May was a marathon for Cole Hammer, and June is picking up steam now too. The 21-year-old junior at the University of Texas earned his spot in the U.S. Open on Wednesday a day after the completion of Final Qualifying.
Hammer left his qualifier in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday morning as the first alternate, but earned a spot when Mikko Korhonen, who was one of 10 players who earned an exemption in the three-event U.S. Open 2021 European Tour Qualifying Series, withdrew.
Hammer opened a 36-hole day on Monday at Brookside Golf & Country Club with a 73. After clawing back with a 65 at The Lakes Golf & Country Club, he was part of a 5-for-4 playoff the following morning that determined the final spots from that site. Hammer lost out to Texas teammate Pierceson Coody, Peter Malnati, Tom Hoge and Jhonattan Vegas and instead earned alternate status.
U.S. Open Final Qualifying: Final results
Hammer’s trip to Torrey Pines next week will mark his third U.S. Open start, including his first at age 15 in 2015 at Chambers Bay. In the time between, Hammer has been a member of two winning U.S. Walker Cup Teams (2019, 2021).
Last month at the Walker Cup at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida, Hammer holed the clinching putt and earned three and a half points for the Americans after playing all four sessions.
The world No. 17 ranked amateur was coming off individual medalist honors at the Big 12 Championship the week before, and after the Walker Cup immediately went on to play the AT&T Byron Nelson, NCAA Regionals and then the NCAA Championship.
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