Pinehurst native Jackson Van Paris and University of North Carolina golfer David Ford were among the match play qualifiers Tuesday after 36 holes of stroke play at the U.S. Amateur in Chaska, Minnesota.

Van Paris, a rising senior at Vanderbilt, tied for eighth at 5-under-par 137 after rounds at Chaska Town and Hazeltine National. Peter Fountain of Raleigh, who plays at UNC, finished at 142, advancing to a 14-man playoff for 11 remaining spots.

The final 64 in the 312-player field will begin match play later Wednesday.

Carson Bertagnole, a high school student from Pinehurst, UNC’s Maxwell Ford, UNC Greensboro’s Kelvin Hernandez (pictured) and N.C. State’s Nick Mathews of Mebane failed to make the cut.

Jimmy Ellis, a 39-year-old from Atlantic Beach, Florida, who works in the energy industry, was the medalist at 132, including 61 Tuesday at Chaska Town. No mid-amateur has won the tournament since 1993.

Ellis won the Florida State Amateur in June to earn an exemption into the tourney.

Recapping the good and bad from a rainy week at Sedgefield Country Club, where former Duke golfer Max Greyserman made a quadruple-bogey 8 and four-putted for a double-bogey over the final five holes, giving the Wyndham Championship to Aaron Rai.

Rai capped a two-shot victory at 18-under-par 262 with a short birdie putt at No. 18.

THE GOOD

Compelling Finish: The ups and downs of veteran Matt Kuchar, amateur Luke Clanton and Greyserman provided an excellent Sunday show.

Greyserman was the source of the most drama, though. At No. 13, he holed an approach for an eagle to take what appeared to be a commanding four-stroke lead. That command was short-lived because he hit his tee shot out of bounds at 14 on his way to a quadruple-bogey 8 that dropped him into a tie with Aaron Rai.

In Sunday afternoon’s final round, Rai and Ryo Hisatsune were left as Greyserman’s challengers.

First, the popular Kuchar (pictured finishing his third round) emerged from the pack with a second consecutive 64 on a marathon Saturday at Sedgefield Country Club to take the 36-hole lead. Then Clanton eagled both back-nine par-5s on his way to a third-round 62 to pull into a tie for second, only two strokes behind.

Greyserman, who shot 60 in the second round, closed with 66 and 69 — 38 on the back nine.

With a victory, the 46-year-old Kuchar could have extended his streak as the only player to play in each FedEx Cup Playoffs since it began in 2007. Kuchar entered the tournament No. 113 in the FedEx Cup rankings, needing a victory to make the top 70.

So, despite a field missing most of the game’s superstars, the Wyndham again provided a compelling finish, complete with another popular winner with connections to the region.

As far the race to finish in the top 70, typically the top storyline for the Wyndham, not a single player jumped into a playoff spot by virtue of a good finish at Sedgefield.

Sedgefield Country Club: The traditional Donald Ross layout continued to hold up with high rough and treacherous greens providing ample difficulty. On Saturday, we saw Cameron Young hit his approach over the pin to the back tier of the 12rh green then putt off the green and make double-bogey. On Sunday, Aaron Rai, in contention playing with Kuchar and Greyserman, watched his chip from in front of the ninth green hit on the green and roll back off the putting surface.

CBS Coverage: Give credit to CBS for deciding to stick with the final round of the Wyndham through its conclusion on Sunday. The network’s original time slot was 3-6 p.m. And kudos to the deal arranged with the PGA Tour for GolfChannel to take over CBS’ coverage of Saturday’s extended play.

Sedgefield Grounds Crew: With more than 5 inches of rain dumped on the course in fewer than two days, the grounds crew at Sedgefield and PGA Tour staff did marvelous work making the course playable. Though obviously more receptive to approaches, Sedgefield’s undulating Bermuda greens remained fast and tricky. Lift, clean and place and preferred lies made it possible for players to stick approaches from the fairways.

Pro-Am Goes On: Though nobody except the sponsors who pay big money to play with the pros cares, the Wyndham Championship pro-ams were unaffected, played before Hurricane Debby arrived in full force. The pro-am spots, often part of larger sponsorship packages, pay a lot of the bills, so getting in the pro-ams is very important.

