A Greenbrier High School alumnus succeeded in his first attempt to qualify for the U.S. Amateur Championship next month in California.
Walker Gantt, who graduated from Greenbrier this year, decided to try to qualify for the U.S. Amateur Championship, and he did with a score of 70 at The Standard Club in Johns Creek.
Gantt grew up around golf because his dad used to work at Bartram Trail Golf Course, so he would go with him from a young age and hang out in the Pro Shop.
“(I would) mess around with the golf balls and play around there,” Gantt said. “(Then) I started playing. He gave me some lesson, and I started working with my coach and he helped me a lot. (I) started playing high school golf, a lot of junior tournaments.”
Gantt, who played golf on the Greenbrier High team, started playing in local, lower-level junior tournaments, he said. He then started traveling more for tournaments around the country.
“This is actually my first time trying for the U.S. Amateur because it’s more of a college event, so I thought this year I should try one first,” Gantt said. “On my first try I ended up qualifying for it. I was super pumped for it.”
He first played in a local U.S. Amateur Qualifier at Mirror Lake and then went on to the final qualifier at The Standard Club at Johns Creek. He said to qualify, players need to get into the top 10 in both events, which he did.
“I was pretty excited, but at the same time during the tournament I was pretty nervous because I knew you just kind of have to stay pretty steady and I was able to do that,” Gantt said. “I was very excited.”
As for how he’s getting ready for the U.S. Amateur Championship, Gantt said he’s treating it like any other tournament.
“I’m not doing anything too different,” he said. “I’m still going out to the golf course every day, working on my set up to make sure everything’s right. But just treating it like a normal tournament experience.”
They’ll fly out on Aug. 7 and spend a few days adjusting to the time difference and play a practice round or two before the start of the tournament, Gantt said.
As for what he’s most excited about, Gantt said it’s getting the experience of playing in a “real championship golf tournament.”
“I think if I can enjoy the experience out there it’ll help along the road with bigger tournaments,” he said.
The top two qualifiers of the U.S. Amateur Championship will earn a ticket to play in the Masters Tournament. Gantt said that while he’s not trying to think about that too much, it is in the back of his mind.
“If I happen to do that well and make it to the Masters, that would be awesome,” Gantt said. “But at the same time any finish inside the top 10, top 20 would be great for me because it’s my first one. But I think a real goal for me is to qualify for next year’s (Amateur) and just keep building on my finishes.”
When he’s out on the course, Gantt isn’t alone because his dad, Patrick, is his caddy.
“Dad on the bag is great,” Gantt said. “He obviously keeps me in a good mental state. He’s really good for me. He gets all my numbers (and) he’s awesome.”
As for Patrick, he couldn’t be more proud of his son.
“Extremely proud of the young man he has grown into,” Patrick said. “Excited for him to see all of the hard work he has put in pay off with this opportunity. Bethany (his wife and Walker’s mom) and I are extra happy to steal a couple of more days with him before he dropping him off at college as that was supposed to be the 14th.”
Future plans
Gantt plans to continue playing golf at Kennesaw, where he is majoring in finance. While he does want to try and become a professional golfer, he wants to finish college first.
Tournament info
The U.S. Amateur Championship will be played Aug. 11 – 17 at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, Calif.
Other local golfer news
Gantt isn’t the only golfer from the CSRA heading to the U.S. Amateur next month. Hamilton Coleman, a student at Lakeside High School qualified for the event after winning the 77th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship
