champion Colby Harwell of San Antonio upset No. 8 seed Jeff Dodson of Flower Mound. Harwell, the No. 25 seed, won the match 2 up. In the ninth match of the day, No. 9 seed and past champion Chris Wheeler of Addison defeated No. 24 seed Brad Phelps of McKinney 1 up.
In Match 10, Tyler’s Seth Murphy defeated Irving’s Tyler Palmer. Murphy, the No. 10 seed, defeated No. 23 seed Palmer 4 & 3. Match 11 was the first match of the day that needed extra holes, and the second upset of the Round of 32. The match was between No. 11 seed Michael Samp of Irving and No. 22 seed Eric Heinle of Houston. The pair went 19-holes before Heinle defeated Samp.
In Match 12, No. 13 seed Kyle Wesolowski of Fort Worth defeated No. 20 seed Chris Behney of Trophy Club. Wesolowski’s 6 & 4 win was the largest margin of victory in the Round of 32. In Match 13, No. 21 seed Andrew Grice upset No. 12 seed Jake Istnick. Grice, of Austin, defeated Dallas’ Istnick 1 up.
Match 14 was between No. 14 seed Brandon Grace of Mansfield and Dallas’ Derek Abel. The No. 19 seed Abel defeated Grace in 19 holes. In Match 15, past champion Anthony Estorga of Dallas defeated No. 18 seed Ted Waldrip. Estorga, the No. 13 seed, won the match 4 & 3. The final match of the Round of 32, Match 16, was between No. 16 seed Bryan Mitchell and No. 17 seed Matthew Sullivan. Sullivan, of Lewisville, upset Katy’s Mitchell 3 & 2.
Round of 16: Friday afternoon’s first match of the Round of 16, Match 1, was between No. 1 seed Dave Davis and No. 17 seed Matthew Sullivan. Sullivan kept the momentum going into the afternoon when he defeated Davis 3 & 2, knocking out the No. 1 seed. This was the second upset of the day for Sullivan, defeating another lower seeded player. Match 2 was the featured match of the afternoon including two past champions with Colby Harwell and Chris Wheeler. Wheeler, the No. 9 seed, defeated No. 25 seed Harwell 4 & 3 advancing Wheeler to tomorrow morning’s Quarterfinals against Sullivan.
In Match 3, No. 13 seed Kyle Wesolowski defeated No. 4 seed Gant Bills 4 & 3. Joining Wesolowski in the Quarterfinals is Andrew Grice who defeated No. 5 seed Scott Maurer 1 up in Match 4. Grice, the No. 21 seed, is the highest seeded player advancing to the Quarterfinals and will face-off against Wesolowski.
Match 5 was between No. 31 seed Jared Jimenez and No. 15 seed Anthony Estorga. After defeating the No. 2 seed in this morning’s Round of 32, Jimenez was defeated by past champion Estorga 4 & 2. In Match 6, No. 10 seed Seth Murphy defeated No. 7 seed Kendrick Vinar 1 up, advancing to the Quarterfinals for the second consecutive year. With the Round of 16 victory, Murphy will be paired against Estorga in the Quarterfinals.
In Match 7, No. 3 seed Aaron Hickman defeated No. 14 seed Brandon Grace. The past champion showcased his experience with closing birdies on the par-4 17th and par-5 18th to win the match 1 up. Hickman was the lone stroke play qualifying medalist to advance to the weekend. The final match of the day, Match 8, was between No. 6 seed Matt Miller and No. 22 seed Eric Heinle. After a conceded two-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th, Miller defeated Heinle 2 up and secured the final spot in the Quarterfinals and will play against Hickman.
Course: Cross Timbers Golf Course in Azle will be the host site for the 25th Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play. Opened in 1995, Cross Timbers Golf Course was designed by Texas-based architect Jeffery Brauer. Routed through a secluded woodland area near Ash Creek, the strategic 6,734-yard, par-72 layout features significant elevation changes, tree-lined fairways, natural penalty areas, and well-protected, contoured greens.
Tournament History: The Mid-Amateur Match Play is open to players 25 years of age or older and hold a handicap index of 5.4 or less. The unique format starts with 84 players competing in an 18-hole stroke play qualifying round. From there, the low 32 players will advance to the match play portion of the championship. Matches will take place over three days, with 36-holes being played Friday and Saturday for those who continue to advance, and an 18-hole championship match to crown our champion on Sunday morning.
POY Points Race: Statewide Player of the Year points will be awarded to the top players making it to the Round of 16. The champion will receive 750 points towards the statewide honor followed by 500 for runner-up, 400 for semifinalists, 200 for quarterfinalists, and 100 for Round of 16 participants. For more information about TGA Statewide Player of the Year points, click here.
What’s Next: Quarterfinal matches will begin at 7:30 am on Saturday, July 29. Following those matches, the semifinal matches start in the afternoon beginning at 12:30 pm.
About the TGA: The Texas Golf Association was established in 1906 with a mission to promote the playing and advancement of the royal and ancient game of golf in Texas. The association is one of the most respected in the country with an ongoing commitment to its members, contestants, volunteers and all who strive to preserve the great traditions of the game.
For more information about the 25th Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play, click here. To see all the scores from Cross Timber Golf Course, click here.