THE BAD

Truist Buys Charlotte: Did you notice that Truist sneaked in its announcement about ponying up big bucks (estimated at $200 million) for a seven-year deal to be title sponsor of the former Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte on Wyndham week, when the dwindling local media was focused on Sedgefield?

BB&T, headquartered for years in Winston-Salem before its merger into Truist, was a presenting sponsor of the Greensboro tournament, and Truist has remained a presenting sponsor of the Wyndham after setting up home with the former SunTrust Bank in Charlotte.

Wyndham has been a generous sponsor and kept the PGA Tour’s longest-running event in Greensboro. The hotel chain’s deal extends through 2026. No extension has been announced.

Wouldn’t it have been nice for BB&T (or Truist) to increased its sponsorship in Greensboro in years past to make this weekend’s tournament one of the PGA Tour’s premier events with the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Rory McIlroy in the field?

No Sir Nick: I miss Nick Faldo as the analyst on CBS. I admit it. I always rooted against him while he was a player. As a proud American, I would never call him “Sir” just because he was a great golfer. As a player, Faldo was a mechanical man who had no interest in the galleries and total contempt for the media.

“I thank you all from the heart of my bottom,” Faldo once told the media at a news conference.

Faldo’s all-par final round to win the 1987 British Open at Muirfield may have been one of the dullest major championship finishes ever. I remember him running through galleries at Augusta National to avoid fans and hiding to smoke cigarettes.

Maybe he was justified in hating the press. I recall the British tabloids (in the media building) mocking him as “Faldope” and “Fooldo” after he hit the wrong ball from high grass at Shinnecock Hills in the 1995 U.S. Open. Maybe he was uncomfortable with the attention.

But Faldo was an outstanding TV analyst, the best in my book — better than Johnny Miller. Faldo, who retired to a ranch in Montana after last year’s Wyndham telecast, was candid, fair and shared some great stories. He provided insight only a player of his caliber could provide. Maybe he can be coaxed out of retirement.

More CBS: Jim Nantz, golf’s premier lead announcer, showed the effects of a long Saturday, referring to the Wyndham as the “John Deere Classic” before quickly correcting himself. No big deal, except Nantz rarely makes such mistakes.

Not sure about everyone else, but my appreciation of pretty, bubbly Amanda Balionis is waning. Ever since she dropped the last name of husband Bryn Renner, was seen out without her wedding ring and posted pics from girls night out in Las Vegas — while rumors surrounded her relationship with Rory McIlroy, who had announced a divorce he has since called off, Balionis’ girl-next-door image is gone. Her gushing interviews are getting stale.

Raining on the Party: Hurricane Debby dampened not only the Sedgefield course, but the hospitality spirit over the weekend. Weekend crowds seemed much smaller than in the past. As players finished late Saturday, the luxury boxes around the final green were largely empty in television shots. To be fair, bad weather, resulting in a crazy schedule, was a major factor.

GOOD AND BAD

Tournament organizers succeeded in finishing the tournament on Sunday, a result good for television, spectators and most of the players. That’s good. Nobody has to come back on Monday. The PGA Tour has its top 70 ready for the upcoming weekend’s tournament.

The bad was not having the leaders battling head-to-head in the final round. The third-round pairings were used for the last 18 holes. The result was third-round leader Greyserman, Kuchar and Rai playing an hour or so behind Clanton, who started the final round on the back nine despite shooting 62 in the third round to move to second place.

It was over. Or so it seemed. With a four-shot lead and only five holes left in the Wyndham Championship, all Max Greyserman had to do was evade a meltdown. Considering he was 21 under par at the time, it seemed an easy task.

But with his first PGA Tour victory in sight, Greyserman couldn’t handle the heat. He melted with a quadruple-bogey Snowman at Sedgefield Country Club’s 14th hole to fall into a tie with Aaron Rai. Back in front one hole later, Greyserman four-putted at 16, missing two 3-foot putts to fall one shot behind.

The 29-year-old Rai, lurking in the shadow on the leaderboard but never at the top throughout the weekend, put the tournament away in the gloaming with a short birdie putt on 18. He shot 64 in the final round.

