Danville's Phillip Hendrickson was eliminated Wednesday in the first round of match play competition at the U.S. Amateur Championship, falling 2 and 1 to Mark Harrell of Hazelhurst, Ga., at the Olympic Club in San Francisco.
It was a tight match throughout. Hendrickson was 1 up after four holes, and the match was all square after the 12th hole. But Hendrickson bogeyed the par 3 13th hole, while Harrell made par to go 1 up. Hendrickson then evened the match again with a par at the par 4 14th hole.
But thanks to two straight Hendrickson bogeys, Harrell was 2 up through 16 holes. He won the match when he rolled in a long par putt on No. 17.
Harrell played Jason Kokrak of Warren, Ohio, a medalist at last year's championship, in today's second round.
The championship continues with the second and third rounds of match play today, and the quarterfinals on Friday. The semifinals are Saturday, and the 36-hole final is set for Sunday.
