SCOTTSDALE – Cave Creek’s Tyler Spielman earned Stroke Play Qualifying Medalist honors Tuesday at Desert Highlands Golf Club, carding eight birdies during a stellar second round of -7 (65) to put him at -9 overall. Jonathan Curran finished three strokes back at -6 overall to claim the second overall seed in Match Play, with Paradise Valley’s Nick Kling alone in third one shot back at -5 overall. Five players will battle for the final two spots in Match Play at 7:00am Wednesday morning. Click here to view the full Match Play bracket.
“I was striking the ball a little better than yesterday and got to go out there early with not a lot of wind, so it was a really good day,” said Spielman, 17, a senior at Brophy Prep verbally committed to play golf at Auburn University. “Just to know that I’m striping it well – it was just a really good finish for some momentum going into tomorrow.”
Four players finished Stroke Play Qualifying tied for fourth, including 2021 Arizona Amateur Champion Kris Marshall. Will Evans shot the second-best round of the day at -4 (68) to get into the top five, while Joey Geary and 18-hole leader Adam Miller also claimed high seeds in Wednesday’s Round of 64.
“They did a good job maintenance-wise – the course is in great shape,” said Marshall, whose 2021 win also came in Scottsdale, at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Talon Course. “It definitely blew quite a bit today, so that was a little fun. It kind of brought me back to my Kansas days. But I’ve got that low ball.”
“I really enjoyed the way these greens are putting and the way this course is playing,” said Evans, originally from McDonough, Ga., who played golf collegiately at Georgia Southern. “Kudos to the grounds crew here. These greens are perfect, and it seems like they go in a little easier when the course is in the condition it’s in.”
Wednesday’s 7:00am playoff will take place on the 563-yard, par-5 18th hole. Rayce Mathews, Chad Hossack, Matt Neils, Zack Missigman and Blake Brown will play as a fivesome until the advancing two players are determined.
All Round of 64 matches will be held Wednesday, with Round of 32 and Round of 16 matches scheduled for Thursday. Friday sees the Quarterfinal and Semifinal matches played, with the last two players remaining in field squaring off in Saturday’s Championship match.
For more information on the 99th Arizona Amateur Championship, please click here.