Rai, born in England, finished at 18-under 262, two ahead of Greyserman, to win the $1.422 million first prize from the $7.9 million purse.

Actually, the tournament isn’t officially over. Matt Kuchar, playing in the final group, elected to mark his tee shot at 18 after a horn suspended play, allowing players to either stop or continue to finish the hole. Rai and Greyserman elected to finish in the near darkness. So, in order to collect a six-figure check, Kuchar must return Monday morning and finish the final hole.

Greyserman, a 29-year-old former Duke player, seemed to have put the victory away by holing an approach that spun back 15 feet or so into the cup for eagle at No. 13.

But on his next shot on the 14th tee he drove out of bounds right, bounding off the cart path then followed with a second tee shot into the left rough. He eventually made a quadruple-bogey 8 to fall into a tie with Rai, who said he didn’t know where he stood until he was on the 18th tee.

“I didn’t really look at the leaderboards as I was going round,” Rai said. “I knew the scores going into the fourth round, but I thought it would be best not to really look at what was going on during the fourth round. I wasn’t aware of what was happening with Max towards the end there.”

Rai squandered a great chance to grab control when he drove into the left rough at the par-15th and made par on a hole he had eagled in each of his previous three rounds. Playing in the group behind Rai, Greyserman reached the green in two shots, then two-putted for a go-ahead birdie.

At 16, Greyserman had a 3-foot putt for par to maintain a one-stroke lead. Instead, he finished the hole behind by one stroke.

On the 18th tee, Rai was asked by playing partner Billy Herschel whether he wanted to know his position on the leaderboard. Not long afterward, Rai’s caddie told him without telling him directly,.

“I asked my caddie on the 18th tee what the situation was, and he knows me pretty well and I trust whatever he says to me. He just said, ‘Just focus on playing a good hole here.’” Rai recalled. “But I also assumed from him saying that that’s probably what it meant. Then when I walked up to the green I did have a look to see the leaderboard, but until that stage I wasn’t aware of what the situation was.”

The top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings after the Wyndham advance to next week’s first round of the Tour’s FedEx Playoffs in Memphis. Despite a field heavy with players ranked outside the top 70, not a single player was able to jump into a playoff spot from their results at Sedgefield.

Both Rai and Greyserman were safely inside the top 70.

Matt Kuchar, the second-round leader, could have jumped from No. 113 and extended his record of playing in the playoffs every year since they were founded in 2007, with a triumph. But Kuchar dropped back with 70 in the third round and made double-bogey on the par-7th on Sunday afternoon to fall out of contention. He needs a par on 18 to tie for 12th.

The 70th spot in the playoffs came down to a battle between Victor Perez and Riley Davis. Perez held onto the last spot by finishing at 272 while No. 71 Davis, failed to gain ground, finishing at

Matt Kuchar shot 64 in Saturday’s second round to take a one-shot lead over three players at the Wyndham Championship.

The 46-year-old Kuchar was 12-under-par 128 through 36 holes. The group at 129 includes Chad Ramey, Max Greyserman and Cameron Young. With heavy rains this week softening the greens, the cut to 69 players came at 4-under 136.

Although a handful of groups were unable to finish their second round at Sedgefield Country Club prior to darkness Saturday, PGA Tour officials said they hope to finish the 72-hole tournament Sunday, though that would require a few players to play more than 36 holes.

The remaining few groups on the course Saturday will begin play early Sunday, followed by the start of the third round at 7:50 a.m. To save time, the third-round pairings will not change for the final round. The final group would tee off after 3 p.m.

Other players in contention include Billy Horschel, Aaron Rai and Beau Hossler at 130.

Several of the top names in the field failed to make the cut, including Jordan Spieth, Will Zalatoris and Justin Rose, the headline threesome in the first two rounds. Carson Young, Shane Lowry, Akshay Bhatia, Webb Simpson, J.T. Poston, Bill Haas and defending champion Lucas Glover also failed to make the cut.

Wyndham Championship officials announced that the first round of the tournament is set to begin at 9:50 a.m. Friday at Sedgefield Country Club. Heavy rain wiped out Thursday’s scheduled day of the PGA Tour competition. No plans to shorten the event from 72 holes were released.

