Scarlet Sunrise: Neal Shipley clinches low amateur, makes Masters cut
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Ohio State golfer Neal Shipley clinches low amateur, makes Masters cut
Neal Shipley not only made the cut at the Masters, but he also clinched low amateur honors at Augusta National, meaning that he’ll be recognized in Butler Cabin Sunday.
In addition to the champion, the low amateur — or top-performing amateur — is honored Sunday evening after the final round of competition. Given that Shipley is the lone amateur to make the cut, he’s guaranteed that moment after posting rounds of 71 and 76 in his Masters debut.
“I was certainly thinking about low amateur. I thought I had a chance to compete with all those guys, and I thought I showed that yesterday,” Shipley said Friday, via Ohio State Athletics. “In those really tough conditions, to shoot 1-under, that I belong out here. It’s just kind of a matter of proving that.”
Shipley is a graduate student at Ohio State, who transferred in from James Madison and posted five top-20 finishes and one top-10 finish this year with the Buckeyes.
He’s the fourth Ohio State player to make the Masters cut as an amateur. Most notably, Jack Nicklaus finished 13th as an amateur in 1960. And most recently, Clark Burroughs tied for 46th in 1984.
Shipley begins the third round Saturday tied for 30th at 3-over. The Pittsburgh native will be paired with Patrick Cantlay and will tee off at 12:15 p.m. E.T.
Shipley made three birdies in his opening round. Then he kicked off his second round with birdies at holes No. 2 and No. 3. The back nine gave Shipley, and several other golfers for that matter, trouble Friday, in part because of windy conditions. Although he made a pair of birdies at holes No. 13 and No. 15, he also double bogeyed hole No. 11 and bogeyed four others down the stretch.
Still, Shipley is moving on, and, regardless how the weekend goes for him, he’ll be in Butler Cabin Sunday.
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Counting Down
Buckeyes vs. Akron: 141 days
Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 232 days
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