Nick Taylor Takes U.S. Publinx Medalist Honours

The 21-year-old University of Washington sensation from Abbotsford, British Columbia, who was Low Amateur at the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage, N.Y., fashioned a 6-under par (66-70) 136 total and finished four strokes ahead of the field at the 7,289-yard, par-71 Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club,.

Teeing off in the first group of the day, Taylor was able to take advantage of benign early conditions before swirling winds and 100-degree temperatures battered the field throughout day.

“The wind picked up after seven or eight holes,” said Taylor.  “What made it tough was the ball was spinning a little more in the wind and it was tough to get back at the holes.  The wind definitely made it a little tougher.”

On a hot streak this summer after a record-breaking four victory season at UW, a tie for 36th at the U.S. Open and a victory at the Sahalee Players Championship less than two weeks ago, Taylor goes into the match-play portion of the championship as the No. 1 seed facing Craig Cyr, 25, of Concord, N.H., the 64th seed who shot 7-over-par 149.

Taylor accepted a USGA exemption into the Public Links Championship because the winner receives an invitation to the 2010 Masters Championship. In doing so he skipped this week's BC Amateur at Duncan Meadows Golf Club on Vancouver Island.

Next week Taylor goes up against some of the best on the PGA TOUR when he tees off in the RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey

Taylor finished four strokes ahead of Rickie Fowler, 20, of Murrieta, Calif., a two-time All-American and 2008 winner of the Ben Hogan Award as the top collegiate golfer in America, Nick Geyer, 21, of Albuquerque, N.M., and Jace Long, 19, of Dixon, Mo.

Notable golfers who advanced to match play included Sean Knapp, 47, of Oakmont, Pa., who is a playing in his 24th USGA championship but his first Amateur Public Links, 2008 U.S. Junior Amateur champion Cameron Peck, 18, of Olympia, Wash., and the University of Oklahoma coach-player duo of Philip Bryan and Liam Logan.

Notable golfers who failed to qualify included defending champion Jack Newman, 21, of Des Moines, Iowa, who missed the cut by one stroke, 2008 U.S. Amateur Public Links runner-up John Chin, 22, of Temecula, Calif., 2004 U.S. Junior Amateur Champion Sihwan Kim, 20, of Korea, and 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur Champion Steve Wilson, 39, of Ocean Springs, Miss.

The U.S. Amateur Public Links, established in 1922 for bona fide public course players as of Jan. 1, 2009, is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.

