Aue, Butler to Square Off in Long Island Amateur Final
Russ Aue
OLD BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (June 19, 2019) -- Following three days of competition that included 18 holes of on-site qualifying and four rounds of match play, Prescott Butler of Meadow Brook and Russ Aue of Nassau Players will battle for the 96th Long Island Amateur Championship Presented by Sterling National Bank title on Thursday in the 36-hole final at Brookville Country Club.
Related: Match Play Bracket | Photos
Butler, who began his run by taking medalist honors with a 4-under 66 on Monday, earned a pair of 2-and-1 victories on Wednedsay to advance as he defeated Ben Pirro of Long Island National and Dan Abbondandolo of host club Brookville. Despite a slow start in his morning match in which Pirro took a 2-up lead through seven, Butler clawed back with wins on Nos. 7 and 9 to square the match and used back-to-back wins on Nos. 14-15 to help seal the win. The rising sophomore at University of Alabama took a quick 2-up advantage over Abbondandolo, but the host member pulled even with wins on Nos. 5-6. Birdies on Nos. 8 and 13 returned Butler's lead to two holes and though Abbondandolo carded birdie after finding the par-five 14th in two, Butler won the 16th with a par-three and a pair of fours on No. 17 wrapped up the match.
Meanwhile, Aue continued rolling with wins by 4-and-2 and 2-and-1 margins over Kenny Doyle of Brookville and MGA eClub - Long Island member Chris Lambrou. Aue built a 4-up advantage through eight holes against Doyle. Though Doyle claimed three of the next seven holes, Aue also squeezed in back-to-back wins on Nos. 12-13 and added a birdie-two on the 16th to continue to the afternoon semifinals. Against Lambrou, the match stood tied through six holes, but Aue claimed Nos. 7, 9, and 11 to earn a convincing lead. Though Lambrou trimmed the lead to two on a pair of occasions, Aue secured his spot in the championship match with a birdie-three on the 17th.
The 36-hole final will begin at 7:30 a.m., Thursday.