So far at the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional Rory McIlroy had been the talk of the tournament, but there are a few other nice stories going on as well. One of those stories is San Jose native John Ellis making his first cut at the U.S. Open, the sole golfer from the Bay Area to do so.
Ellis backed up his first round of 74 with an even par 71 on Friday, carding back-to-back birdies on the 8th and 9th paired with bogies on the 13th and 15th. He jumped to a tie for 44th place overall, but likely won’t catch McIlroy.
Ellis turned pro in 2003 and has had a lot of success on the Canadian Tour, winning the Order of Merit there in 2008. He also has wins on the Golden State Tour, has played in two Nationwide Tour events this season, and tied 24th at the Frys.com open last October, his only PGA tour regular season appearance.
As for Fresno State Alumni Nick Watney, he unfortunately did not make the cut, finishing his U.S. Open at +6. His +2 73 on Friday sealed his fate, despite making three birdies on the day. Watney is joined in his early exit by Stanford University junior David Chung, the amateur and final Bay Area player. He finished +15, but shot a +4 75 after carding an +11 82 on Friday.
Keep an eye on Ellis, he could streak some birdies together and get himself up the leaderboard over the weekend.
For more on the U.S. Open, head over to Waggle Room.