36 HOLES STROKE PLAY

Nick Taylor, Canada - 66-70--136
Jace Long, Dixon, Mo. - 68-72--140
Nick Geyer, Albuquerque, N.M. - 67-73--140
Rickie Fowler, Murrieta, Calif. - 68-72--140
Gene Webster Jr, San Bernardino, Calif. - 74-67--141
Brad Benjamin, Rockford, Ill. - 70-72--142
Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa. - 71-71--142
David McDaniel, Tucson, Ariz. - 72-71--143
Wesley Bryan, Chapin, S.C. - 73-70--143
Austin Bowman, Pryor, Okla. - 73-71--144
Cameron Peck, Olympia, Wash. - 74-70--144
Corey Nagy, Charlotte, N.C. - 72-72--144
Jon Sauer, St Cloud, Minn. - 70-74--144
Julian Suri, Saint Augustine, Fla. - 74-70--144
Lion Kim, Ann Arbor, Mich. - 72-72--144
Luke Guthrie, Quincy, Ill. - 70-74--144
Sang Yi, Carrollton, Texas - 74-70--144
Travis Ross, Crookston, Minn. - 71-73--144
Jake An, Korea - 70-75--145
Kyle Scott, South Africa - 75-70--145
Sam Lyons, Myrtle Beach, S.C. - 72-73--145
Steve Galko, Dallas, Texas - 70-75--145
Anders Albertson, Woodstock, Ga. - 72-74--146
Chris Marin, Monterey, Calif. - 69-77--146
Cody Paladino, Kensington, Conn. - 72-74--146
Hank Frame, Spokane, Wash. - 69-77--146
Phillip Bryan, Norman, Okla. - 71-75--146
Sean Maekawa, Paauilo, Hawaii - 72-74--146
Tom Whitney, La Quinta, Calif. - 73-73--146
Zach Barlow, Percy, Ill. - 72-74--146
Zahkai Brown, Arvada, Colo. - 73-73--146
Alton Anderson Jr, Thousand Oaks, Calif. - 75-72--147
Andrew Frame, Manteno, Ill. - 76-71--147
Braxton Marquez, Scottsdale, Ariz. - 73-74--147
Brett Munson, Louisville, Ky. - 73-74--147
Dan Sullivan, Pasadena, Calif. - 77-70--147
David Johnson, Palm Bay, Fla. - 74-73--147
Jeff Dennis, Jacksonville, Fla. - 71-76--147
Jesse Massie, Louisville, Ky. - 75-72--147
Liam Logan, Fort Worth, Texas - 73-74--147
Matt Nagy, Buena Vista, Ga. - 73-74--147
Michael Brown, Cheltenham, Pa. - 71-76--147
Peter O'Neill, Carmel, Ind. - 72-75--147
Robert Hoadley, Southern Pines, N.C. - 69-78--147
Zack Blair, Ogden, Utah - 76-71--147
Federico Damus, Argentina - 75-73--148
Garren Poirier, Killington, Vt. - 73-75--148
Jeff Williams, Chuluota, Fla. - 73-75--148
Josh Gregory, Augusta, Ga. - 74-74--148
Mitch Krywulycz, Australia - 74-74--148
Ricky Jones, Thomaston, Maine - 73-75--148
Robert Riesen, Pinehurst, N.C. - 75-73--148
Ryan Perez, Ewa Beach, Hawaii - 73-75--148
Sam Chien, San Diego, Calif. - 72-76--148
Todd Obergoenner, Cape Girardeau, Mo. - 70-78--148
Tommy Sikes, Midland, Texas - 71-77--148
Andrew Noto, Luling, La. - 76-73--149
Ben Freeman, Fargo, N.D. - 68-81--149
Brandon Crick, Mccook, Neb. - 71-78--149
Chris Polski, Eugene, Ore. - 73-76--149
Craig Cyr, Concord, N.H. - 73-76--149
Eddie Olson, Aptos, Calif. - 72-77--149
James Erkenbeck, San Diego, Calif. - 74-75--149
Ryan Sloane, Campbell, Calif. - 76-73--149

