US rival delivers hammer blow to Fitzpatrick’s hopes of reaching semis
England’s Alex Fitzpatrick has been knocked out the US Amateur Championship after being beaten by Cole Hammer in the quarter-finals. The 19-year-old, the younger brother of Ryder Cup player Matt Fitzpatrick, was two down at the sixth after his American opponent shot back-to-back birdies on the fourth and fifth holes. Fitzpatrick won the eighth with a birdie to move within one, but Hammer birdied the ninth. That left the Englishman two down again as they headed back down at the Spyglass Hill Golf Course in Pebble Beach, California. Hammer, seeded No. 2 and ranked 17th in the world amateur ranking, parred the 12th to move to three up when Fitzpatrick had a bogey. Fitzpatrick – who as a 14-year-old caddied for Matt when he won the event in 2013 – again narrowed the lead, winning the 15th hole, but Hammer finished with a birdie on the 16th to win 3&2. Norway’s Viktor Hovland, world No. 5 amateur, progressed to the semifinals after winning seven
holes in a row, beating American Austin Squires 7&6. Isaiah Salinda also makes up the last four, beating compatriot Will Gordon 2&1, while Devon Bling, competing in his third USGA championship, finished one up to knock out Davis Riley. Scott Henry and Victor Perez shone brightest on a day of low scoring at Galgorm Castle to share the lead going into the final round of the Galgorm Resort and Spa NI Open. Scotland’s Henry was the first to make his move during the third round in Northern Ireland, carding eight birdies and a solitary bogey to tie the low round of the week with a 64 and set the clubhouse target at 16-under-par. Following his own sublime score of 64 on Friday, France’s Perez continued his red-hot form yesterday, bagging seven birdies and dropping just one shot to sign for a 65 and join Henry at the top of the leaderboard. With both Mark Flindt Haastrup and Stuart Manley just one shot back, Henry knows the competition will be fierce today and, with his last European Challenge Tour victory coming at the 2012 Kazakhstan Open, admits another triumph this week would be special. “It would mean a lot to win here as it feels like a home event,” he said. “It has been a long time since I won and tomorrow is going to be a long day, but having done it before is going to stand me in good stead.”