ARDMORE, PA — Only four golfers remain at the 126th U.S. Amateur, which means it's finally time for the most stressful day of the championship.
No, it's not Sunday, when the 36-hole championship match will reveal the player worthy of lifting the Havemeyer Trophy. It's not even Wednesday morning, when players are stressing over 4 footers for par to extend a playoff, hoping for one more shot to get into match play.
It's Saturday. Only two golfers out of Carter Loflin, Jack Whaley, Jay Leng Jr. and Logan Reilly will remain after the semifinals. For those two golfers, their lives will change.
Spots in the Masters. Spots in the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. And for the winner, a spot in the Open Championship at St. Andrews.
"I bet the Masters would be probably
the best week of my life for sure," said Reilly, a rising sophomore at Alabama. "Yeah, that would be a dream come true."
Reilly is one of three Americans who advanced to the semifinals. He is from a generation that grew up watching Tiger Woods' historic Masters victory in 2019 and Rory McIlroy complete the career Grand Slam.
All it will take is one more match play victory, and they'll be able to waltz the same fairways their idols have time and time again.
"That would mean the world," Leng said of possibly earning starts in next year's majors. "That's all I've been thinking about this week. I'm not really going to let that affect my game. I'm just going to play my game, and whatever happens happens."
Friday's quarterfinals were duds. Three matches didn't even make to the 15th hole. The other ended on 16. Only 57 total holes were contested in the quarterfinals, the fewest in a U.S. Amateur quarters round since at least 2002.
The four remaining players have emerged as the hottest players at Merion. Leng is perhaps the most scorching, winner of the Western Amateur 12 days ago and now two matches away from becoming the 10th player to win both the Western and U.S. Amateur in the same summer. Two months ago, Reilly had the clinching putt to help Auburn win its second national title in three years. Loflin is a recent Georgia grad and looking to end his amateur career on a high note. Whaley has Walker Cup aspirations and is looking to be the second straight Englishman to win a USGA championship at Merion (Justin Rose, 2013 U.S. Open).
Saturday's semifinals are sure to be more tightly-contested matches. Not only because the quality of players left alive, but for what's at stake on one of the most historic golf courses in the United States for the winners.
"It would be really, really cool," Loflin said. "The Masters is a tournament I've grown up going to. I've been fortunate enough to make it out there and play since I went to University of Georgia. We'd get to go once a year. It's a really special place, and I actually really enjoy the golf course a lot. Obviously who wouldn't."
A spot in the championship match, and exemptions into the Masters and U.S. Open. Not a bad Saturday at Merion.
At least for two of the remaining four players at the U.S. Amateur.
Cameron Jourdan is an assistant editor of Golfweek, covering college and amateur golf, the PGA Tour and plenty more. Follow Cameron on X/Twitter (@Cam_Jourdan) or Instagram (@GolfweekJourdan).
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: For U.S. Amateur final fore, Saturday could change everything. Here's why