Failed to qualify
Andy Hansen, Mequon, Wis. - 77-73--150
Andy Roberts, Owensboro, Ky. - 72-78--150
Jack Newman, Des Moines, Iowa - 78-72--150
John Chin, Temecula, Calif. - 73-77--150
Josh Brock, Wilmington, N.C. - 74-76--150
Josh Jones, Dallas, Texas - 73-77--150
Kyle Peterman, Springfield, Ill. - 77-73--150
Michael Ignasiak, Saline, Mich. - 75-75--150
Spencer Williams, Great Falls, Mont. - 76-74--150
Bryan Pierce, Arroyo Grande, Calif. - 75-76--151
Cason Hammock, Columbus, Ga. - 72-79--151
Jared Wolfe, Louisville, Ky. - 72-79--151
Jon Lindstrom, Denver, Colo. - 76-75--151
Kelly Kretz, Antigo, Wis. - 76-75--151
Kyle Pritchard, Houston, Texas - 78-73--151
Scott Barton, Bend, Ore. - 73-78--151
Sihwan Kim, Korea - 74-77--151
Thomas McCarthy, Tolland, Conn. - 77-74--151
Thomas Petts, Canada - 75-76--151
Tommy Murray, Orange Park, Fla. - 73-78--151
Brent Booth, Los Altos, Calif. - 74-78--152
Brenton Flynn, Nashville, Tenn. - 75-77--152
J J Spaun, San Dimas, Calif. - 74-78--152
Jon Brown, Urbandale, Iowa - 77-75--152
Steven Wilson, St Martin, Miss. - 75-77--152
Zach Sebert, Grove City, Ohio - 75-77--152
Anthony Aloi, Plainsboro, N.J. - 78-75--153
Brad Hastings, Easton, Md. - 76-77--153
Brian Haskell, St Joseph, Mo. - 75-78--153
Cash Wilkerson, Spring, Texas - 79-74--153
Danny Lewis, Morrow, Ohio - 75-78--153
Jack Schultz, Whitefish Bay, Wis. - 75-78--153
John Lee, Los Alamitos, Calif. - 75-78--153
Peter Lansburgh, Elk Grove, Calif. - 75-78--153
Skyler Hong, La Jolla, Calif. - 79-74--153
Chase Wilson, Hickory, N.C. - 73-81--154
James Dewling, Brighton, Mich. - 76-78--154
Jared Dalga, Grand Rapids, Mich. - 78-76--154
Matthew Williams, Albuquerque, N.M. - 78-76--154
Tim Fisher, Statts Mills, W.Va. - 76-78--154
Brendan Doyle, Beverly Hills, Calif. - 78-77--155
Brent Paladino, Kensington, Conn. - 79-76--155
Erik Flores, Grass Valley, Calif. - 76-79--155
Ian McConnell, Riverview, Fla. - 78-77--155
John Darby, Hoover, Ala. - 80-75--155
John Mlynarski, St Michaels, Md. - 77-78--155
Jordan Johnstun, Evans, Ga. - 73-82--155
Marc Noel, Abbeville, La. - 82-73--155
Scott Newton, Carrollton, Texas - 75-80--155
Zack Fischer, Texarkana, Texas - 79-76--155
Beon Yeong Lee, Canada - 78-78--156
Bobby McCartney, Penfield, N.Y. - 76-80--156
Corbin Mills, Easley, S.C. - 78-78--156
Jason Wood, Piedmont, Okla. - 77-79--156
Peter Williamson, Hanover, N.H. - 73-83--156
Tim Madigan, Rio Rancho, N.M. - 76-80--156
Ian Hoffman, New Smyrna Beach, Fla. - 78-79--157
Maximilian Greil, Germany - 78-79--157
Scott Miller, Wyckoff, N.J. - 80-77--157
Thomas Timby, Doylestown, Pa. - 75-82--157
Tim Kay, Bartlett, Ill. - 77-80--157
Dillon Rust, Edmond, Okla. - 82-76--158
Kellen Erdman, Rocky River, Ohio - 78-80--158
Kyle Leach, Louisville, Ky. - 83-75--158
Lance Gillett, Cocoa Beach, Fla. - 82-76--158
Mike Kirby, Falls Church, Va. - 76-82--158
Ryan Black, Port St Lucie, Fla. - 76-82--158
Ryan Hom, New York, N.Y. - 76-82--158
Brian Marchiori, San Antonio, Texas - 75-84--159
Jordan Shuey, Mechanicsburg, Pa. - 77-82--159
Stephen Zane, Kula, Hawaii - 79-80--159
David Jennings, Washington, Utah - 79-81--160
David Smith, Plymouth, Minn. - 80-80--160
Kent Monas, Perry, Ohio - 79-81--160
Trevor Bowman, Harpster, Ohio - 81-79--160
Brent Shaw, Tampa, Fla. - 79-82--161
Donnie Shin, Silver Spring, Md. - 81-80--161
Randall Boll, Dayton, Ohio - 80-81--161
Eric Johnson, Marquette, Mich. - 77-85--162
Michael May, Big Piney, Wyo. - 85-77--162
Scott Sexton, Irvine, Calif. - 83-79--162
Jonathan McCaslin, Olympia, Wash. - 81-82--163
Tim Hamm, Chicago, Ill. - 81-82--163
Greg Sanders, Anchorage, Alaska - 85-79--164
Kevin Wentworth, Arnold, Calif. - 81-83--164
Alex Volpenhein, Edgewood, Ky. - 87-79--166
Ted Vickerman, Chaska, Minn. - 84-82--166
Joel Archer, Stuart, Fla. - 87-82--169
Josh Vornsand, Henderson, Nev. - 78-DQ--DQ
Christopher Scialo, New City, N.Y. - 72-DQ--DQ
Brent Blaum, Coral Gables, Fla. - 74-DQ--DQ

