GolfNewsRI

Rhode Island golf stars Patrick Welch and Davis Chatfield have made the trek to Glen View Club Golf in Illinois for the 119th Western Amateur. 

The Western Amateur runs from July 27 to July 31 with the last two days streamed live on Golf Channel.com. 

Welch tees off at 1:10 p.m. on Tuesday, while Chatfield tees off at 1:40 p.m. for round one. 

Follow Scoring HERE

Chatfield This Summer 

Davis Chatfield has already had one heck of a summer, and there is still at least a month left. 

It started with the U.S. Four-Ball where he and Notre Dame teammate Palmer Jackson advanced to the semi-finals fo the tournament before losing. 

An incredible run. 

After the U.S. Four-Ball came the Northeast Amateur at Wannamoisett Country Club. There, Chatfield finished the tournament in a tie for fifth. 

It is his highest finish ever at the tournament. 

More recently, Chatfield qualified for the U.S. Amateur at Oakmont that is coming up in the second week of August. 

The qualifier was his last competitive tournament. 

Chatfield is currently ranked as the 182nd best Amateur in the world. 

Patrick Welch

Dating back to Oklahoma’s NCAA Tournament run in which he sat on the bench for most of it, the struggles have continued for Patrick Welch. 

After missing the cut at the Sunnehanna in Pennsylvania, Welch returned to Rhode Island for the Northeast Amateur. 

It was the first time that he had been back in the state since his father passed away last year. 

Welch was never competitive in the tournament and missed the cut, He was in and out of Rhode Island without any fanfare. 

Since then, Welch has played low in California, missing out on qualifying for the U.S. Amateur spot. 

Despite all of that, Welch is currently ranked as the 81st best Amateur in the world, according WAGR.

He will look to get back on track at the Western Am.

The Western Amateur 

The Western Amateur is one of the most prestigious events on the Amateur circuit. 

According to the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR), the Western receives just over 900 power points, making it one of the highest ranking tournaments of any listed. 

By comparison, the RI Amateur only gets about 40 power points and is one of the lowest rated tournaments. 

“The Western Amateur is renowned for being the toughest test in amateur golf. It has been a prestigious national championship since its founding in 1899. Many of golf’s greatest players have etched their names on the George R. Thorne Trophy, but many more were unable to conquer the grueling format,” writes The Western Amateur on its website. 

The tournament begins with three days of medal play (Tuesday-Thursday), followed by match play on Friday and Saturday to determine a champion. 

The low 44 players and ties make it to match play. 

The Western Amateur’s Sweet Sixteen represent the best of the best in amateur golf. Their collective accomplishments include:

• 27 major championships since 2000
• 18 PGA TOUR Player of the Year Awards since 1990
• 21 wins during the 2018-19 PGA TOUR season
• 7 FedExCup titles
• 7 PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year Awards since 1990
• 15 participants in the 2019 Presidents Cup