Vancouver, Wash. (May 5, 2014) - Kevin Murphy of Rogue River, Ore. and six others advanced to the U.S. Open Sectional by qualifying at Royal Oaks Country Club in Vancouver, Wash on Monday, May 5. The field included 123 players, one of the largest U.S. Open Local fields in the country. The six other players that advanced include: Paul Peterson of Portland, Ore.; Brandon McIver of Billings, Mont.; Dylan Wu of Medford, Ore.; Chris Babcock of Shoreline, Wash.; Joel Skarbo of Seattle, Wash. and Ryan Ree of Redondo Beach, Calif.

Going into the day, the story was the weather. However, it never surfaced and the golf course was left soft from a few showers and was open for players to take advantage of. Murphy, who is finishing up his Freshman season on the Oregon State Men’s Golf Team, took advantage of those conditions, and carded a round with six birdies and incredibly no bogeys to shoot a 6-underpar 66 total. Murphy will play his Sectional Qualifier at Emerald Valley Golf Club in Creswell, Ore. on June 2, as he continues his path to Pinehurst, site of this year’s U.S. Open Championship.

Other notables that advanced were former Oregon Amateur Champion and current Asian Tour Player Paul Peterson, who easily qualified with a score of 4-underpar 68. University of Oregon Sophomore Brandon McIver also fired a 68, and Dylan Wu, an Oregon Junior stand out and a high school senior at St. Mary’s in Medford, finished with a 3-underpar 69 total.

The rest of the qualifying spots were filled via a playoff. At the end of the day there were two spots left and two alternate positions. Ree, Skarbo and Nugent, who were tied at 2-underpar, played for the last two spots. It was Ree with a birdie and Skarbo with a par after the first playoff hole that solidified the field. Nugent is first alternate.

The more interesting playoff was for second alternate. Four players were tied at 1-under par. Two of them may have been the most notable names in the field. Andres Gonzales and Casey Martin, who combined have more professional experience than the entire field, along with Damien Telles of The Dalles, Ore. ended up playing for the last alternate position. On the first playoff hole Telles pulled his drive left into the ninth fairway, while Gonzales and Martin drove their balls in the middle of the fairway. After a miraculous shot over the trees, Telles’ second shot was just off the green. Gonzales bladed his second shot over the green and was left with making an unbelievable up-and-down for par. Martin, on the other hand, hit his second shot to about five feet behind the green. It was Martin, who drained his putt for birdie to win that last alternate spot into the same Sectional qualifying location that won him a spot in the U.S. Open two years ago.

The U.S. Open is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association (USGA), 10 of which are strictly for amateurs. The Oregon Golf Association (OGA) is the local representative of the USGA and conducts this qualifier for the U.S. Open Championship.

To be eligible, a player must have a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 1.4, or be a professional. Local qualifying, which will be played over 18 holes at 111 sites in the United States, will take place between May 5-19. The USGA received entries for the 115th U.S. Open from golfers in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 73 foreign countries. The USGA received record number of entries into this years Championship to be held on Pinehurst No. 2, Pinehurst NC, June 12 -15.

About The Oregon Golf Association (OGA) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit membership association. Founded in 1924, the OGA was originally established with the sole purpose of conducting the Oregon Amateur Championship. Since its founding 88 years ago, the OGA works tirelessly to promote, foster, and grow the game of golf providing a multitude of benefits and services to approximately 43,000 individual men, women, senior, and junior members at over 270 member golf clubs and 190 golf courses throughout Oregon and SW Washington.