Hadley, Simpson among locals to clinch US Open spot at Pinehurst in Duke qualifier

Durham

Chesson Hadley walked off the 18th green after finishing up a par and said, “Hope it’s enough,” to anyone in the gallery who was listening.

After a relatively drama-free wait, Hadley’s 4-under-par was enough to get him to Pinehurst for the upcoming U.S. Open, with the silver trophy sitting at the scoring table as a visible reminder of the stakes.

The tour pro from Raleigh was one of seven at Duke University Golf Club on Monday to emerge from a field of 84 — the usual mix of kids, journeymen, tour pros and, in this case, a previous U.S. Open champion, one Webb Simpson — at final qualifying to claim a spot at Pinehurst Golf and Country Club in two weeks.

Simpson was another, finishing at 4-under as well thanks to a downhill, twisting birdie putt on 18, his third in four holes. It was a fitting conclusion to a wild 36 holes that saw him hit three balls out of the water — a new personal record — amid 11 birdies and seven bogeys.

“I hadn’t played much golf here but certainly I’m impressed with the golf course, and if you’re a little off, you pay for it,” Simpson said. “And I was a little off a few times and paid for it. But thankfully, I made a bunch of putts and I think in a qualifier like this, number one, you’ve got to play smart and not give away holes because you’ve only got 36 to play. And number two, you’ve got to make putts. And I was able to make some putts.”

His exemption for winning at Olympic Club in 2012 ran out two years ago and he wasn’t exempt otherwise after finishing 136th in the FedEx Cup standings last year, but Simpson, a Raleigh native who lives in Charlotte, also couldn’t imagine not playing at Pinehurst.

“I love Pinehurst,” Simpson said. “It’s my second home. We have a house there. I wanted to be there so bad. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. I’m excited.”

Hadley had company during his round, with his wife Amanda caddying for him. She carried his staff bag for a nine-hole practice round in Phoenix this spring when his regular caddie had travel issues — “It about ripped my shoulder up,” Amanda Hadley said — but she used a lighter bag and a pull cart for Monday’s 36 holes — a slog for most, but some unexpected quality time for the Hadleys.

“He’s been gone for two weeks and I’ve had all three kids for two weeks straight, but they were at camp and with grandparents today, and we got to spend eight hours together, which is pretty fun,” Amanda Hadley said. “I am getting in his ice bath, and he’s putting the kids to bed tonight, but other than that, I’m good.”

Playing without his usual caddie and flying solo also gave Chesson Hadley a chance to focus on his game and routine, and he played the last few holes knowing he was on the razor’s edge of the qualifying line. He narrowly missed chipping in for birdie on 16, hit his approach within a few feet on 17 for birdie and just missed a birdie putt on 18.

“I knew I for sure needed one more,” Hadley said.

As it turned out, not only was it enough, it was enough to get through clean, one shot ahead of the playoff.

“I didn’t hit it very well the first 18,” Hadley said. “Made some nice putts. I was not prepared, not that I hadn’t seen it before, but it was nasty hard out there today. It was a day of patience.”

It was a longer day of patience for the seven golfers who ended up playing two extra holes in the gloaming for two spots in Pinehurst. Raleigh’s Carter Jenkins claimed one of them, while N.C. State’s Spencer Oxendine is an alternate. Ryan Gerard’s par on the first playoff hole wasn’t enough to advance, a rough end to a long day for the Raleigh native.

Duke became the first site since 1975 to be a venue for both local and final qualifying after Old Chatham, which was a final qualifying site for the first time a year ago, was unable to host. Oxendine was among the five survivors from those 84 hopefuls on April 29. Simpson and Hadley were both among the survivors Monday, a meaningful result for both, coming back home to earn the right to play in a U.S. Open at home.

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