Shadow Creek pro Montgomery reaches U.S. Open sectional

It was the annual chase of dreams, the chance of playing one’s way into the field for the U.S. Open golf championship.

Seventy-two players teed off Monday at TPC Summerlin in the Las Vegas local qualifying, one of 111 spots designated by the United States Golf Association for the Open, which will be played June 18 to 21 at Chambers Bay in Washington.

When it was over, Monte Montgomery, Drew Scott, Keith Clearwater and Curtis Deal advanced to the May 25 sectional qualifying. They’ll have to survive 36 holes at one of 10 locations to earn a spot in the Open field.

Henderson’s Montgomery, a former UNLV golfer and current head pro at Shadow Creek, posted the day’s best score at 4-under-par 67. He took advantage of the early benign conditions on the par-71, 7,198-yard course before the wind kicked up early in the afternoon.

“I wasn’t flag hunting; I just tried to hit the green. Tee to green, I was pretty good,” said Montgomery, who missed just two fairways in his round, which included an eagle at the par-5 13th and five birdies to offset a run of three straight bogeys on his back nine.

Montgomery, whose son Taylor plays on the UNLV golf team, said he might have saved his round at the par-4 No. 6.

“I had made three straight bogeys, and I hit my drive into the rocks,” he said. “I hit my second to about 80 yards out and then got up and down. That was the key. It helped steady the ship.”

He also dropped in a 90-foot putt at the par-3 No. 8 for birdie, followed by another birdie at the par-5 ninth to finish strong.

“The wind was an issue the last eight holes,” said Montgomery, who will play his 36-hole sectional round in Newport Beach, Calif. “I got a little stupid out there for a while, but that par at six and the birdies at eight and nine made it all good.”

Scott, who attended Green Valley High School and San Diego State and now plays on the Web.com Tour, shot 3-under 68. He said he expected the wind to be blowing and was ready for it.

“I’m used to this,” he said. “For me, the key was hitting fairways and greens and getting a couple of good up-and-downs. Nothing spectacular. Just a steady, solid round.”

Scott made the turn at 2 under and bogeyed the 10th hole, but he finished strong with birdies at Nos. 16 and 17 to get to 3 under.

“I didn’t get caught thinking ahead,” said Scott, who will play his sectional qualifying in Dallas. “You have to get through this one first.”

Clearwater and Deal each shot 70 to qualify. Clearwater, a former PGA Tour pro who recently moved to Las Vegas from Provo, Utah, staved off two consecutive bogeys with a birdie at the par-3 eighth to save his round and spot in the sectional.

Clearwater, 55, last played in the U.S. Open in 2001. He will try to qualify at Newport Beach.

“I’m trying to get my game back,” Clearwater said. “I feel good, and I feel like I can still compete.”

Deal, a former player at Virginia Tech who lives in Las Vegas, made the turn at par. His only birdie on his back nine, at the par-4 sixth, was enough to get him to the sectional qualifying, also at Newport Beach.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.