Tony Romo and a Texas freshman lead our teams to watch at the 2023 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Kiawah

Most golf fans have their attention on the PGA Championship at Oak Hill in Rochester, New York this weekend, but don’t forget about the amateur championship being held down in South Carolina.

The USGA is hosting the 8^th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship, May 20-24, at Kiawah Island Club, where a field of 128 teams (256 players) will tee it up for 36 holes of stroke play May 20-21 before a cut to the low 32 teams is made. There will then be five rounds of match play with the first round on May 22 and the second and quarterfinal rounds on May 23. The semifinal matches will be played the morning of May 24, with the championship match slated for later that afternoon.

The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship and U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball were played for the first time in 2015 and were the first additions to the USGA competition roster since the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur was added in 1987.

Get to know more about the field below, which includes a former NFL quarterback and a rising college star, a team of former college All-Americans, a current NHL referee and former goaltender, an Olympic swimmer and more.

Field fun facts

The Four-Ball is open to teams of amateur players with a Handicap Index not exceeding 5.4. The USGA accepted 2,551 entries (5,102 players) for the 2023 championship, the most since the championship began in 2015. The second-most entries (2,544) were accepted in 2021.

The oldest player in the field is Marc Apps (63), while the youngest is Blades Brown (15). The average age? 32.3 years old.

A total of 40 U.S. States (including the District of Columbia) are represented this year, with the most coming from California (23) and Texas (22). Only one other country, Canada, has a player in the field (Garrett Rank).

There are 11 past USGA champions competing:

• Benjamin Baxter (2016 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Andrew Buchanan (2016 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Scott Harvey (2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur, 2019 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Jack Larkin Sr. (1979 U.S. Junior Amateur)

• Todd Mitchell (2019 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Matt Parziale (2017 U.S. Mid-Amateur)

• Nathan Smith (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012 U.S. Mid-Amateur; 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Todd White (2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Casey Watabu (2006 U.S. Amateur Public Links)

• Chad Wilfong (2022 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

• Davis Womble (2022 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball)

There are four sets of brothers in the field – Chris and Jack Dukeminier, Troy and Trevor McNary, Matt and Paul Ostby, Evan and Travis Russell – but just one father-son duo, Marc and Tyler Apps.

Team to watch: Tommy Morrison and Tony Romo

Romo, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current lead NFL analyst for CBS, will make his USGA debut alongside 6-foot-10 Texas freshman Tommy Morrison in what is one of the most unique pairings the event has ever seen. The pair met at Chiro Sports Specialists in Dallas in 2019 and quickly became friends.

The 25-year age difference between Romo (43) and Morrison (18) is tied for the fourth largest gap in the field. The father-son due of Marc (63) and Tyler Apps (28) leads the way at 35 years.

Team to watch: Garrett Rank and Joseph Deraney

Rank is a full-time NHL referee who has competed in 22 USGA championships, including the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. Became the first Canadian to win the Western Amateur in 2019 and previously overcame cancer at the age of 23. Deraney has played in six USGA championships and was runner-up to Lukas Michel in the 2019 U.S. Mid-Amateur.

Garrett Rank plays his fourth shot on the fourth hole during the round of 64 at the 2018 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, Calif. on Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018. (Copyright USGA/JD Cuban)

Team to watch: Michael Dunham and Jackson Kingman

Dunham spent 11 seasons in the NHL as a goaltender for five different teams after a successful college career at the University of Maine, where he helped the Black Bears win the 1993 NCAA title. Dunham’s father, Ron, was a PGA of America teaching professional. Kingman will make his USGA debut after the team survived a three-hole playoff to earn the final spot in their qualifier.

Mike Dunham of the New York Islanders makes a save against the New Jersey Devils during their NHL game on March 27, 2007 at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. The Devils defeated the Islanders 3-2. (Photo by: Andy Marlin/Getty Images)

Team to watch: Lee Knox and Bobby Wyatt

Knox and Wyatt are brothers-in-law and will make their first U.S. Amateur Four-Ball start after the two withdrew just prior to last year’s event when Knox’s wife went into labor. Wyatt was a college star at Alabama alongside teammate Justin Thomas and was the medalist at the 2012 U.S. Amateur, where he eventually lost to Thomas in the quarterfinals. Wyatt turned professional and made it to the PGA Tour but regained his amateur status in 2021.

Knox, who also played at Alabama, is the son of Jeff Knox, the former non-competitive marker for the Masters.

Bobby Wyatt wins his match during the Round of 32 at the 112th U. S. Amateur Championship at Cherry Hills Country Club in Colorado.

