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Met Area competitors' roads end in U.S. Amateur Four-Ball

UPDATE - MAMARONECK, N.Y. (May 23, 2016) - Met Area competitors' run in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Winged Foot Golf Club came to an end on Monday afternoon in the Round of 32.

Cameron Young of Scarborough, N.Y., and Paul McBride of Ireland fell by a 2&1 margin to Patrick Christovich of New Orleans, La., and Garrett Rank of Canada, in the No. 29 vs. No. 4 matchup decided by Saturday and Sunday's rounds of stroke play. Matthew Finger of Woolwich Township, N.J., and partner Michael Korcuba of Sicklerville, N.J., were defeated by reigning champions Nathan Smith of Pittsburgh, Pa., and Todd White of Spartanburg, S.C., 6&5. After stroke play qualifying was held on both the East and West Courses, the East Course now hosts the entirety of match play.

Related: Scoring

The Young/McBride vs. Christovich/Rank match stood all-square through nine holes with the teams trading birdies on the final two holes. Young blasted a 300-yard three wood on the par-4 10th to drive the green and score an eagle to place the Demon Deacon duo 1-up. The teams halved the 11th with pars and the par-5 12th with birdies. However, Rank and Christovich reeled off four consecutive birdies on hole Nos. 13-16 to take a 2-up lead. Young birdied the par-4 16th as well to keep the match moving to the 17th. However, a half on the challenging 200-yar par-3 17th earned Christovich and Rank the victory.

Finger and Korcuba won the opening hole, but the reigning champions quickly squared the match with a win on the second. Smith and White then chalked up five birdies, including a pair of back-to-back birdie runs on Nos. 4-5 and 11-12 to claim the 6&5 victory.

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MAMARONECK, N.Y. (May 23, 2016) - A playoff was needed to decide the final two spots in the match play portion of the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship on Monday morning at Winged Foot Golf Club, but two Met Area competitors already had their tickets punched. Matthew Finger of Woolwich Township, N.J., and partner Michael Korcuba of Sicklerville, N.J., finished stroke play tied for 14th, while 2015 MGA Player of the Year Cameron Young of Scarborough, N.Y., and his Wake Forest teammate Paul McBride of Ireland tied 22nd.

Related: Scoring

Finger and Korcuba recorded a 2-over 72 on Winged Foot's West Course to begin play on Saturday. The duo then matched the championship's low round with a Sunday score of 8-under 62 on the East Course, on which match play will now be contested to decide a champion. Their scorecard featured eight birdies, including four consecutive on hole Nos. 10-13, and no miscues as they lept up the leaderboard while many of Saturday's leading teams fought to post scores on the West Course in Sunday's second round.

The tandem received the No. 14 seed and begin match play against reigning champions Nathan Smith of Pittsburgh, Pa., and Todd White of Spartanburg, S.C., at 11:12 a.m.

Meanwhile, Young and McBride—fresh off helping the Demon Deacons advance to the NCAA Championships—continued steady play on Sunday and recorded a 2-under 68 on the East Course to match Saturday's 68 on the West Course. The pair played steadily and provided themselves with birdie opportunities, but putts just wouldn't fall throughout the day. Their two birdies on the day came at the par-4 7th and par-4 11th.

Young and McBride are already underway in their Round of 32 match on Monday morning after receiving the No. 29 seed. The duo is taking on fourth-seeded Patrick Christovich of New Orleans, La., and Garrett Rank of Canada, who fired a pair of 5-under 65s in stroke play over the weekend.

Sam Bernstein of New York, N.Y., and Greg Shuman of New York, N.Y., registered an even-par 140 during stroke play, tying for 53rd. The tandem recorded a 1-over 71 on the West Course on Saturday and a 1-under 69 on the East Course on Sunday.

Rounding out Met Area competitors in this year's U.S. Amateur Four-Ball were Max Christiana of White Plains, N.Y., and Luke Feehan of Carmel, N.Y. (+2/T80); Jason Bataille of Bridgewater, N.J., and Brian Whitman of Tinton Falls, N.J. (+2/T80); Zachary Plutzik of New York, N.Y., and Ben Wescoe of New York, N.Y. (+7/T115); and William Handley of Hoboken, N.J., and Jon Ross of Hershey, Pa. (T124/+9).

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