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Cavaliere, Svoboda LA Bound for U.S. Open

SUMMIT, N.J. (June 5, 2023) – Final Qualifying for the 123rd U.S. Open Championship provided plenty of excitement on Monday at Canoe Brook Country Club as past MGA champions Christian Cavaliere of Katonah, N.Y., and Andrew Svoboda of Milford, Conn., captured two of the four positions at Los Angeles Country Club, June 15-18.

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Amateur Michael Thorbjornsen, 21, of Wellesley, Mass., captured medalist honors behind an impressive 66-68 performance for an 8-under 134 total, while 43-year-old Berry Henson of Rancho Mirage, Calif., notched rounds of 64-71 to finish second at 7-under 135.

Cavaliere, the 2016 Met Junior champion, leaned on hot ball striking throughout the day as he carded rounds of 5-under 67 in the morning on the North Course followed by a 1-under 69 in the afternoon on the South Course.

“I just had really good feeling in my swing, until I got really nervous in the end,” said Cavaliere. “But for most of the day, my feels in my swing, everything was clicking, which was really cool.”

The 25-year-old Cavaliere had hot stretches in both rounds, making seven birdies over his final 11 holes in the morning and making five birdies in a six-hole stretch in the afternoon.

“I knew if I stayed consistent and stayed patient, that things would happen,” said Cavaliere.

While Cavaliere had heavily considered turning professional a couple years ago, he’s now reached one of the pinnacles of professional golf, even though his game hasn’t been a top priorty.

“Staying amateur was such a good decision for me,” said Cavaliere. “I have my business [Tremont Sporting Co.] that’s front of mind for me and everything I do out here is gravy. The MGA has been such an important part of my life. Being able to still do that, play am events and just enjoy it now and not have it be like I have to play well, but I get to play well. It’s freed me up I think, which has been really cool. So hopefully keep building on that and keep playing well.

This was just Cavaliere’s fifth competitive round since last August, with most rounds being games with friends in Florida. Coming to Canoe Brook today, Cavaliere felt as if he had nothing to lose.

“I had no expectations really. I just wanted to come out and see what happened and give it my best,” said Cavaliere. “It was probably why I was so nervous at the end, because I haven’t had the competitive reps. I’m so happy to have gotten through.”

Cavaliere closed with three consecutive pars to finish solo third, using an up-and-down from the just short of the par-3 10th green on the South Course to secure his spot.

Meanwhile, Svoboda – a five-time MGA champion with three Met Open victories, a Met Amateur and a Met Junior title to his name – birdied the par-4 10th hole in a playoff to earn his fifth trip to the U.S. Open. He and Chrstopher Crawford both finished at 5-under 137 on the day.

Svoboda had his own hot stretches en route to his 5-under finish, using a closing nine score of 30 in both the morning and afternoon. In the morning on the North Course, he made six birdies on the way in, posting 5-under 67 for the round. In the afternoon, he began with a triple and a bogey and added a trio of three-puts for a first-nine 40 in the afternoon. However, he settled back in, making four birdies over his last nine holes on the South Course to once again close in 30.

“I’m excited,” said Svoboda. “I didn’t really think about it much until I made it. There’s really nothing like the U.S. Open. It’s one of the greatest tournaments there is.

Meanwhile, Thorbjornsen gathered the day’s largest crowd at Canoe Brook, especially as he came down his final nine holes and secured his third career U.S. Open start.

“It’s always nice to play in front of people,” said the No. 3 ranked amateur in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. “I feel like I’m more focused. I think it definitely helps me play a little better. It’s really cool just to have people watch and it feels like they’re supporting you.”

Finally, Hensen credited a hot putter, especially in the morning on the South Course, to settling into the day.

“I think I made everything I looked at for the most part,” he said. “I just started dropping putts. I had a chip in, got really comfortable, made a nice eagle on 11.”

Now, the California native is happy to achieve his season goal of competing in a major.

“I get goosebumps when you ask me that,” he said, after being asked about competing in the U.S. Open. “I just felt like this was my year. I’ve put in a lot of effort and that was one of my goals this year to get in a major.”

Crawford took the first alternate position, while four-time MGA champion Luke Sample of New York City earned the second alternate position, winning a three-for-one playoff against five-time U.S. Open qualifier Andy Pope of Glen Ellyn, Ill., and Max Greyserman of Short Hills, N.J.

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