BLUFFTON, S.C. -- Andy Ogletree beat U.S. Open qualifier Cole Hammer in the second round and led Noah Goodwin 5 up after 11 holes Thursday in the weather-delayed U.S. Junior Amateur.
The 17-year-old Ogletree, from Little Rock, Mississippi, beat Hammer, from Houston, 5 and 4, and took five of the first 11 holes against Goodwin, from Corinth, Texas, in the third round before play was suspended for the day at Colleton River Plantation Club's Pete Dye Course.
Ogletree, the Mississippi Class 2A state medalist, birdied Nos. 8 and 9 -- holing a 10-foot putt and 30-foot chip -- and made a 5-foot birdie putt on the par-5 11th against the 15-year-old Goodwin.
"I've just played average all summer," Ogletree said. "I am peaking right now. My course management has been better this week. I have made a few putts and hit a lot of fairways and that's what it comes down to on this golf course."
The 15-year-old Hammer became the third-youngest player to compete in a U.S. Open when he played at Chambers Bay in June.
"I made a couple of bad mental decisions," Hammer said about his match with Ogletree. "I didn't hit the ball as well as I needed on the first six holes. I just didn't make anything. That's not going to get you anywhere out here."
In the other upper-bracket matches, South Korea's Won Jun Lee led Turk Pettit of Auburn, Alabama, 2 up through 12 holes; Norway's Kristoffer Reitan had a 3-up advantage over Colombia's Ivan Camilo Ramirez after nine; and Philip Barbaree of Shreveport, Louisiana, and Logan Lowe of Grass Valley, California, were tied after four.
In the lower bracket, John Pak of Scotch Plains, New Jersey, led Japan's Koichiro Ishika 3 up through eight holes; Eugene Hong of Sanford, Florida, had a 1-up advantage over Jake Chanen of Phoenix through three; Spencer Ralston of Gainesville, Georgia, and Andrew Orischak of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, were all square through two; and Matthew Wolff of Agoura Hills, California, and Ryan Grider of Lewisville, Texas, were tied after one.
