HOUSTON, TEXAS – Former University of the Incarnate Word men's golfer Austin Jordan qualified for the 2016 U.S. Open by firing a 7-under par score over 36 holes in the Houston Sectional at Lakeside Country Club on Monday.

(For more on the Houston Sectional check out this story from the USGA)

Jordan qualified for the Houston Sectional thanks to his play at the Local qualifying tournament played at Hurricane Creek Golf Course just north of Dallas.  The sectional included 51 players and only the top three would advance to the U.S. Open played at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, PA next week.

Jordan opened with an outstanding morning round of 67 on the par-72, 7254-yard course.  He recorded five birdies and no bogeys in the round and was leading the tournament.  "I just took it shot-by-shot in the first round," said the golfer.

In the second round, he quickly got to 6-under par with a birdie at #2 and was still 6-under after 14 holes and appeared ready to punch his ticket.  However, he got into a little trouble on #15 when his ball rolled next to a tree and he had to take an unplayable lie that led to a double bogey and dropped him to 4-under par.  "At that point, I just thought that I needed to hit some shots and do it," Jordan said when asked what he was thinking heading into the final three holes.

"I just kept telling myself to hit a good shot and then I was able to make three straight 10-foot birdie putts to close the round," said Jordan.

The three birdies put Jordan at 7-under par for the tournament and he was in one of the first groups to finish so he had to wait it out.  Two other players, Kevin Tway of Purcellville, VA and Derek Chang of Dallas, TX, also finished at 7-under par to tie with Jordan for first place.  All three will play in the U.S. Open.  Brandon Crick of McCook, NE finished at 5-under par and earned the first alternate position in case someone is unable to play next week.

"I talked with my caddie (former UIW teammate Kevin Smith) on Sunday and we thought it would take about 6-under par to get in," said Jordan.  "I guess that was a pretty good estimation."

Jordan said that he had been playing pretty well at home and at smaller tournaments in recent weeks.  "I knew I was playing well enough and I just wanted to give myself a chance," he said.

According to its website, Oakmont Country Club has hosted more combined USGA and PGA championships than any other course in the U.S., including eight United States Opens, five U.S. Amateurs, three PGA Championships, and two U.S. Women's Opens.  Oakmont remains perhaps the most difficult course in North America, with 210 deep bunkers, hard slick greens that slope away from the player, and tight fairways requiring the utmost precision.

Oakmont has hosted the U.S. Open in 1927, 1935, 1953, 1962, 1973, 1983, 1994 and 2007.  Ernie Els in 1994 and Angel Cabrera in 2007 have won the two most recent championships at Oakmont, but legendary players like Jack Nicklaus and Ben Hogan also own U.S. Open titles from Oakmont.

Jordan plans to arrive in the Pittsburgh area on Sunday or Monday and is excited to play in the national championship tournament.
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