Current AJGA players Kelly Chinn and David Ford earned medalist honors at the USGA's 2021 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball tournament on May 23. This gave the pair the top seed heading into match play, which began on May 24. Chinn and Ford shot a combined 16-under-par 127 during the stroke play portion of competition, one shot shy of breaking the record set by Brandon Matthews and Patrick Ross in 2016. On May 26, AJGA player Kiko Francisco Coelho and AJGA alum Leopoldo Herrera III won the championship match of the tournament.
Just how low are #USFourBall stroke play scores at @ChambersBayGolf and @TheHomeCourse?
— USGA (@USGA) May 24, 2021
In the previous five iterations of the championship, a combined 19 sides managed to post 36-hole totals of 10 under or better.
This weekend, 20 sides produced such scores!
During the round of 32, Chinn and Ford defeated Ryan Eckelkamp and Tony Gumper in 19 holes. The pair had a much easier match in the round of 16 defeating Daniel Gratton and Zach Jecklin 4&3. Chinn and Ford's run at the title came to an end in the quarterfinals when they were defeated by eventual champions and fellow AJGA player Kiko Francisco Coelho and AJGA alum Leopoldo Herrera III 3&1.
Chinn, who is committed to play golf at Duke University this fall, is currently No. 3 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings. His two AJGA wins came at the 2019 Rolex Tournament of Champions and 2020 The PING Invitational. Additionally, he was named to the 2018 AJGA Junior All-Star Team is a two-time Rolex Junior All-American. Chinn was also the 2020 Rolex Junior Player of the Year.
Ford, a five-time AJGA champion, will play college golf at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill this fall. He is currently No. 1 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings. Ford's five wins came at the 2018 AJGA Junior All-Star at Butte Creek, 2019 Vaughn Taylor Championship presented by James Hardie, 2020 The Junior PLAYERS Championship, 2020 AJGA Invitational at Sedgefield, and 2020 Rolex Tournament of Champions. He is also a two-time Rolex Junior All-America.
On May 26, AJGA member Kiko Francisco Coelho and AJGA alum Leopoldo Herrera III defeated Brendan MacDougall and Sam Meek in 19 holes in the championship match of the tournament. Coelho will play golf at Arizona State University this fall. He has eight top-five finishes at AJGA tournaments from 2017 to 2021 and was named a Rolex Junior All-American in 2020. Herrera won two AJGA tournaments during his junior career including the 2017 Jim Bell Memorial Junior presented by PerryGolf and 2019 Bishops Gate Golf Academy Junior Championship. In 2019, he was also named a Rolex Junior All-American.