Thursday grounds tickets are now good for any one day of the tournament.Cabanas tickets for Thursday  are also good for any one day of the tournament.

Playing Friday morning, Beau Hassler shot 10-under-par 60 to take the lead at the Wyndham Championship before darkness forced suspension of the opening round at Sedgefield Country Club.

Hossler began with four birdies and an eagle on his way to a round that also included nine birdies and one bogey. Billy Horschel was in second place at 8-under with two holes yet to play. Nick Taylor was 7-under through 14. Matt Kuchar was one of four players to finish with 64.

The first round resumes for 66 players at 7 a.m. Saturday, and the second round begins at 7:40 a.m. Taking advantage of wet conditions, 121 players had par or better scores on Friday. Tournament officials said the current plan is to finish the second round Saturday and play 36 holes on Sunday. The tournament is the last chance for players to qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which offers $100 million in bonuses.

Playing in the feature threesome early Friday, Jordan Spieth shot 67, Will Zalatoris fired 68 and Justin Rose carded 70.

The PGA Tour has canceled play scheduled for Thursday at the Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club, where 4-6 inches of rain are expected. The tournament will begin no earlier than Friday, though the forecast calls for more rain before skies are expected to clear on Saturday and Sunday.

The Wyndham is the Tour’s final stop prior to the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Heavy rains have resulted in the postponement of Thursday’s scheduled first round of the Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club.

Tournament officials announced that play in the tournament would begin no earlier than 3 p.m. The next update is scheduled for noon.

Rain has been forecast to reach between 4 and 6 inches with the probability of high winds and flooding in the area.

Pennson Badgett of Pilot Mountain and his coach, Brad Luebchow of Lewisville, shot 4-under-par 68 Sunday to win the CGA Pro-Junior Championship at Old North State Club by one stroke over four teams. Luebchow, the teaching professional at Maple Chase Country Club, is Badgett’s instructor.

Badgett, No. 5 in the American Junior Golf Association’s boys rankings, tied for fifth in July at the AJGA’s Wyndham Junior at Sedgefield Country Club before winning at Bethpage Black in the RLX Ralph Lauren Junior Classic, the AJGA’s only boys’ match play tournament.

In the modified alternate-shot format, teams played their partner’s tee shot then played alternate shot the rest of the hole.

Adam Stephenson and Hank Haselwood, a Winston-Salem team, was one of the teams to tie at 69.

A pair of young Texans trying to regain prominence on the world stage are hoping to regain their form at this weekend’s Wyndham Championship and make a charge heading into the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Will Zalatoris (pictured above) describes his physical health as 100%, yet he’s still struggling to regain form from serious back issues dating back to 2022.

Seemingly on the verge of PGA Tour stardom, Zalatoris was sidelined before the 2023 Masters, undergoing a microdiscectomy for herniated disks in his back. Since then, he hasn’t had the same level of success.

Five weekends ago, Zalatoris withdrew in the third round at a tournament in Detroit, citing hip pain. He returned for the Scottish and British Opens, failing to make the cut in either. He had two weeks off before coming to Sedgefield Country Club for this weekend’s Wyndham Championship.

“I think being able to have the extended time off to make sure that I’m healed and then really learning how my body changes over a two-, three-, four-week span, it’s just been a lot of learning this year,” Zalatoris told reporters Tuesday.

Jordan Spieth claims he feels no pain while on the golf course, but since May 2023 he has experienced chronic, off-the-course tendon troubles in his left wrist. He believes his wrist troubles must have something to do with his mediocre 2024 record.

“It’s been a frustrating year because it’s been maybe my best driving year ever, and then the clubs that I make the most impact into the ground with, which normally are my bread and butter, have been pretty off. It’s not (physically) hurting, but subconsciously it’s hard not to look at the (tournament results) and think this isn’t a coincidence.

“I’ve been taking trips out as well as being in contact with a lot of doctors, getting it scanned again and trying to figure out what the next move is. Probably going to have to do something about it this offseason.”

