Sometimes, a golfer just senses that he or she is destined to perform well on a given day.

Monday, it should be noted, was not one of those days for Steve Irwin.

In fact, the night before the Arvada resident competed in the U.S. Amateur qualifier at Fort Collins Country Club, the former University of Colorado golfer told his wife, Jessi, that he had few expectations.

“I told her that I’m just going to go up there and try to have some fun and just not think about it,” Irwin recalled.

And, of course, Irwin proceeded to not only qualify for his second U.S. Amateur, but shared medalist honors out of a field that originally numbered 78.

Irwin, 40, and home-course favorite Kyle Danford of Fort Collins CC, 32, tied for the best scores over 36 holes, and they were joined in earning spots in the national championship by another Fort Collins resident, 18-year-old Kyler Dunkle. (The qualifiers are pictured above, from left: Dunkle, Danford and Irwin.)

Those three will be among the 312 competitors in the U.S. Am, which is set for Aug. 17-23 in Olympia Fields, Ill.

Irwin, son of three-time U.S. Open champion Hale Irwin, and Danford will be going to their second U.S. Amateur, while Dunkle is headed for his first. Irwin competed in the 2011 championship thanks to qualifying for the U.S. Open that same year. And Danford played in the 2013 U.S. Am, also after qualifying at his home course.

“This was unexpected to say the least,” said Irwin, the 2004 CGA Player of the Year. “I definitely did not have much of a golf game today. Fortunately, I putted very, very well. I took advantage of the par-3s (with five 2s on his card) and holed one out for eagle. I was leaking some oil coming in (with bogeys on his 33rd, 34th and 35th holes of the day before a 4-foot birdie on his last), but I hit some good shots when I needed to.

“It took all my wits to gather some sort of golf swing for each and every shot.”

Irwin (left) and Danford matched 3-under-par 137 totals for 36 holes, with Irwin carding rounds of 67-70 and Danford going 69-68. Both players holed out shots at the par-5 first hole on Monday, Irwin in the morning from 111 yards and Danford in the afternoon from 50 yards. Irwin racked up 10 birdies and nine bogeys in addition to his eagle. Danford complemented his eagle with four birdies and three bogeys, but certainly didn’t feel in the zone.

“I really wasn’t comfortable most of the day,” Danford said. “I scored well. I got up and down a lot and had a lot of good par saves. I chipped in twice the last nine — one for eagle and one for par. It was a little struggle. I just had to grind it out the whole day.”

But just as his home course knowledge paid dividends two years ago in U.S. Amateur qualifying, likewise was the case on Monday.

“It’s tough playing against guys who play every day,” said Danford, whose wife gave birth to their fourth child just nine days before the qualifier. “But (playing at Fort Collins CC) definitely gives me an advantage. It can almost be a double-edged sword where you put too much pressure on yourself. But this year, I had a big break with where the pins were. I know how the greens react. These greens are tricky. I’ve been a member for 25 years now, so I know them, which is lucky. And I know where to miss off the tee box too.”

Two years ago, Danford struggled considerably in his first round of stroke play at the U.S. Amateur, shooting a 92. But he bounced back to fire a 73 in round 2.

“I kind of want a little redemption,” he said. “The nerves definitely got to me on that first round. It was a rough one, but it was fun (competing in the U.S. Am). Playing a course like that (The Country Club at Brookline, Mass.) was pretty special. It still gives me nightmares. But I bounced back the second day, which showed me I could hang in there with some of those guys. Getting another shot at it is all I can ask for.”

Dunkle, the 2012 5A state high school champion, likewise had a certain home-course advantage on Monday. As a Colorado State University golfer, he plays Fort Collins CC on a regular basis, perhaps 50 times by now.

“It’s kind of a home-field advantage for me just because CSU gets to play here every day,” said Dunkle, who made five birdies and three bogeys on Monday. “On some of the greens, you know what some putts are going to do. It’s nice because you’re a little more comfortable and have a feel for the kind of tee shots you need to hit. I think that definitely helped.

“I didn’t do anything incredible today, but I didn’t make too many mistakes.”

The result is that he’s headed for his first USGA championship. It’s just another step in a solid summer for Dunkle, who teamed up with his dad to win the CGA Father/Son title and later advanced to the quarterfinals of the CGA Match Play Championship.

“I found how to work hard,” Dunkle said of his recent strong play. “When you put that work in, the results will show. I feel like I’m in a groove for sure. I’ve been playing really well.”

