San Diego’s Riley Makes Third Round in a Hurry

EL CAJON —  Speed was the main topic of conversation during the second round of match play at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championships at Singing Hills Golf Course Thursday afternoon.

And the talk didn’t involve the greens.

Chris Riley, a 15-year-old from San Diego, had just finished the front nine of his second-round match in 65 minutes. That’s 7.2 minutes per hole in a sport that traditionally uses everything but cattle prods to get competitors to play faster.

But it seems Riley’s penchant for fast play is well known among San Diego junior circles.

“He hit out of turn five times,” Mel Skelley said of a junior tournament earlier this year in which he scored for Riley. “He just gets tired of waiting. Either he’ll revolutionize the game, or someone will slow him down.”

Chris Stutts nearly stopped Riley in his tracks by rallying from a 6-hole deficit with seven holes remaining to trail by one going to the 18th.

“The last hole, I couldn’t believe that he was coming back,” said Riley, a freshman on the Madison High School team that won the San Diego Section title this year. “I think I was forcing it. I was worrying more about him than playing my game.”

Riley, who defeated Rob Booth of Gladwyne, Pa., 4 and 3, in the first round of match play in the morning, was 4-up after his whirlwind nine holes against Stutts.

Riley went 6-up after 11 holes and looked to have an insurmountable lead. But Riley bogeyed 12 and 13 to fall back to 4-up.

Stutts birdied the 15th and then made two pars to cut the lead to a single hole.

But Riley gathered himself on the 170-yard, par-three 18th.

“I saw his shot go over the green,” Riley said. “I just wanted to par it. If he birdied it from there, he deserved to go on.”

Riley didn’t take any chances. His tee shot landed three feet from the pin, and he made the putt to advance to the third round this morning at 7.

And having the opening tee time suits Riley just fine.

“I like to be the first person out on the course,” he said. “I like to play fast.”

His morning round was completed in two hours 15 minutes, but that went just 15 holes. Riley also lost a big lead in that match: He was 5-up, then lost three out of the next four holes.

“I should slow down,” Riley said. “I concentrate, but I could concentrate a little more. But that’s just the way I am.

“I play ready golf.”

Riley is believed by tournament officials to be the youngest player to earn medalist honors. He was involved in another first Wednesday when four tied at one-over 145 after 36 holes of medal play. All shared medalist honors.

Only two of the medalists--Riley and Brian Gay of Daleville, Ala.--remain after Thursday’s rounds. The other two medalists lost in the second round.

Jason Worth of Des Moines, Iowa, lost, 4 and 3, to Notah Begay III of Albuquerque, and Chris Edgmon of Edmond, Okla., was defeated, 3 and 2, by David Duval of Ponte Vedra, Fla. Edgmon was the first-round leader with a 68.