LA JOLLA, Calif. — UC San Diego sophomore Nathan Tseng competed in the 123rd U.S. Amateur Golf Championship this week.

Tseng played two rounds of stroke play Monday and Tuesday at Cherry Hills Country Club in Cherry Hills Village, Colo. He carded rounds of 74 and 78 on the 7,405-yard course, finishing with a nine-over 152.

He did not make the cut to advance to match play in the round of 64.

Tseng played his way into the U.S. Amateur by winning a qualifier tournament in late June at Goose Creek Golf Club in Jurupa Valley, Calif. There, he finished three-under par with a 137. Tseng opened with a 71 (+1) and followed up with a blistering 66 (-4) in the second round to top the 84-player field. He was one of just five competitors to finish under par.

UC San Diego junior Davis McDowell was a second alternate for this year's U.S. Amateur. He placed fourth in a qualifying tourney at Castlewood Country Club in Pleasanton, Calif., in mid-July.

Across the United States, a record 8,253 players competed in qualifying events at 89 sites to earn one of the 312 spots at the U.S. Amateur, which debuted in 1895.

Both Tseng and McDowell return to UC San Diego for the upcoming 2023-24 season.

McDowell put together a strong 2022-23 campaign that culminated with him being named All-Big West First Team. He compiled a team-best 71.0 stroke average and posted 17 under-par rounds including nine sub-70 rounds. McDowell logged his first NCAA Division I victory at the Orange County Collegiate Classic in February.

Tseng held a 73.9 stroke average this past season. His best finish was a tie for 18th in an 84-player field at The Joust, which was also held at Goose Creek in Riverside County.

------
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.