SAN FRANCISCO – Scottish golfer Niall Shiels Donegan, who grew up in Mill Valley, California, advanced to the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur on Friday at The Olympic Club, to the delight of his supporters.
Donegan, who is preparing for his first season at North Carolina after two years at Northwestern, defeated Notre Dame junior Jacob Modleski with a par on the 19th hole, in windy conditions.
The golfer managed to tie with a 6-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole, a par 5.
In the next round, Donegan will face Jackson Herrington, a sophomore at the University of Tennessee, who defeated Jimmy Abdo of Gustavus Adolphus College (Division 3) by 4 and 2.
Both Herrington and Donegan were two of the 17 players who advanced from a 20-man playoff on Wednesday morning, to define the last 64 participants in the match play.
In the other semifinal, young Georgia golfer Mason Howell will face Oklahoma State junior Eric Lee. Both won their matches 1 up.
Howell, 18, defeated John Daly II, while Lee beat 16-year-old Miles Russell of Jacksonville Beach, Florida.
Howell qualified for the U.S. Open this year with rounds of 63-63 in the Atlanta section.
Daly, a senior at Arkansas, is the son of two-time major champion John Daly.
