Busby and Mitchell qualify
for USGA Mid-Amateur
Championship
Derek Busby of Ruston, Louisiana fired a
three-under par 69 on Monday to win medalist
honors at the USGA Mid-Amateur Sectional
Qualifier at Koasati Pines at Coushatta in
Kinder.
Busby is the reigning LGA Amateur
Champion, and he plans to make some noise
at this year's U.S. Mid-Am, after falling in the
Round of 16 last year. Bryan Mitchell of Katy,
Texas claimed the second qualifying spot with
a one-under par 71.
Busby and Mitchell were the only two
competitors to finish the Qualifier under par.
They advance to the Championship proper,
to be conducted at the Tom Fazio designed
Capital City Club (Crabapple Course) in
Atlanta, Georgia, Oct. 7-12. The Crabapple
Course opened in 2002, and this will be its first
USGA Championship. The stroke-play co-
host venue is Atlanta National Golf Club in
Milton, Georgia. Preston Smith of Shreveport
is the first alternate, and Wiggins Edrington of
New Orleans is the second alternate.
The Koasati Pines course, which hosted
the Louisiana Golf Association Net Amateur
Championship this past weekend, played to
a par of 72 at 7,240 yards. The golf course
drew rave reviews from this field of the best
Mid-Amateur players in the region.
In Atlanta, a field of 264 will compete over
36 holes of stroke play qualifying on Oct. 7-8.
The low 64 players will then be placed in a
match play draw to determine the champion
with the first round of matches to be played
on Monday, Oct. 9. Round of 32 and Round
of 16 matches will be conducted on Oct. 10;
Quarterfinals and Semifinals will be played
on Oct. 11 with the Championship Match (36
holes) to be conducted Oct. 12.
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