Zalatoris, the 27-year-old former Wake Forest star who thrust his way into the pro golf spotlight with three runner-up finishes in major championships in 2021 and 2022, and the 31-year-old Spieth, who had three major titles before his 24th birthday, are arguably the two most compelling personalities competing in this weekend’s Wyndham.

Play in the tournament is slated to begin Thursday, though heavy rains from Hurricane Debby forecasted for this week could play havoc with the schedule.

Why are Zalatoris and Spieth here during a week many of the PGA Tour’s top players are taking off to prepare for the first stage of the FedEx Cup Playoffs next weekend in Memphis? They need to be to protect their spots in not only the first round, but to improve their chances of advancing throughout the three tournaments, which offers a prize pool of $100 million, including $25 million to the winner.

Zalatoris ranks No. 45 in the FedEx standings while Spieth is No. 62. The top 70 after the Wyndham Championship advance to Memphis. The field is cut to the top 50 for the second round in Colorado. The finals, where the $25 million first-prize will be decided, is for only the top 30 remaining on the list.

So, Zalatoris and Spieth have work to do — either at Sedgefield or in Memphis — to reach Colorado.

Granted, Zalatoris also has a lot of friends in the area. In fact, he told reporters Tuesday that he played golf with Wake Forest friends on Saturday at Old Town Club. And Spieth has played here three other times, including during the eerie 2020 tournament played before only a few members due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

To take some stress off his back, Zalatoris has made swing changes, and those changes have caused some adjustments.

“I played a lot of golf this year,” Zalatoris said. “You know, I think it’s been a huge learning year where it’s a little bit of trial and error, some things have gone well, some things haven’t gone according to plan.

But I feel awesome, I feel 100 percent. I think beforehand I didn’t really know what 100% was, and now my speed with my longer clubs are back to what they were back in 2022, which is huge for me.

I think the changes that I made early on this season were really effective, but my alignment really got off with kind of the new posture. Now, I’m not focusing on anything body motion now, or mechanics, it’s just get back to the fundamentals. I’m getting back to really playing the game. I spent maybe a little bit too much time focusing on the mechanics throughout the season and trying to get to certain positions in my swing to try to fix it, but when you’re not aligned in the right spot, it’s not going to work.”

Early in the year, Zalatoris seemed on the road to full recovery. He tied for second at Riviera, tied for fourth at Bay Hill and followed with a tie for ninth at Augusta National. It’s been a struggle ever since. The Wyndham Championship is his 18th tournament. Zalatoris tied for 43rd in the PGA Championship and played well at the Memorial before blowing up with 79 in the final round.

Meanwhile, Spieth continues to practice hard and wait for answers after the season. Though he had three top 10 finishes early in the season, he has no high finishes in the last dozen of his 20 PGA Tour starts.

“I’m not in any pain playing, that’s what’s confusing,” Spieth said. “If I was, I wouldn’t have played any more. It’s all off the golf course weird little things where my tendon will kind of pop out, sublux or dislocate out of the groove and then I’ve got to get it back in or else I wouldn’t be able to grip a club,” Spieth said.

Zalatoris and Spieth said they enjoy playing Sedgefield’s traditional Donald Ross layout with its pristine greens and emphasis on shot-making.

“I think this is one of the better tracks that we get the opportunity to play all year,” Spieth said. “I love the golf course, I think it’s spectacular. You can’t hide your game. And I like the Bermuda. You’ve got to think you’re way around it, you can’t really miss above the hole out here. And then when you’re on the greens, it requires a lot of precision and touch.”

“These are some of the best greens we have on Tour, so just give yourself as many looks as you can and get hot with the putter and make a run,” Zalatoris said. “This place, condition-wise, is top notch. The greens, they’re perfect.”

Meanwhile, Spieth continues to practice hard and wait for answers after the season. Though he had three top 10 finishes early in the season, he has no high finishes in the last dozen of his 20 PGA Tour starts.

Thursday’s prime pairings include Zalatoris, Spieth and English star Justin Rose at 7:23 a.m. on the 10th tee, followed at 7:34 by Shane Lowry, Akshay Bhatia and Sungjae Im. The premier groups are scheduled to begin at 12:43 p.m. and 12:54, respectively, on No. 1 in Friday’s second round.