Abbotsford golfer James Lepp won a local qualifier this week to move him one step closer to playing in the U.S. Open.
Lepp, 31, had a sterling collegiate golf career and won two events on what was then called the Canadian Tour, but has reduced his playing time in recent years in order to focus on his golf apparel business, Kikkor golf.
But with this year’s U.S. Open being held just south, at Chambers Bay just outside of Tacoma, Lepp decided to take a stab at qualifying.
Playing this week in an 18-hole local qualifier in DuPont, Wash., where the top seven move on to a section qualifier, Lepp finished tied for sixth. That put him in a playoff, which he won to move on to the next stage, a 36-hole sectional qualifier. Lepp still has some work to do, though: he’ll be vying for just a couple spots alongside dozens of other hopefuls.
“I need to improve all facets of my game to make it, plus play well, and probably get a little lucky,” Lepp said.
Despite being members of the PGA Tour, fellow Abbotsford golfers Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin won’t receive automatic berths in the U.S. Open. They have, however, avoided having to play local qualifiers. They will instead have the chance to qualify from a sectional.
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Meanwhiile, last week on the PGA Tour, Taylor made the cut at the prestigious Players Championship over the weekend before a calamitous back-nine on his fourth round saw him double bogey three holes and left him tied for 73rd, a result that still netted him a $19,400 payday.
Adam Hadwin, meanwhile, missed the cut after finishing the first two rounds at five-over.
Rickie Fowler won the tournament in a playoff after posting a four-round score of 12-under-par.
Also, last week, a pair of Abbotsford golfers were unable to claim PGA Tour Canada exemptions after competing at Q-School at Crown Isle Resort last week.
Brett Stewart finished finished 73rd, posting a four-round score of 10-over-par, while Brett Webster finished tied for 115 at plus-22. Both golfers play out of Ledgeview Golf Course.
A total of 44 players earned status on the tour for 2015, including five Canadians.
