Noah Schone captured medalist honors at the 127th Utah State Amateur Championship Tuesday, firing a 6-under-par 66 at Logan Country Club to go with his 67 the first day at Eagle Mountain Golf Course.
Schone’s 133 was one stroke better than Bowen Mauss and two strokes ahead of David Liechty. Schone earns the No. 1 seed for the match-play portion of the tournament, which begins Wednesday morning at Logan Country Club.
A 26-year-old, who runs a lithium battery golf cart company in St. George, Schone has made match play at the State Am for eight consecutive years and is excited for the rest of the week.
“I’m glad to be the No. 1 seed,” he said. “This is my favorite tournament of the year and this course really fits my eye. I’m attacking the pins and trying to make a lot of birdies.”
Schone’s round was highlighted by an eagle-3 at the par-5 12th hole when he hit two 2-irons to within inches for a tap-in. After making a bogey at 16, he knew he was tied for the lead and finished strong with a pair of birdies at 17 and 18.
Mauss, who will be playing for Arizona State this fall, played at Eagle Mountain Tuesday (the golfers switched between Logan and Eagle Mountain Monday and Tuesday) and had a clean card with four birdies and a single bogey.
Liechty, a 20-year-old who will be a freshman at Utah Tech, overcame an early double bogey to post two eagles on his way to a 67 at Logan. Liechty was the match-play runner-up in 2023.
Martin Leon, the 2021 State Am champion, BYU’s Tyson Shelley and Roosevelt’s Tylan Birchell all finished at 4-under 136. First-day leader Jackson Mauss shot a 73 Tuesday and finished in a tie for ninth at 138.
Five other former champions made the cut, including Simon Kwon at 139, Cole Ogden at 141, Darrin Overson at 144, Dan Horner at 146 and Brad Sutterfield at 148.
The cut after stroke play came at 9-over 149 with 65 golfers hitting that number or lower. A playoff was held Tuesday evening with nine players vying for eight spots. Cooper Nelson was the unfortunate golfer who was eliminated with a bogey.
Sixty-four players will begin match play Wednesday morning. Two rounds will be played Thursday as the field will be cut to eight with quarterfinals and semifinals played Friday. The two remaining golfers will square off in a 36-hole final beginning Saturday morning.
Stroke Play Leaders
- 133 – Noah Schone (67-66)
- 134 – Bowen Mauss (67-67)
- 135 – David Liechty (68-67)
- 136 – Tylan Birchell (71-65), Martin Leon (71-65), Tyson Shelley (68-68)
- 137 – John Cook (69-68), Will Pedersen (66-71)
- 138 – Jackson Mauss (65-73), Jackson Shelley (69-69)
- 139 – Jack Summerhays (72-67), Simon Kwon (71-68)
- 140 – John Fox (73-67)
- 141 – Jared McCleary (68-73), Cole Ogden (69-72), Chase Goetschel (68-73), Kenny Palmer (72-69)
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