Five advance to sectional qualifying in the U.S. Open
By WPGA • May 16, 2022
Butler Country Club hosted the field of 75 golfers for the U.S. Open Local Qualifying Event, and on this day, the sun was shining, the greens were rolling, and the competition was intense.
Only five golfers move onto U.S. Open Sectional Qualifying, and the scoring in this event reflected the players’ efforts toward that goal.
The low scorer was Beau Titsworth of St. Petersburg, Fla., shooting a 3-under 67. His bogey on the first hole never became a distraction, as he followed that up with a birdie on hole two. Beau finished the front-nine 1-under, helping him gain significant momentum on the back-nine where he carded four of his six birdies on the day.
Darin Kowalski of Bethel Park and Blaise Vanitvelt of Fenton, Mich. both finished with scores of 1-under 69. Kowalski kept things fairly consistent on the course, backing up his three bogeys with four birdies. On the other hand, Vanitvelt strung together three birdies in a row on the back-nine after a slow start on the front which consisted of three bogeys and a birdie.
The final two qualifying spots were earned by Rockville, Maryland native Nick Sorkin and CMU grad Jason Li of Sewickley. Both players finished their rounds at even par, both carding two birdies and two bogeys each.
A playoff was needed to fill the two alternate spots for U.S. Open Sectional Qualifying as six players finished their 18 holes at 1-over par. Austin Lemieux and Joseph Juszczyk both parred the first playoff hole, besting their playoff competitors, each of whom bogeyed. Lemieux sunk a birdie putt on the sixth playoff hole to earn a spot as the first alternate, making Juszczyk the second alternate.
The aforementioned Local Qualifiers will compete in Sectional Qualifying for a chance to play at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts for the 122nd U.S. Open in June.
About the WPGA
Founded in 1899, the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association is the steward of amateur golf in the region. Started by five Member Clubs, the association now has nearly 200 Member Clubs and 33,000 members. The WPGA conducts 14 individual competitions and 10 team events, and administers the WPGA Scholarship Fund.