TRUCKEE, CALIF. May 25, 2011 — Defending champion Andrew Putnam (pictured right), a recent graduate of Pepperdine, of University Place, Wash. and California’s top-ranked junior golfer Anthony Paolucci of Del Mar, Calif. will head a field of 84 of the nation’s top amateur golfers who will compete in the 45th Pacific Coast Amateur Championship July 26-29, 2011 at Martis Camp, a dramatic Tom Fazio-designed course overlooking the northwest shore of Lake Tahoe.
The Pacific Coast Amateur, one of the nation’s premiere amateur golf events, is a 72-hole stroke play championship played without a cut. The field is comprised of amateur golfers from the 15 associations that make up the Pacific Coast Golf Association and a select number of invitees from around the world.
Putnam, who is on the short list to be selected on the U.S. Walker Cup squad that will compete against Great Britain and Ireland in September, fired a 7-under-par 277 last year at Eugene CC in Oregon to join his brother, 2004 champion Michael, as the second brother combination to win the prestigious event (Alex Prugh, in 2005, and Corey Prugh, in 2001, were the first).
Putnam finished four shots in front of Daniel Merniecki of Santee, Calif. last year, while Cameron Peck of Olympia, Wash., the 2008 U.S. Junior Amateur champion, finished tied for third. Miernicki and Peck are also competing in this year’s Pacific Coast Amateur.
Paolucci (pictured left), the 2010 AJGA Rolex Player of the Year and one of the nation’s top juniors, will also represent the SCGA in the annual Morse Cup competition which is held concurrently with the first two rounds of the Pacific Coast Amateur. Miernicki and 2-time defending SCGA Match Play Champion Nick Delio of Valencia, Calif. will also represent the SCGA on our Morse Cup Team.
Each of the 15 PCGA associations name a three-man team for the Morse Cup tussle where the top two of the three scores in each of the first two rounds count for the team total. The Pacific Northwest Golf Association team, comprised of Putnam, Peck and Chris Williams, is the defending team champion.
In addition to the 45 players assigned to Morse Cup teams, 39 other golfers will compete solely for the individual title. This year’s list includes several players who will be for a spot on the U.S. Walker Cup squad.
Other prominent SCGA members in the field include recent SCGA Amateur Championship runner-up Manav Shah of Bakersfield, 2011 California State Amateur Champion Bhavik Patel of Bakersfield and 2008 SCGA Amateur Champion Kevin Marsh of Henderson, Nev.
Pairings, results, videos and photos can be viewed online at: http://www.pacificcoastamateur.com.
