Golf: Tallent to take on Norton in USGA Senior Am championship

For someone who barely made the match play of the U.S. Senior Amateur, Patrick Tallent is making the most of his second chance.

Tallent, who had to survive the stroke play playoff just to make the match play field, is headed to the finals and will face former European PGA Tour player Bryan Norton Thursday morning at Big Canyon Country Club.

Tallent of Vienna, Va. defeated Rick Cloninger of Fort Mills, S.C., 3 and 1, while Norton of Mission Hills, Kan. got past Randel Lewis of Alma, Michigan 2 and 1.

The beginning of the championship was not ideal for Tallent, who made bogey on seven of his first 10 holes of stroke play Saturday, but was able to survive the playoff. He is seeded 60th, one of the lowest seeds to be in the finals.

It’s not the first time he’s been in the last match. In 2010 he reached the finals but lost.

“That’s great isn’t it?” Tallent said. “ It’s been four years. That’s great.”

Tallent got to 1 up on the fifth hole and kept that margin until the eighth. The two remained all square until the 14th hole when Tallent won his first of three holes, closing the match out on No. 17.

Norton jumped out to an early lead in his match against Lewis. He made a birdie on the second hole, won the third and kept a 2 up margin going into the back nine.

“It’s important especially with someone with a national reputation like Randy who you know isn’t going to make many mistakes,” Norton said. “So you feel fortunate to get an early lead. I can stick to my strategy. You could tell I was comfortable.”

Especially on the back nine where Lewis was content to match Lewis stroke for stroke, not allowing him to win any holes. The only mistake Norton made was a pulled approach shot on No. 14, but Lewis three-putted for bogey to halve that hole as well.

“When you play these double days you are going to have a shot where your legs go out,” Norton said of the shot that went to the left of the green and ended up on the grass just before a bunker. “That’s what happened to me.”

Lewis had about a 35-foot uphill putt but blew it 7 feet past the hole and failed to make the comebacker.

“I had his putt this morning and I knew how hard it was,” Norton said. “You have to hit it to get it up the hill, but then it goes back down. He is such a good player I was surprised, but that is a very hard putt.”

This is the first year the 55-year-old Norton was eligible for the Senior Amateur and even though he has played in other USGA events, including the Mid-Am, where he was a runner up in 2003, Norton is a bit surprised he is playing for the championship.

Every day is so different,” Norton said. “I just feel so happy that I’m playing in the final.”

In the morning quarterfinals Tallent easily knocked out the remaining California entrant, Michael Turner of Sherman Oaks.

Turner won the first hole and then lost seven of the next 12 to get closed out, 6 and 5. Tallent made three birdies and an eagle during that stretch.

Cloninger won his match, 3 and 2 over Frank Dial of Auburn, Ala.

The two were all square for four holes and then Cloninger made a birdie on No. 9 to go 1 up. He then took the 10th hole and won holes 12 and 13, capturing the match on the 16th hole.

The other two matches went to the 17th hole before they were decided. Randal Lewis of defeated Jack Hall of Savannah, Ga., making a birdie on the 395-yard par 4 17th hole to win 2 and 1.

Bryan Norton, who knocked out Newport Beach resident and Big Canyon member, Don Dubois in the Round of 32, also won his match 2 and 1. He defeated Peter Wegman of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Norton birdied the Par 3 225-yard 15 hole to go up by 2 and then closed out the match two holes later.