NCGA’s Bryson DeChambeau, Maverick McNealy Primed for Walker Cup

September 9, 2015

NCGA’s Bryson DeChambeau, Maverick McNealy Primed for Walker Cup

Sunday Singles

Portola Valley resident and NCAA Player of the Year Maverick McNealy came back but had to settle for a halve in his match against Ireland’s Paul Dunne at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.

McNealy trailed by two holes through 10 but eventually brought the match back to all-square with wins on the 12th and 15th holes. The pair halved the last three holes, giving both the U.S. and Great Britain and Ireland squads half a point.  The half point clinched the Walker Cup for GB&I.

In match 2 Maverick McNealy tees off on the 16th having just brought his match back to level. #WalkerCup pic.twitter.com/bQEgnDeC08

— The Walker Cup (@WalkerCup) September 13, 2015

While GB&I had already clinched the title, Clovis resident and U.S. Amateur champ Bryson DeChambeau cruised in his Singles match, defeating Gavin Moynihan, 6 and 5.

DeChambeau went 2-under thru the first seven, building a 5-up lead. The NCAA champion went 2-0-1 in his three matches.

Sunday Foursomes

U.S. Amateur champ Bryson DeChambeau of Clovis and partner Robby Shelton picked up the only points for the USA in the morning portion, defeating Great Britain and Ireland’s Gavin Moynihan and Jack Hume, 3 and 2.

Trailing by a hole through the first seven, DeChambeau and Shelton took the lead with wins on holes No.8 and No.9. The duo later took a 3-up lead with two more wins on holes No.14 and No.15.

Stanford junior Maverick McNealy, the winner of this year’s NCGA Amateur Match Play Championship, did not play in the Foursomes.

The U.S. lost its three other Foursomes matches, giving GB&I a commanding 10-6 lead entering Sunday’s final Singles play.

Saturday Afternoon Singles

U.S. Amateur champ and Clovis resident Bryson DeChambeau had a clutch birdie on the 16th hole to tie up England’s Chester Ashley, but couldn’t apply a finishing blow. DeChambeau and Ashley ended up halving their opening Saturday Afternoon Singles match.

A senior at Southern Methodist University, DeChambeau twice held a 1-up lead on the front-nine. Neither player held more than a 1-up lead throughout the 18 holes.

Stanford junior Maverick McNealy, like DeChambeau also making his Walker Cup debut, came up just short in his bid for a halve vs. Ewen Ferguson. Down two through 16 holes, McNealy won the 17th with a par to cut the deficit to one heading to the 18th. The two halved the final hole with pars, giving each team a half point.

Great Britain and Ireland leads the USA, 7-5, after Saturday’s action at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.

Full Coverage

Saturday Morning Foursomes

The U.S. squad got off to a slow start at the Walker Cup, as Great Britain and Ireland claimed a 3-1 lead after Saturday’s morning foursomes.

Stanford junior Maverick McNealy and partner Hunter Stewart of Vanderbilt lost their match, 3 and 2, to GB&I’s Ashley Chesters and Jimmy Mullen.

In a surprise move, U.S. Amateur champion Bryson DeChambeau, who hails from Clovis, did not play in the foursomes.

McNealy got things going by hitting the first shot of the championship.

Team USA’s Maverick McNealy hits the opening tee shot of the 45th #WalkerCup match at @RoyalLythamGolf. pic.twitter.com/zfMFy5QVOR

— The Walker Cup (@WalkerCup) September 12, 2015

Preview

They’ve played as teammates, and they’ve gone head-to-head.

This weekend, the two NCGA members will again team up in representing the red, white and blue.

Starting Saturday, U.S. Amateur champion Bryson DeChambeau and NCAA Player of the Year Maverick McNealy both will make their debuts as the 45th Walker Cup gets underway at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club in England.

In recent months, the dynamic duo has crossed paths both as friend and foe.

At July’s Pacific Coast Amateur Championship, DeChambeau and McNealy were part of the three-man NCGA squad (along with Corey Pereira) that won the Morse Cup, a team competition held during the first two days of the championship.

In August, meanwhile, the two met in the U.S. Amateur Round of 16. At least that time, it was DeChambeau who walked away on top, as the Southern Methodist University senior defeated the Stanford junior, 3 and 2.

Now, McNealy, the No.2 ranked amateur in the world, and DeChamebeau, the No.4 ranked amateur on the planet, have their sights set on bringing home another Walker Cup title for Team USA. The two were among five players named as early picks for the team by Team USA captain John ‘Spider’ Miller.

As for what each of them brings to the table, McNealy described DeChambeau’s game as “rock solid.”

“He takes a very unique approach to the game, he buys into it 100 percent and that type of commitment is a huge part of what makes him so successful. He’s very analytical and very calculated. It’s very cool and fun to watch,” McNealy said.

DeChambeau, meanwhile, called McNealy “awesome.”

“Maverick is such a class act,” DeChambeau said. “We’re going to have a lot of fun over in England.”

It’s believed that McNealy, of Portola Valley, and DeChambeau, who hails from Fresno, are the first two Northern California natives to play on the same U.S. Walker Cup squad.

At the 2013 Walker Cup, Fresno native and former Cal great Michael Weaver was a part of the U.S. team along with Patrick Rodgers of Stanford and then Bears member Max Homa. Neither Rodgers nor Homa are NorCal natives, however.

The U.S. leads the overall Walker Cup series, 35-8-1, including a 17-9 victory in the 2013 championship at National Golf Links of America.

–Jerry Stewart