Tribe Golfers Qualify for U.S. Amateur Public Links Championships

Paladino, O’Brien Finish 1-2 at the Fairfield Sectional

06/13/06 1:47PM

FAIRFIELD, CT - William and Mary will be represented in both Amateur Public Links this year after two men’s golfers claimed qualifying spots on Monday from the Fairfield Sectional qualifier. Earlier this month, women’s golfer Misha Harvey (Forest, VA) qualified for the Women’s Amateur Public Links.

Sophomore Brent Paladino (Kensington, CT) won the qualifier by two strokes, shooting 1-under with rounds of 71-72. This is the second consecutive year that Paladino has made it to the APL; last summer, he played most of the second round under the cut needed to make the match-play rounds, but ended three strokes over the cut-off. In his freshman season with the Tribe, Paladino led the team with a 74.64 average playing every round, the second-best rookie-season average in school history. He tied for first at the W&M Invitational, and finished tied for 20th at the Colonial Athletic Association Championships.

Also qualifying out of the Fairfield Section was incoming recruit Conor O’Brien (Weatogue, CT), who tied for the second and final qualifying spot after rounds of 74-71, winning the slot on the third playoff hole by shooting par. A two-sport star at Simsbury High School, O’Brien was the 2005 Connecticut Junior Amateur Champion, and tied for first place at the Division I state championships. He was also the starting goalie on Simsbury’s hockey team, leading the school to a record of 40-4 over his junior and senior seasons and a pair of conference championships.

The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship is being held this year at the Gold Mountain Golf Complex in Bremerton, Washington, July 10-16. There are two rounds of qualifying, with the 64 lowest scores advancing to the match-play rounds, a single-elimination head-to-head bracket. The finals match is 36 holes, with the winner traditionally earning a bid to play in the Masters at Augusta National, and several multi-year qualifying exemptions to the U.S. Open and other amateur championships sponsored by the USGA.