However Dunkle and Irwin and Danford made it happen on Monday, the payoff was large.

“It’s the biggest amateur tournament in the world,” Irwin said of the U.S. Amateur. “To get through like this is something I’ve never done before so that’s definitely something very exciting for me.”

Monday marked the second and final Colorado-based U.S. Amateur qualifier. Last week at Columbine Country Club, Spencer Painton of Aurora, David Oraee of Greeley and Canadian Tyler Saunders advanced to the national championship.
 

U.S. Amateur Qualifying
At Par-70 Fort Collins CC

QUALIFIED
Kyle Danford, Fort Collins, Colo., 69-68–137
Steven Irwin, Arvada, Colo., 67-70–137
Kyler Dunkle, Fort Collins, Colo., 69-69–138
ALTERNATES (in order)
Ryan McCullough, Las Vegas, Nev., 74-67–141
Sam Nichamin, Avon, Colo., 72-70–142
FAILED TO QUALIFY
Ryan Axlund, Denver, Colo., 71-71–142
Steven Kupcho, Westminster, Colo., 72-71–143
Joshua Seiple, Castle Rock, Colo., 72-71–143
Sam Marley, Centennial, Colo., 74-69–143
Wade Petersilie, Colorado Springs, Colo., 74-70–144
Jimmy Makloski, Pueblo, Colo., 73-71–144
Daniel Pearson, Longmont, Colo., 73-71–144
Tanner Jenson, Parker, Colo., 74-70–144
Ethan Freeman, Denver, Colo., 71-73–144
Andrew Romano, Lone Tree, Colo., 65-80–145
Behrod Keshtavar, Erie, Colo., 74-72–146
Kamrin Allen, Sheridan, Wyo., 72-75–147
Wyndham Clark, Stillwater, Okla., 73-74–147
Sean Kato, Greeley, Colo., 75-72–147
Cole Nygren, San Luis Obispo, Colo., 79-70–149
Sunwoo Choi, Usaf Academy, Calif., 79-70–149
Griffin Barela, Lakewood, Colo., 79-70–149
Alan Berry, Littleton, Colo., 75-75–150
Jonathan Doern, Denver, Colo., 77-73–150
Blake Cannon, Mesa, Ariz., 76-75–151
Matthew Goddard, Fort Collins, Colo., 75-76–151
Marc Shirazi, Greeley, Colo., 72-79–151
Ben Sherlund, Denver, Colo., 75-76–151
Jack Cummings, Arvada, Colo., 82-71–153
Jeff Tyrrell, Casper, Wyo., 79-74–153
Damon Dageenakis, Erie, Colo., 75-79–154
Luke Travins, Colorado Springs, Colo., 78-76–154
Pierce Trumper, Fort Collins, Colo., 77-77–154
Josh Caridi, Fort Collins, Colo., 78-77–155
Dylan Mitchell, Breckenridge, Colo., 81-74–155
Steven Montabone, Fort Collins, Colo., 76-79–155
Adam Pladson, Aurora, Colo., 81-74–155
Aaron Purviance, Winston Salem, N.C., 77-79–156
Sam Taylor, Nederland, Colo., 79-77–156
Cameron Connor, Boulder, Colo., 80-77–157
Eric Brown, Lake Charles, La., 80-77–157
Dylan Wonnacott, Longmont, Colo., 79-79–158
Ryan Zetwick, Castle Rock, Colo., 77-82–159
Weston Moran, Colorado Springs, Colo., 74-85–159
Drew Trujillo, Montrose, Colo., 80-79–159
Grant Dinkel, Boulder, Colo., 81-78–159
John Jarmul, Englewood, Colo., 76-83–159
Austin Burgess, Colorado Springs, Colo., 83-77–160
Connor Miele, Billings, Mont., 77-84–161
Will Fowler, Lakewood, Colo., 77-86–163
Jackson Vacek, Lafayette, Colo., 84-80–164
Johan Werge, San Luis Pototsi, 78-86–164
Colby Bundy, Ft Collins, Wyo., 82-83–165
Kyle Thurman, Boulder, Colo., 85-81–166
Harris Butler, Englewood, Colo., 87-81–168
Samuel Toillion, Longmont, Colo., 78-91–169
John Kane, Centennial, Colo., 85-85–170
Anthony Spikes, New York, N.Y., 86-85–171
Arnold Hoy, Castle Rock, Colo., 79-93–172
Jason Ward, Ft. Collins, Colo., 90-85–175
Kevin Koelbel, Centennial, Colo., 79-WD
Alex Kephart, Colorado Springs, Colo., 77-WD
James Jones, Centennial, Colo., 80-WD
Joshua Hill, Superior, Colo., 82-WD
Brian Craig, Aurora, Colo., 79-WD
Kyle Koelbel, Centennial, Colo., 78-WD
Jd Kiesewetter, Usaf Academy, Texas, 76-WD
Nick Leibold, Littleton, Colo., 78-WD
Nicolas Karavites, Englewood, Colo., 77-WD
Taylor Montgomery, Henderson, Nev., 73-WD
 

