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U.S. Amateur Swings into Pebble Beach B Y A L A N S H I P N U C K W hen the United States Golf Associa- tion awards a U.S. Open to a partic- ular venue, it often stages the U.S. Amateur there a year earlier. Such is the case with Pebble Beach Golf Links, which welcomes the world's top amateurs Aug. 13-19, 10 months ahead of hosting the Open. But it's a mistake to think of the U.S. Amateur as merely a warm-up act. The Amateur has a long and glorious history: it was first held in 1895, four decades before the inaugural Masters, and Bobby Jones remains the U.S. Amateur's greatest champion, having won it five times, including as part of his Grand Slam in 1930. The Amateur remains just as vital today. Amidst an increasingly cluttered golf calendar, it stands out for the uniqueness of the format, the purity of the competition and the variety of the storylines. To wit: one of the key protagonists this year will be Matt Parziale, the reigning U.S. Mid- Am champ who is a second- generation firefight- er from the scrappy town of Brockton, Mass. "For guys like me," says Parziale, "the Amateur is our Super Bowl. And to have it at Pebble Beach will make the experience even more incredible." The tournament begins with two rounds of stroke play, to cut the field down to 64 players. Then the Darwinian match play portion begins. U.S Amateur Wednesday, a dawn-to-dusk stress fest featuring 32 matches, is, quite simply, one of the most exciting days in the sport. The field continues to be winnowed down day-by- day, culminating in the 36-hole finale. With no gallery ropes, the U.S. Amateur is an intimate spectating experience that features world-class golf but none of the hubbub of the U.S. Open. It is not to be missed. For more information, go to www.usga.org. SHORTCUTS EVENT Pebble Beach Golf Links hosts the U.S. Amateur in August 2018 and the U.S. Open in June 2019. Both events are crowd and player favorites. 70 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S U M M E R / F A L L 2 0 1 8 Photo: USGA Kirk H. Owens