The U.S. Amateur replica trophy was situated within arm’s reach of Jordan Spieth during Monday’s U.S. Am media day press conference at Cherry Hills Country Club. But the No. 1-ranked amateur in the world never made contact with the shiny hardware.
Later, he gladly posed with the Havemeyer Trophy behind the 18th green — on one condition: that he didn’t touch it.
But make no mistake, Spieth would dearly love to wrap his arms around the trophy in about four weeks.
“I’m extremely excited for this event,” the two-time U.S. Junior Amateur champion from Dallas said. “This is one I mark off every year. This will be my fourth U.S. Amateur. I’m looking forward to making it a couple matches further (than last year, when he was a quarterfinalist) on a venue such as Cherry Hills that I’ve heard so much about, even from major champions I’ve talked to.”
Spieth, future University of Texas teammate Beau Hossler and Jack Nicklaus’ son Gary will be three of the biggest names in the 312-man U.S. Amateur field when Cherry Hills hosts the championship Aug. 13-19. CommonGround Golf Course, which is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA, will be the second course for the stroke-play portion of the event Aug. 13-14.
Both Spieth (pictured above on Monday) and Hossler will give the Amateur some star power this year. Hossler became a household name among golf enthusiasts when he led the U.S. Open as a 17-year-old during the second round. And Spieth ended up as the low amateur in the Open, placing 21st overall.
While both players have obviously competed on bigger stages, they have their sights set on making a run at the title in the U.S. Amateur, the oldest USGA championship, having debuted in 1895.
“It’s the biggest amateur tournament in the world, so I’m going to make sure I’m prepared and hopefully I have a good chance to win,” Hossler said via teleconference on Monday. “I couldn’t be more excited to go out there to Denver, especially playing at altitude and hitting it pretty long.
“The U.S. Amateur at Erin Hills (in Wisconsin last year) is probably one of the favorite tournaments I’ve ever played in. That was a great event. So I’m looking forward to this year’s event at Cherry Hills.”
Both Spieth and Hossler have sprinkled PGA Tour events into their 2012 schedule. In a year in which he led the University of Texas to the NCAA title as a freshman, Spieth made the cut not only in the U.S. Open but the Texas Open and the John Deere Classic. Hossler did likewise in the U.S. Open and the AT&T National.
Asked if his mindset is different in amateur tournaments than it is in Tour events, Spieth said, “I would say it is in most events other than the U.S. Amateur. In the U.S. Amateur the competition is similar to a Tour event.
“And the golf course is set up like a Tour event or harder. It’s up there with the toughest events. I thought the courses I played for the U.S. Amateur were the toughest courses I’ve ever played obviously until the U.S. Open this year. But it’s not far behind. It’s fair and set up great for match play. The preparation for the U.S. Amateur is the same as it as if I were preparing for the U.S. Open. It means that much to everyone who plays in this event.”
Ben Kimball, USGA co-director for the U.S. Amateur, believes Cherry Hills and CommonGround will be formidable despite the world’s top amateur players challenging them next month.
“The most rigorous, most difficult yet fair test in amateur golf is what awaits these men come August,” Kimball said. “An examination both physically and mentally is what we prepare for those who come to Cherry Hills and CommonGround … two remarkable venues that will help us identify the best amateur player in the world this August.”
Not surprisingly, Kimball said the Palmer tee on the first hole at Cherry Hills — where Arnold Palmer drove the green in the final round of the 1960 U.S. Open en route to rallying to win the event — will be heavily utilized during the match-play rounds at Cherry Hills.
“What a way to start off most matches — give the players the opportunity to drive the first green, just as Arnold Palmer did in the 1960 U.S. Open,” he said.
Tall, thick rough will be one of the best defenses Cherry Hills has against many ultra-long-hitting amateurs. On most holes, the first cut of rough will be 3 inches deep, with the second cut being between 4 and 5 inches. Already on Monday, things were pretty gnarly when players strayed off the fairway.
Meanwhile, the greens at Cherry Hills will Stimp out between 11 and 11.5 feet, just as they did during the 2005 U.S. Women’s Open.
As for CommonGround, it was designed by renowned course architect Tom Doak, who also did a major restoration project at Cherry Hills several years ago.
“They’re very contrasting in terms of the kind of course,” U.S. Amateur general chairman Jeff Dorsey said of CommonGround and Cherry Hills. “CommonGround is a great Doak design and I think it’s going to be a stern test for the players.”
CGA executive director Ed Mate is hoping the U.S. Amateur players leave CommonGround as impressed as USGA executive director Mike Davis was when he first visited the site.
“There’s a really good golf course out there, and we’re really excited to showcase that golf course to all these great players,” Mate said. “We couldn’t be more excited.
“Having a ‘home game’ is particularly special for us this year because not only are we the host association, but we’re the host companion course.”
As for the fans, the USGA believes they’ll get their money’s worth during U.S. Amateur week.
“This is truly a spectacular experience if you enjoy golf,” said Robbie Zalzneck, another USGA co-director of the U.S. Amateur. “The level of competition is second to none. … You’ll see something special even if the majority of the names are quite household names yet. They will be in the future.
“The neat thing about the U.S. Amateur is we don’t rope the fairways so we encourage the fans to not just watch but to walk alongside the players and really embrace this and see these guys and their talent. You’ll see something special.”
Tickets for the U.S. Amateur — which run $17.50 per day or $85 for the week — are available at area King Soopers stores and at TicketsWest.com. Youngsters 17 and under will be admitted free when accompanied by a ticketed adult.
