Jack Whaley became only the second Englishman to win the US Amateur Championship since 1911 on Sunday, defeating American Jay Leng Jr 4&3 over 36 holes at Merion to earn starts in the Masters, the US Open and The Open at St Andrews in 2027.
Jack Whaley wins US Amateur Championship, second Englishman to do so since 1911
Jack Whaley became only the second Englishman to win the US Amateur Championship since 1911 on Sunday, defeating American Jay Leng Jr 4&3 over 36 holes at Merion to earn starts in the Masters, the US Open and The Open at St Andrews in 2027.
Whaley, 22, who attends Florida State University and is from Doncaster, entered the final as a significant underdog. Leng Jr ranked 23rd in the world amateur rankings, 67 places above Whaley.
The on-course form initially reflected those rankings, with Whaley falling two down after the opening 18 holes. He fought back in the second round, making back-to-back birdies on the second and third holes and winning four consecutive holes.
With rain falling in Pennsylvania, each player took two of the next six holes before Leng Jr misread a putt on the 12th, handing Whaley a three-hole lead. Whaley closed out the match with a left-to-right birdie putt at the 15th.
Whaley is the first English amateur to win the title since Matt Fitzpatrick in 2013, who won at The Country Club in Brookline and later won the US Open on the same course in 2022. Before Fitzpatrick, Harold Hilton had been the last Englishman to win the title, in 1911. Scotland's Richie Ramsay, in 2006, is the only other British winner of the US Amateur since 1898.
Former US Amateur champions include Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Bryson DeChambeau and Viktor Hovland.
- The source does not state Leng Jr's response or any comments from either player after the match.
- The source does not state Whaley's world amateur ranking number, only that he is 67 places below Leng Jr's ranking of 23rd.
- The source does not state the exact scores at each hole or the precise margin at each stage of the match beyond the details provided.
- The source does not confirm whether Whaley has previously competed in any major championships.