Team to watch: Herbie Aikens, and Matt Parziale

Aikens and Parziale advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2019 Four-Ball and are making their fourth start in the event. Parziale, a former firefighter who now works in the insurance industry, was the low amateur in the 2018 U.S. Open after he won the 2017 U.S. Mid-Amateur. It was the first year the reigning U.S. Mid-Amateur champion was exempt into the field.

Fred Couples, Tiger Woods and Matt Parziale during a practice round for the 2019 Masters tournament at Augusta National. (Photo: Rob Schumacher/USA TODAY Sports)

Team to watch: Nathan Smith and Todd White

Smith and White won the inaugural U.S. Amateur Four-Ball in 2015 with a dominant 7-and-5 performance in the final match at Olympic Club in San Francisco. The pair also advanced to the quarterfinals in 2017 at Pinehurst No. 2. Smith and White are one of two sides to have played in all seven previous Four-Balls alongside 2019 champions Scott Harvey and Todd Mitchell.

Smith holds the record for U.S. Mid-Amateur titles (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012) and will captain the 2025 USA Walker Cup team. White, a high school history teacher, has played in 31 USGA championships, including the 1995 U.S. Open.

Team to watch: Scott Harvey and Todd Mitchell

As noted above, Harvey and Mitchell are one of two sides to compete in all seven previous Four-Balls. The duo won in 2019 and advanced to the semifinals in 2015 and quarterfinals in 2017. Harvey is a property manager who has competed in 34 USGA championships, while Mitchell works in the insurance business after spending time in the New York Yankees minor-league system.

Team to watch: Drew Kittleson and Drew Stoltz

The pair finished runner-up last year. Kittleson also previously finished runner-up to Danny Lee in the 2008 U.S. Amateur and now owns a kitchen and bathroom remodeling company. Stoltz played collegiately at TCU and co-hosts “Gravy and the Sleeze,” a SiriusXM radio show, and the  “Subpar” podcast with CBS on-course analyst Colt Knost.

Team to watch: Kevin Grady and Andrew Sovero

The pair are making their second consecutive appearance in the Four-Ball. Sovero was a standout swimmer at Arizona, where he won the Pac-12 Conference title in the 200-meter individual medley and qualified for the 2016 Olympic Trials. Grady, a three-time Maryland Mid-Amateur champion, was named the Maryland State Golf Association’s Player of the Year in 2021 after a runner-up finish at the Maryland Open.

Andrew Sovero competes in the men’s 100m breaststroke final during the Speedo short course junior national championships at the Texas Swimming Center. (Photo: Brendan Maloney-USA TODAY Sports)

Team to watch: Stephen Behr Jr. and John Engler

Behr is one of two NCAA Div. I All-Americans in the last 25 years to not turn professional. In 2016 Behr helped lead Clemson to its first ACC title in 12 years. Engler, also an All-American at Clemson, is back playing the game after a near-fatal car accident in 2003 that killed two people in another vehicle.

Clemson’s Stephen Behr won the 2016 Byron Nelson Award.

Team to watch: Evan Beck, and Dan Walters

Beck and Walters reached the semifinals last year before losing to the eventual champions. The pair met at Wake Forest where Walters was an associate coach and Beck was an All-ACC and All-American player.

Past champions and future venues

Past champions

2015: Nathan Smith and Todd White defeated Sherrill Britt & Greg Earnhardt, 7 and 5, at The Olympic Club (Lake Course) in San Francisco, California.

2016: Benjamin Baxter and Andrew Buchanan defeated Brandon Cigna and Ben Warnquist, 3 and 2, at Winged Foot Golf Club (East Course) in Mamaroneck, New York.

2017: Frankie Capan and Shuai Ming Wong defeated Clark Collier and Kyle Hudelson, 2 and 1, at Pinehurst No. 2 in Pinehurst, North Carolina.

2018: Garrett Barber and Cole Hammer defeated Chip Brooke & Mark Dull, 4 and 3, at Jupiter Hills Club (Hills Course) in Tequesta, Florida.

2019: Scott Harvey and Todd Mitchell defeated Blake Taylor and Logan Shuping, 2 and 1, at Bandon Dunes (Old Macdonald Course) in Bandon, Oregon.

2020: No championship (COVID-19).

2021: Kiko Francisco Coelho and Leopoldo Herrera III defeated Brendan McDougall and Sam Meek, 1 up (19 holes), at Chambers Bay in University Place, Washington.

2022: Chad Wilfong and Davis Womble defeated Drew Kittleson and Drew Stoltz (19 holes), at Birmingham Country Club in Birmingham, Alabama.

Future sites

May 25-29, 2024: Philadelphia Cricket Club (Wissahickon and Militia Hill Courses) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

May 16-20, 2026: Desert Mountain Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.

2037: Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Oregon.

The Sheep Ranch at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon (Courtesy of Bandon Dunes)

Story originally appeared on GolfWeek