OAKMONT, Pa. -- Two big comebacks by Trip Kuehne and Camilo Villegas prevented two big upsets Wednesday as match play began in the U.S. Amateur.
Kuehne, at 31 far older than the mostly college kids who are chasing the biggest prize in amateur golf, trailed for much of the front nine before rallying for a 2 up victory over Ty Harris of Tampa, Fla.
Villegas' rally was even more dramatic -- and more frantic.
Down by three holes through No. 13, the Florida Gators star from Colombia won the final five holes to beat Terrence Miskell of New Braunfels, Texas, 2 up. His comeback started with an eagle 3 at the 621-yard 12th.
Ryan Moore, a U.S. Walker Cup team member and another of the pre-tournament favorites, wasn't as fortunate, losing 1 up to Auburn University golfer Lee Williams.
In a match between top contenders for the remaining two spots on the Walker Cup team, Clemson star Gregg Jones beat Vanderbilt's Brandt Snedeker 4 and 3.
"We're both right on the bubble," Jones said. "I don't know how much that match is going to go into it, but it sort of stinks to have to play each other in the first round. You hoped we would play each other on Sunday."
Kuehne expected all along to get to Thursday's second round, and didn't change his mind even when Harris, of Georgia State, came out playing well on some of the fastest and most challenging greens in American golf. Kuehne calls century-old Oakmont the toughest course he's ever played.
"If I were Ty Harris, I'd probably have a good cry because you don't see many amateurs shoot under par at Oakmont and lose. He played phenomenally," Kuehne said. "But it's been a long time since I've been in a position where I wanted the ball when the game was on the line, and I drew from some past experiences."
Notably, he remembered a near-miss first-round loss in 1994, when he recovered to reach the U.S. Amateur finals before losing to Tiger Woods.
"I had to suck it up and say, "Hey, this is the U.S. Amateur,"' said Kuehne, a Dallas stock analyst. "It was a good test for me. I was able to take a deep look into Trip Kuehne today, and I was happy at what I saw."
Kuehne, the longest hitter in amateur golf, turned to his driver -- as usual -- during his comeback, hitting to 115 feet of the green on the 499-yard, par-4 No. 15.
"It was the longest drive I've hit in a long time," Kuehne said.
Kuehne, whose brother Hank and sister Kelli previously won U.S. Amateur titles, tied for second among the 64 match-play qualifiers. He now plays Southern Cal golfer David Oh, a 4 and 3 winner over David Robinson of Sandersville, Ga.
Casey Wittenberg and Tom Glissmeyer, two teenagers who normally would be occupied with their school books rather than birdies in late August, were easy winners.
Wittenberg, an 18-year-old Oklahoma State freshman and the nation's top-ranked amateur, cruised to a 5 and 3 victory over Bill Drohen of Haverhill, Mass.
Wittenberg, of Memphis, started his match with three consecutive bogeys, temporarily bringing back memories of Monday's unsettling 78 during qualifying at Oakmont. But he quickly rebounded to win each of the last six holes and closed out Drohen on 15.
"When you get going the wrong way out there, it's really tough to recover," said Wittenberg, also a Walker Cup pick.
Wittenberg has some incentive to keep winning: classes have already started at Oklahoma State, so the longer he wins, the later he can report. He gets a big challenge Thursday when he meets Villegas,
Glissmeyer, a 16-year-old high school junior from Colorado Springs, Colo., and the youngest golfer in the U.S. Open this summer, had no problems in beating Randy Nichols of Connersville, Ind., 6 and 5.
Glissmeyer was 5 up at the turn on a mostly sunny, warm day as temperatures neared 90. This is his first visit to Oakmont, and one he won't soon forget.
"The greens are nothing like I've ever seen before," said Glissmeyer, who plays Jones on Thursday. "They're so firm and unbelievably fast. I've made a few ... I think I owe my being here to my putting."
Billy Haas, another favorite and the son of PGA Tour pro Jay Haas, had one of the day's shortest matches, beating Jessie Mudd of Louisville 7 and 5. Another Walker Cup team member, Brock Mackenzie of Yakima, Wash., beat Mark Christensen of Elk River, Minn., 6 and 5.
John Holmes, a University of Kentucky star who was the top qualifier, won 6 and 4 over Rick Reinsberg of Lafayette, Calif.
Thursday will be the busiest day of the week, with the field of 32 trimmed to 16 in a morning round and again to the eight quarterfinalists in the afternoon.
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