Medalist Green, 2002 Champion Moore Advance to 3rd Round

Maple Grove, Minn. – Medalist Danny Green, of Jackson, Tenn., and 2002 champion Ryan Moore, of Puyallup, Wash., advanced to the third round of match play Thursday at the 2004 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship at Rush Creek Golf Club.

Ryan Moore digs his ball from the rough in his second round win.  (USGA photo/Steven Gibbons)

Green, 47 and the oldest remaining player, defeated Madalitso Muthiya, 21, of Zambia, 6 and 4 in the second round. The 1999 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion and runner-up at the 2001 Public Links and 1989 Amateur, Green had an easier time than in his first-round match, which went 22 holes.

“I played a little better (Thursday),” said Green, who is playing in his 12th Public Links. “I was a little shaky after 3-putting the first hole. I was playing better after that, hitting a lot of greens and fairways. I got ahead and my opponent hit some bad shots and it led to any easier match.”

Green lost the first hole, but in a nine-hole stretch beginning at the 6th, he won seven holes to close out Muthiya .

Moore, 21, who won the 2004 NCAA individual title and was a member of the 2003 USA Walker Cup squad, dispatched Christopher Davidson, 23, of Woodstock, Md., 5 and 4.

Moore never trailed in his match, logging seven birdies in 14 holes.

Other notable winners were 2003 runner-up Dayton Rose, 21, of Midwest City, Okla., and 1990 Public Links runner-up Terrence Miskell, 36, of New Braunfels, Texas .

Chris Stroud, 22, of Groves, Texas, the third seed and a 2002 and 2003 semifinalist, was eliminated, 2 and 1, by Dirk Fennie, 35, of Greensboro, N.C. Another high seed, No. 4 Anthony Kim, 18, of Norman, Okla., the national freshman of the year from the University of Oklahoma, also lost.

Brendan Steele, 21, Idyllwild, Calif., posted six birdies and two eagles and a bogey to be the equivalent of 8-under-par through 13 holes and defeated Matthew Hicks, 18, of Sissonville, W.Va., 4 and 3.

With two wins Thursday, a player advances to the quarterfinals and are exempt from qualifying for the 2005 Championship at Shaker Run Golf Club in Lebanon, Ohio.

Match play continues with the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds Friday, which begin at 7:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. respectively and concludes with the 36-hole championship match on Saturday.

The U.S. Amateur Public Links is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.

Maple Grove, Minn. – Results from Thursday's second round of match play at the 2004 U.S. Amateur Public Links played at Rush Creek Golf Club (7,132 yards, par 72:

Second Round

Danny Green, Jackson, Tenn. (131) def. Madalitso Muthiya, Zambia (144), 6 and 4

Daryl Fathauer, Stuart, Fla. (146) def. Will Claxton, Swainsboro, Ga. (142), 1 up

Evan Frederick, Destin, Fla. (145) def. Jamie Miller, Silver Creek, N.Y. (148), 1 up

Nathan Smith, Soquel, Calif. (139) def. Greg Koch, Orlando, Fla. (144), 3 and 2

Seung -Su Han, Korea (145) def. Anthony Kim, Norman, Okla. 135), 1 up.

William Moore, Pacific Grove, Calif. (146) def. Billy Wingerd, Baltimore, Md. (146), 2 and 1

Brendan Steele, Idyllwild, Calif. (148) def. Matthew Hicks, Sissonville, W.Va. (144), 4 and 3

Dayton Rose, Midwest City, Okla. (147) vs. Brian Atkinson, Palatine, Ill. (143), 19 holes

Ryan Moore, Puyallup, Wash. (132) def. Christopher Davidson, Woodstock, Md. (144), 5 and 4

Jon Veneziano, Mt. Dora, Fla. (146) def. Jason Harris, Clemmons, N.C. (141), 1 up

Terrence Miskell, New Braunfels, Texas (136) def. Anthony Bedient, York, Neb. (145), 5 and 3

Clay Ogden, West Point, Utah (144) def. Josh Williams, Davis, Calif. (139), 5 and 4.

Dirk Fennie, Greensboro, N.C. (144) def. Chris Stroud, Groves, Texas (133), 2 and 1

Zack Reeves, Arlington, Texas (141) def. Barry Schenk, Layton, Utah (143), 21 holes

Joshua Wooding, Riverside, Calif. (144) def. Charles Soule, Longmont, Colo. (148), 4 and 3

Sunghoon Kang, Korea (140) def. Aaron Choi, San Diego, Calif. (143), 2 up

Third Round Pairings

Green vs. Claxton

Frederick vs. Smith

Han vs. W.Moore

Steele vs. Rose

R.Moore vs. Veneziano

Miskell vs. Odgen

Fennie vs. Reeves

Wooding vs. Kang