Oklahoma State Men's Golf to Send Three Stars to U.S. Open

The Oklahoma State Cowboys are recognized for having one of the best men’s golf programs in the country. The proof will be on television in a couple of weeks.

The Cowboys will have three current players in the field as amateurs at the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton N.Y., from June 18-21.

The third player to punch his ticket was Eric Lee, who went through local qualifying in Sacramento earlier this week. Lee’s round was notable because OSU golf coach Alan Bratton said that Preston Stout, the team’s top player, would be on Lee’s bag for the qualifier.

Stout, along with Ethan Fang, will be the other two current Cowboys to play in the U.S. Open. Each qualified his own way.

Cowboys in U.S. Open

Local qualifying is a grueling way to get into the U.S. Open. Qualifiers are 36 holes and both rounds are played in the same day. In Sacramento, only the top four players made the field. Lee, a native of Fullerton, Calif., finished in a tie for second after a two-round total of 136. He was tied with another amateur, Matthew Robles, who plays for Santa Clara.

Stout got into the U.S. Open on the strength of his individual medalist victory at the NCAA championships. The medalist gets a berth in the U.S. Open and in next year’s Masters Tournament, assuming Stout remains an amateur. Stout has one more year of eligibility and is expected to return to college.

Stout won the NCAAs with a four-round total of 14-under par 274. He is now one of a handful of Cowboys that have won the individual crown at the NCAAs. He also made his PGA Tour debut as an amateur last month at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch, which is close to where he grew up in Richardson, Texas.

Fang has been holding on to his U.S. Open invite for nearly a year. He clinched his berth at Shinnecock Hills last summer when he won the Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s in Great Britian. By winning that title he earned a free pass to the Open Championship, next year’s this year’s Masters and the U.S. Open. He missed the cut at the Open Championship and the Masters. Fang was tied for the lowest 36 holes among those amateurs that failed to make the cut at Augusta.

The Cowboys should be optimistic about their national championship hopes next season. All five players that participated in this year’s NCAA Championships should return. Stout, Lee and Fang will return with additional high-level experience that should help elevate the Cowboys into national championship contention once again.

This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/oklahomastate as Oklahoma State Men’s Golf to Send Three Stars to U.S. Open.

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