Former St. Olaf Golfer Conklin Wins US Open Local Qualifier

Chris Conklin, a 2011 graduate of , fired a 1-under 70 at Troy Burne Golf Club on Monday afternoon to win the first local qualifier for the US Open to move on to the sectional stage. 

Conklin was bogey-free over his final nine holes. He made back-to-back birdies on 11 and 12 before closing with six straight pars to finish 2-under par on the back. He opened the event with a birdie on the 600-yard, par-5 first hole before two bogies over his next three holes. He got back to even par with a birdie on the par-five fifth. 

There were 45 players in the local qualifier at Troy Burne. To play in a local qualifier one must be a professional golfer, or an amateur with a USGA men's handicap index of 1.4 or lower. 

Section qualifiers will consist of 550 qualifiers from local qualifiers and are 36-hole events. In 2011, there were 11 sectional qualifiers in the United States, one in England and one in Japan. 

Conklin was the MIAC's runner up in 2010, helping the Oles to a second place finish as a team.

Editor's note: Story courtesy of St. Olaf Sports Information

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