Thompson OK In The End

By Alex Miceli

San Francisco - Never giving in, but never taking control, Michael Thompson got the closest he has ever been to the pinnacle of amateur golf Sunday at The Olympic Club.

He couldn’t get over the hump, losing in the finals of the U.S. Amateur, 2 and 1, to Colt Knost at the Lake Course.

Michael Thompson thinks of the outcome on the 30th hole after his putt lipped out. (John Mummert/USGA)

Thompson, a senior at the University of Alabama, hung tough during the 36-hole finale, never leading by more than 1 up on three separate occasions, However, it didn’t last any longer than one hole. Knost, content to allow Knost to dictate the flow of the match, played patient and within himself.

After taking the lead on the first hole with a birdie 4, Thompson immediately relinquished the lead with a bogey on the long par-4 second hole. It would take 14 more holes before Thompson would again regain the lead after a birdie on the par-516th. Once again he would see that lead slip away on the following hole before slipping to 1 down on the 18th.

"I started off poor, but I got into a groove then after awhile," said Thompson after the morning 18. "I just have to trust myself more. I just have to keep shooting for the middle of the greens and make a few more putts."

Thompson did little to take the initiative in the afternoon 18, recording a par and a bogey and finding he was still 1 down. The par-3 third hole could have been a disaster for Thompson, but was in fact a turning point. Thompson pulled his tee shot, hitting a woman, which would drop straight down in the rough with a reasonable lie. The subsequent pitch shot of 30 yards, downhill over a bunker to 3 feet, stunned Knost, who eventually three-putted.

"I was thinking that if I would hit it perfect it might go 12, 15 feet past the hole or maybe just on the fringe," said Thompson of the near impossible pitch shot. "That was just awesome. I don’t know what to say about that. Everything went right."

Two holes later it was a frustrated Knost and a happy Thompson dueling on the small green. Knost had the advantage, but Thompson drained a 45-foot bomb. Knost visibly lost his cool and missed the putt badly, falling 1 down for the final time in the match.

"Especially to hear the roar of the crowd, that was intense," said Thompson of the putt. "I had never experienced anything like that before."

While everything went right on the third and fifth holes, Thompson’s fortune would change after that. He’d only win two more holes.

Knost, on the other hand, finally got his game going in the right direction and would take control of the afternoon portion, winning five of the last 12 holes.

No regrets, Thompson found solace in making as far as he did.

"Almost just kind of relieved the week is over," Thompson said. "I'm not terribly disappointed that I lost. Runner-up still sounds pretty darn good."

Alex Miceli is a writer for the Golf Press Association whose work has appeared previously on www.usamateur.org.