A Canadian may have shot one of the lowest rounds in the history of Columbine Country Club, but that did not keep Coloradan Spencer Painton from one-upping him to capture medalist honors in U.S. Amateur qualifying on Monday.

The Aurora resident, who won the 2013 5A state high school title, shot rounds of 69-67 for an 8-under-par 136 total. He finished two strokes better than Edmonton’s Tyler Saunders, who fired a 9-under-par 63 in the second round of the day.

Those two, along with former University of Colorado golfer David Oraee, of Greeley, landed the three U.S. Amateur berths available Monday out of a field of 77 at Columbine. Oraee, who like Painton is a former 5A state high school champion, went 69-73–142 to end up six behind his fellow Coloradan and four back of Saunders.

All three qualifiers are headed for this year’s U.S. Amateur, the world’s most prestigious amateur golf championship, which is scheduled for Aug. 17-23 in Olympia Fields, Ill. (The qualifiers are pictured above, from left: Oraee, Saunders and Painton.)

Monday “was a really, really fun day,” said Painton (below), a 19-year-old who plays college golf for the University of Kansas.

“I putted absolutely outstanding,” added the former member of the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program at CommonGround Golf Course. “I made everything I looked at. It was just one of those days.”

For all three of Monday’s qualifiers, next month’s U.S. Amateur will be their first. In fact, Saunders had never even attempted to qualify before this year.

“It’ll be cool,” said Oraee, who has won one of the CGA’s two major state amateur titles each of the past two years. “It’s going to be at a course we had a (college) tournament at. It’s a really good course (Olympia Fields). It’s the best amateur tournament in the world. I’m excited to play in it and see how it goes.”

Saunders, a 19-year-old who plays collegiately at Texas State, didn’t look like he’d be a qualifying contender after shooting a 75 in the morning round. But he rebounded with a 63 that featured an eagle (at No. 12), eight birdies and one bogey.

“Something changed as soon as I got to the second 18, it seemed like,” said Saunders, who won the the 2014 Alberta Amateur by nine strokes. “Two completely different rounds of golf. It was unbelievable.

“That’s the lowest score I’ve ever shot. I’ve shot 64 three times, but not from this distance or on this difficult a golf course. This is definitely my best round ever.”

Saunders, whose only other experience playing golf in Colorado came at the 2011 Junior America’s Cup at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen, needed just 25 putts to negotiate the afternoon round on Monday.

“I didn’t feel like I missed a putt this afternoon,” he said.

Painton felt similarly. He made just one bogey on the day to go along with nine birdies. He played his final nine holes in 5-under 31.

“I had a number in my head” that it would take to qualify, he said. “It was 4 under (for entire day) and I doubled it.

“It was very, very satisfying. It was a big tournament for me.”

Painton has competed in one previous USGA championship, the 2013 U.S. Junior Amateur. It’s not a tournament he’ll soon forget as he advanced to match play before losing to the eventual championship (Scottie Scheffler) in a round-of-64 match.

“They treated us so well,” Painton remembers. “I really, really wanted to get back to that. The best amateurs in the world are there.”

As for Oraee (left), this could very well be not only his first U.S. Amateur, but his last. He plans to turn pro next year after finishing his one remaining semester of undergraduate work at CU. And, depending on how his golf career is going, he’ll likely pursue an advanced degree in medical school.

Speaking of school, Oraee took a “brutal” class in June, which prevented him from going to the course. In fact, he said he didn’t play at all for almost five weeks, the longest such stretch the 22-year-old has had since high school.

“It kind of gave me the itch to play again, so that was good,” he said.

A second Colorado-based qualifying tournament for the U.S. Amateur will be held July 20 at Fort Collins Country Club.

