Kuchar Starts Off With a 73 at Spyglass

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Matt Kuchar, one of the rising stars in golf, was among the leaders after Monday’s first round of the U.S. Amateur Championship, an event he won in 1997.

The Georgia Tech student is one of 312 amateurs who began two rounds of stroke play Monday on the Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill courses. The top 64 will advance to six rounds of match play that conclude Sunday.

Kuchar shot a one-over 73 on Spyglass. Justin Bolli, a recent graduate of the University of Georgia, had Monday’s low round with a two-under 70 on Spyglass. He had six birdies.

Jim Salinetti of Lee, Mass., Ben Curtis of Kent, Ohio, and Gene Elliott of West Des Moines, Iowa, were at 71, while five players had rounds of 72. Kuchar was among 19 players at 73.

Kuchar finished tied for 21st at the Masters last year and was in the hunt at the 1998 U.S. Open before fading late in the third round, but decided to remain amateur.

“There’s something special about amateur golf, these tournaments, the friendships you make,” he said.