Aman Gupta with his coach-cum-caddie, Alan Bratton. Pic: USGA
Aug 16: Indian-American Aman Gupta’s amazing run at the 120th US Amateur Championships came to an end, but not before he put up a great fight in the closing stages of his semi-final against the higher world ranked, Tyler Strafaci, at Bandon Dunes, Oregon.
Gupta, who fell behind by four holes after 10 holes, was still four down with six holes to go. Gupta then went on a superb run, winning four holes in next five to tie the match on the 17th green.
Then came the dramatic finish. Gupta and Trafaci hit wayward tee shots on par-5 18th. Gupta went into the bunker on the right of the fairway. Trying to get out of the bunker with an 8-Iron, the ball hit the lip and stayed in the bunker and his next shot with a pitching wedge also caught the bunker face. He was finally on the green in five and failed to make a 20-foot bogey putt. Strafaci’s second shot from left rough was just off the green and he pitched to 15 feet. Gupta missed his bogey putt and conceded the match.
Gupta, who got into the field last Friday when world No. 2 Ricky Castillo withdrew, said, “I knew going in Ty was going to be a tough competitor. Doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. I mean, he rolls it well, so I knew it was going to be a good day. I didn’t quite hit it as well as I wanted to all day, but I put up as good of a fight as I could on the back nine.”
He added, “I’ve known and my coach (Alan Bratton, who was his caddie) has known for a while that I was good enough to do this. I’m just going to take a lot of confidence and know that I’m one of the best players in the world and it’s time to start playing like it.”
Strafaci said, “Aman made some great shots down the stretch. But at the same time, you’re still thinking, ‘Why did I just give up a 4-up lead?’ when you’re in complete control. It’s tough.” In the seven-hole stretch from 11th to 17th, Strafaci played five-over, after back-to-back winning birdies gave him a 4-up lead through 10 holes.
For Strafaci, a Georgia Tech fifth-year senior, it was the third consecutive day he went the distance. In the Round of 16, his opponent, Segundo Olivia Pinto’s caddie touched the sand and was penalised the hole to lose the match; and then in the quarter-final Strafaci had to make a three and a half foot par putt to beat Stewart Hagestead on the 18th.
The win earned Strafaci a spot in next year’s U.S. Open at Torrey Pines as well. He is the grandson of 1935 U.S. Amateur Public Links champion Frank Strafaci Sr. He will face Southern Methodist University rising junior Charles Osborne, 20, in Sunday’s 36-hole championship match.
Osborne, who also earned a berth in the 2021 U.S. Open, eliminated 58th seed Matthew Sharpstene, 22, 4 and 2.
Read also:
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Indian-American Aman Gupta reaches quarter-final of US Amateurs
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