Bling Posts Runner-Up Finish at U.S. Amateur

UCLA Men's Golf on Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. - Rising sophomore Devon Bling bested 310 of his fellow competitors to be just one of two standing on the first tee at Sunday's final of the 2018 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach Golf Links. And while he didn't get the outcome he wanted, Bling showed the world what he is capable of with a runner-up finish.

Bling, who had never played Pebble Beach before, will get to make a return trip next June, as he was awarded a berth into the 2019 U.S. Open. Additionally, by virtue of his runner-up finish, he is likely to receive an invitation to play in the 2019 Masters next April.

The week-long event began on Monday, with Bling's first trip around Pebble Beach leaving a sour taste in his mouth following a 4-over 75, as he made just one birdie on the sixth to go with five bogeys. On Tuesday at Spyglass Hill Golf Course, the other course hosting the first two rounds of stroke play, Bling rebounded with a 2-under 70, as he made five birdies (#6, #11, #13, #15 and #17), a bogey and a double. After 36 holes, he was comfortably inside the Top 64, tying for 36th (+2, 145) and earning the No. 41 seed for match play.

On Wednesday in the first round of match play, which all took place at Pebble, Bling never trailed against No. 24-seed Caleb Ramirez, winning the first and fourth holes to go 2-up. He lost No. 6, but rallied with four victories in a row (#9-#12) to go 5-up. After dropping the 13th, Bling closed out Ramirez with a win on the 14th to post a 5 and 4 triumph.

In Thursday morning's round of 32, Bling again never trailed, this time versus No. 9-seed Shintaro Ban. After five halves to start the match, Bling won the sixth and eighth to go 2-up. Ban countered with wins on No. 9 and 10, but Bling got his 2-up lead back with victories on the 11th and 14th. The UCLA sophomore took a 1-up lead to the 18th hole and ended up making birdie to post a 2-up win and move on to the round of 16 later that afternoon.

Bling had to go into overtime in his second match on Thursday, but he bested No. 8-seed Noah Goodwin in 20 holes. Bling raced out to a 3-up lead after four holes, and still led 2-up after the 10th, but Goodwin claimed three in a row (#12-#14) to take his first lead. A Bling win on the 16th returned the match to all square, but Goodwin won No. 17 to take a lead to the final hole. Goodwin would bogey the last, while Bling made par to force the match into extra holes. Following a pair of pars on the first (19th) hole, Bling stuck a fairway shot on the second (20th) hole to within a few feet for a match-clinching birdie.

For the third match in a row, Bling would need to take an opponent all the way to the picturesque 18th hole, and once again, the Bruin came out on top. Against No. 32-seed Davis Riley in Friday's quarterfinals, Bling never led the match until he sank his final putt. Riley never led by more than 1-up, winning the second, seventh, 12th and 15th. Bling countered with victories at No. 4, 11, 13 and 16. All square heading to the 18th, Bling made birdie to move on to Saturday's semifinals.

In a battle of Pac-12 golfers, Bling squared off with No. 29-seed Isaiah Salinda (Stanford). And it was no surprise that Bling, for a fourth match in a row, would need to play the 18th hole. Bling never led by more than 2-up, but also never trailed. He won the fourth and fifth holes, Salinda got back to all square at No. 6 and 7, but Bling took the lead for good with a win on the eighth. With Bling wins on No. 12 and 14, countering Salinda victories on No. 13 and 16, Bling led 1-up heading to the 18th, with both players making par and the Bruin sophomore advancing to the 36-hole match play final on Sunday.

Taking on No. 27-seed Viktor Hovland, the fifth-ranked amateur in the world, Bling bounced back from dropping the opening hole to win the second. But it was all Hovland after that, as he claimed the fourth and then four in a row (No. 8-11) to go 5-up. Bling bounced back with wins at No. 12 and 13 to get to within three, but never got any closer, as he would eventually fall by a score of 6 and 5 after 31 holes.

In addition to Bling, two other Bruins participated in the U.S. Amateur. Rising junior Hidetoshi Yoshihara tied for 46th in stroke play (+3, 75 at Spyglass, 71 at Pebble, 146 total) and earned the 60th seed in match play, where he fell in the round of 64 to No. 5-seed Will Gordon (4 and 3). Rising senior Patrick Murphy was one of 24 players to tie for 64th (+4, 76 Pebble, 71 Spyglass, 147 total), but he was eliminated on the first hole of a playoff.

Recent Results

Upcoming Events

Bling Posts Runner-Up Finish at U.S. Amateur

Players Mentioned

Devon Bling

Patrick Murphy

Hidetoshi Yoshihara

University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics

Bling Posts Runner-Up Finish at U.S. Amateur

Players Mentioned

Devon Bling

Patrick Murphy

Hidetoshi Yoshihara

Related Videos