{"id":7008,"date":"2026-08-16T22:36:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T22:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7008"},"modified":"2026-08-16T22:36:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T22:36:18","slug":"stanfords-leng-loses-in-u-s-amateur-final-but-gets-cool-consolation-prize","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7008","title":{"rendered":"Stanford’s Leng loses in U.S. Amateur final, but gets cool consolation prize"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ARDMORE, Pa. \u2014 Jack Whaley of England used double gloves, needed an umbrella, was stung by a wasp at rainy Merion Golf Club and still pushed through the inconveniences to cap a tremendous tournament and hold off Stanford\u2019s Jay Leng Jr. to win the U.S. Amateur on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Read more Pac-12 bowl games: Clarity comes (mostly) to 2026 lineup, which includes both legacy teams and newcomers<\/a><\/p>\n

Whaley should keep the rain jacket.<\/p>\n

The 22-year-old English amateur golfer from Doncaster gets to soak up the spoils that come with winning amateur golf\u2019s greatest prize.<\/p>\n

With skies finally clear on the rain-slogged course, Whaley sank his final putt to clinch the 36-hole final 4 and 3 and hugged it out with his caddy \u2014 his father, Andy. Whaley\u2019s mother ran out to join them for a family embrace while Andy gripped the famed wicker basket flagstick.<\/p>\n

Whaley broke down in tears as he held the Havemeyer Trophy and dedicated the win to his father, who never stopped encouraging his son to play, even as he kept missing cuts as a teenager.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anything\u2019s going to top this,\u201d Whaley said.<\/p>\n

Whaley made a rapid rise from NAIA star to Florida State to amateur champion and now has an exemption into the 2027 US Open, and the 2027 British Open at St. Andrews and the Masters should he remain an amateur. He wore his Florida State Seminoles cap and team colors for the championship round.<\/p>\n

He even gets a Tiger Woods medal.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Whaley won the seventh US Amateur held at Merion and is the first English amateur to win since Matt Fitzpatrick at Brookline in 2013.<\/p>\n

Whaley shook off a wasp sting on the fourth fairway in the afternoon session before he rallied his way to the title. Leng, a Stanford junior, held a 2-up advantage through the first 18 holes after both players bogeyed the par-5 18th on an overcast and windy round.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just getting confidence back into my head that I was a good putter,\u201d Whaley said.<\/p>\n

Read more Thieves steal 4 Renaissance artworks in a Sicilian museum heist during an Italian holiday<\/a><\/p>\n

The U.S. Amateur does hold a special place in Merion history. Take a look at the rock near the 11th hole tee box at Merion, and one of the grandest holes in golf is marked.<\/p>\n

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\u201cOn September 27, 1930, And on this hole, Robert Tyre Jones, Jr., completed his \u2018Grand Slam\u2019 by winning the U.S. Amateur Championship.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was on that hole where Bobby Jones closed out Eugene Homans 8 and 7 in the 36-hole final and clinched golf\u2019s only season Grand Slam with a win at the U.S. Amateur.<\/p>\n

Ben Hogan also has a plaque that honors his 1-iron on the 18th hole of the 1950 Open.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a huge honor to be part of the names of all the famous people,\u201d Whaley said.<\/p>\n

Whaley is No. 90 in the world amateur golf ranking, while Leng is at No. 23.<\/p>\n

Leng gets pretty nice consolation prizes. He also earned a spot on the 2026 U.S. Walker Cup team, in the Masters and the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach next year, provided he is still amateur.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt shows I can compete with the best,\u201d Leng said. \u201cI can compete with anyone, honestly. I can\u2019t wait to see what\u2019s next.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more 49ers\u2019 George Kittle expects early-season comeback, aims for Week 1<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

England’s Jack Whaley wins U.S. Amateur championship match at Merion, beating Jay Leng Jr.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nStanford’s Leng loses in U.S. Amateur final, but gets cool consolation prize - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7008\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Stanford’s Leng loses in U.S. Amateur final, but gets cool consolation prize - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"England's Jack Whaley wins U.S. Amateur championship match at Merion, beating Jay Leng Jr.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=7008\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-16T22:36:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Stanford’s Leng loses in U.S. Amateur final, but gets cool consolation prize\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-16T22:36:18+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008\"},\"wordCount\":576,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/ba6da00d390146cd3ca63dde0cf475c2-scaled.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=7008\",\"name\":\"Stanford’s Leng loses in U.S. Amateur final, but gets cool consolation prize - 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