ROUND OF 64

Upper bracket

8:00 a.m.: Nick Taylor, Canada (136) vs. Craig Cyr, Concord, N.H. (149)
8:09 a.m.: Brett Munson, Louisville, Ky. (147) vs. David Johnson, Palm Bay, Fla. (147)
8:18 a.m.: Jon Sauer, St Cloud, Minn. (144) vs. Todd Obergoenner, Cape Girardeau, Mo. (148)
8:27 a.m.: Travis Ross, Crookston, Minn. (144) vs. Sam Chien, San Diego, Calif. (148)
8:36 a.m.: David McDaniel, Tucson, Ariz. (143) vs. Chris Polski, Eugene, Ore. (149)
8:45 a.m.: Tom Whitney, La Quinta, Calif. (146) vs. Zack Blair, Ogden, Utah (147)
8:54 a.m.: Wesley Bryan, Chapin, S.C. (143) vs. Robert Riesen, Pinehurst, N.C. (148)
9:03 a.m.: Hank Frame, Spokane, Wash. (146) vs. Michael Brown, Cheltenham, Pa. (147)
9:12 a.m.: Rickie Fowler, Murrieta, Calif. (140) vs. James Erkenbeck, San Diego, Calif. (149)
9:21 a.m.: Zach Barlow, Percy, Ill. (146) vs. Alton Anderson Jr, Thousand Oaks, Calif. (147)
9:30 a.m.: Corey Nagy, Charlotte, N.C. (144) vs. Josh Gregory, Augusta, Ga. (148)
9:39 a.m.: Sam Lyons, Myrtle Beach, S.C. (145) vs. Peter O'Neill, Carmel, Ind. (147)
9:48 a.m.: Gene Webster Jr, San Bernardino, Calif. (141) vs. Andrew Noto, Luling, La. (149)
9:57 a.m.: Phillip Bryan, Norman, Okla. (146) vs. Braxton Marquez, Scottsdale, Ariz. (147)
10:06 a.m.: Cameron Peck, Olympia, Wash. (144) vs. Tommy Sikes, Midland, Texas (148)
10:15 a.m.: Jake An, Korea (145) vs. Jeff Dennis, Jacksonville, Fla. (147)

Lower bracket

10:24 a.m.: Nick Geyer, Albuquerque, N.M. (140) vs. Brandon Crick, Mccook, Neb. (149)
10:33 a.m.: Zahkai Brown, Arvada, Colo. (146) vs. Andrew Frame, Manteno, Ill. (147)
10:42 a.m.: Austin Bowman, Pryor, Okla. (144) vs. Mitch Krywulycz, Australia (148)
10:51 a.m.: Julian Suri, Saint Augustine, Fla. (144) vs. Garren Poirier, Killington, Vt. (148)
11:00 a.m.: Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa. (142) vs. Eddie Olson, Aptos, Calif. (149)
11:09 a.m.: Chris Marin, Monterey, Calif. (146) vs. Matt Nagy, Buena Vista, Ga. (147)
11:18 a.m.: Lion Kim, Ann Arbor, Mich. (144) vs. Jeff Williams, Chuluota, Fla. (148)
11:27 a.m.: Sean Maekawa, Paauilo, Hawaii (146) vs. Robert Hoadley, Southern Pines, N.C. (147)
11:36 a.m.: Jace Long, Dixon, Mo. (140) vs. Ryan Sloane, Campbell, Calif. (149)
11:45 a.m.: Anders Albertson, Woodstock, Ga. (146) vs. Liam Logan, Fort Worth, Texas (147)
11:54 a.m.: Sang Yi, Carrollton, Texas (144) vs. Ricky Jones, Thomaston, Maine (148)
12:03 p.m.: Kyle Scott, South Africa (145) vs. Federico Damus, Argentina (148)
12:12 p.m.: Brad Benjamin, Rockford, Ill. (142) vs. Ben Freeman, Fargo, N.D. (149)
12:21 p.m.: Cody Paladino, Kensington, Conn. (146) vs. Jesse Massie, Louisville, Ky. (147)
12:30 p.m.: Luke Guthrie, Quincy, Ill. (144) vs. Ryan Perez, Ewa Beach, Hawaii (148)
12:39 p.m.: Steve Galko, Dallas, Texas (145) vs. Dan Sullivan, Pasadena, Calif. (147)