CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE – Davis Bryant tapped in his final putt of the U.S. Amateur Championship, and tears poured down his caddy’s cheeks.
No, the Eaglecrest High School grad and CSU standout didn’t make the cut to match play. But the waterworks from his caddy — dad, Matt — were a warranted signal of one golf chapter closing for Bryant, and another soon opening.
Tuesday marked the last day of amateur competition for Bryant, who is turning pro and will make his debut in September in the pre-qualifying stage of the Korn Ferry Tour Q-School.
“Once I tapped in the last putt, so many great amateur memories ran through my mind,” Davis Bryant said. “It was a special week to get the opportunity to play in (a second) U.S. Amateur, even though I’m disappointed I didn’t perform the way I wanted to.
“Dad did what he needed to on my bag, I just didn’t quite execute quite right on a few shots. But I relished every moment out here with him, just like I always do.”
Bryant finished at six-over after carding a two-over 73 on Tuesday at Cherry Hills Country Club, putting him six shots back of the cutline of even par to advance to Wednesday’s round-of-64 match play.
That didn’t take the shine off the week for Matt Bryant, who also caddied for his daughter, Emma, in last week’s U.S. Women’s Amateur at Bel Air Country Club in Los Angeles. Emma, a junior at the University of Denver, also missed the cut in her USGA championship debut. Matt’s been the coach/caddie for both players for their entire careers.
“I couldn’t ask for much more from these kids,” Matt Bryant, the longtime Director of Golf/GM at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club, said through tears. “And back-to-back weeks at the U.S. Am? I couldn’t ask for two better weeks on the bag.”
Emma was one of about 40 supporters in her brother’s gallery over the past two days, and she and her brother have become influencers on each other’s careers. The brother and sister won Class 5A state titles in the same school year while at Eaglecrest — Davis as a senior in the fall of 2017 and Emma as a freshman in the spring of 2018 — and grew close since.
“I’ve learned a lot from him,” Emma said. “I’ve always been compared to him my whole life, so at first that was hard, but as I grew up, I realized how grateful I am to be his sister. We chip together, putt together, play together. (In training) he knows what can get me going, but knows not to push it. And we always have fun together on the course.”
Bryant’s been on a hot streak lately. He finished his five-year Rams career with the second-best stroke average (71.95) in program history. He was a three-time All-Mountain West Conference selection. And as a graduate student this year, he had a 71.67 stroke average, including two runner-ups and finishing in the top 30 of 11 of his 13 tournaments.
“He’s been playing well for a while now, but this year he wanted to go out with a bang,” CSU golf coach Michael Wilson said. “(That attitude) showed up every day. He has big hopes and dreams and he wants and expects to win. That’s going to translate to the next level.”
While Bryant’s pro plans are set for later this year, he’s also got a backup plan. He is finishing up his masters in sports management this summer and will be a graduate assistant coach for the Rams in the fall.
He said coaching is “plan B” if his pro career doesn’t pan out.
“I’m going to have that in my back pocket if I need to,” Bryant said. “But I want to give this a shot first. I believe I can do it.”
Day 2 notes: Blades Brown, a 16-year-old from Nashville, finished seven-under to join 22-year-old Chinese golfer Sampson Zheng (Cal) and 21-year-old Jackson Buchanan (Illinois/Dacula, Ga) as the co-medalists of the stroke play round. Brown, a two-time Tennessee high school state champion, is the youngest co-medalist in tournament history. Brown’s already made waves this year, winning the Tennessee Junior Amateur by 12 strokes and also taking fifth in the Tennessee State Open… Connor Jones (Mountain Range/Colorado State) carded a one-under at Cherry Hills to finish at five-under in stroke play, giving him the No. 9 seed. Unlike Bryant, Jones does have a year of college eligibility left, and he plans to use it… Top-ranked amateur Gordon Sargent (Vanderbilt/Birmingham, Ala.) finished three-under, and got the No. 24 seed… Colorado Springs native Colin Prater, an assistant golf coach for Cheyenne Mountain High School, also made the cut by finishing at one-under with a four-under day at Colorado Golf Club. He and Jones are the only two of the nine Colorado golfers in the tournament to advance to match play. Prater is the No. 46 seed.
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