U.S. Amateur Qualifying
At Par-72 Columbine CC in Columbine Valley

QUALIFIED
Spencer Painton, Aurora, Colo., 69-67–136
Tyler Saunders, Canada, 75-63–138
David Oraee, Greeley, Colo., 69-73–142
ALTERNATES (In Order)
Cole Cunningham, Centennial, Colo., 75-70–145
Clayton Crawford, Aspen, Colo., 74-71–145
FAILED TO QUALIFY
Alex Buecking, Columbine Valley, Colo., 73-73–146
Gus Lundquist, Parker, Colo., 74-72–146
Jon Lindstrom, Westminster, Colo., 72-74–146
Steven Drake, Chicago, Ill., 75-71–146
Zachary Berhost, Santa Fe, N.M., 76-71–147
John Hayes, Carlsbad, Colo., 74-74–148
Colin Prater, Colorado Springs, Colo., 71-77–148
Quintin Pope, Cheyenne, Wyo., 77-72–149
Braden Baer, Westminster, Colo., 75-74–149
Brian Dorfman, Denver, Colo., 77-73–150
Harrison Murphy, McKinney, Texas, 77-73–150
Christopher Thayer, Denver, Colo., 76-74–150
Andrew Spencer, Prairie Village, Kan., 76-74–150
Jake Kelley, Littleton, Colo., 74-77–151
Timothy Amundson, Littleton, Colo., 74-77–151
Glenn Workman, Pueblo West, Colo., 76-76–152
Josh Frye, Las Vegas, Nev., 77-75–152
Ross Macdonald, Castle Rock, Colo., 75-77–152
Stephen Summers, Dallas, Texas, 74-79–153
Neil Tillman, Arvada, Colo., 75-78–153
Mark Zbrzeznj, Edwards, Colo., 76-78–154
Drew Vance, Lakewood, Colo., 81-73–154
Hayden Nicholaides, Englewood, Colo., 80-74–154
Sean Crowley, Littleton, Colo., 81-73–154
Joey Saad, Grand Junction, Colo., 78-76–154
Joel Perez, Denver, Colo., 73-81–154
Cameron Berndt, Elizabeth, Colo., 77-78–155
Bill Parker, Denver, Colo., 77-78–155
Zach Johnson, Littleton, Colo., 77-78–155
Wesley Martin, Denver, Colo., 75-80–155
Connor Klein, Lone Tree, Colo., 75-81–156
David Lee, Bennett, Colo., 79-77–156
Tristan Sanders, Denver, Colo., 83-73–156
James Kackley, Denver, Texas, 79-77–156
John Fowlds, Lone Tree, Colo., 80-76–156
Tristan Rohrbaugh, Carbondale, Colo., 80-77–157
Jonathan Kuzava, Littleton, Colo., 81-76–157
Adam Griffith, Westminster, Colo., 77-81–158
Josh Gardella, Littleton, Colo., 81-77–158
Michael Slutzky, Littleton, Colo., 76-82–158
Steve Connell, Thornton, Colo., 81-77–158
Gerald (Alex) Gorman, Broomfield, Colo., 77-81–158
Matt Robertson, Lakewood, Colo., 81-77–158
Nathaniel Green, Green River, Wyo., 84-75–159
Quade Mitchell, Littleton, Colo., 79-80–159
Patrick Manning, Cody, Wyo., 79-82–161
Devyn Solano, Aurora, Colo., 80-82–162
Cody Ryan, Denver, Colo., 84-78–162
Tim Dreger, Northglenn, Colo., 75-88–163
Robb Bierbaum, Arvada, Colo., 87-77–164
Chris Jaster, Colorado Springs, Colo., 84-82–166
Riggs Winz, Littleton, Colo., 85-81–166
Chase Chaldekas, Lakewood, Colo., 79-88–167
David Yergert, Thornton, Colo., 89-78–167
Adam Thoutt, Westminster, Colo., 83-84–167
Austin Hardman, Highlands Ranch, Colo., 84-85–169
Ryan Bent, Evergreen, Colo., 84-85–169
Alec Aichinger, Englewood, Colo., 84-86–170
Logan Rants, Tumwater, Wash., 85-86–171
Austin Fedrich, Irvine, Calif., 86-86–172
Zach Florence, Denver, Colo., 91-81–172
Connor Alexander, Castle Rock, Colo., 86-87–173
Tony Macaluso, Denver, Colo., 96-84–180
Alex Macaluso, Denver, Colo., 92-WD
Jeremy Lederer, Eagle, Colo., 90-WD