Vollertsen, Larsen and Thayer advance

Garden City, KS (westernkansasnews.com)-Five Garden City guys made their way into the round of 64 at the 106th annual Kansas Amateur Match Play Championships at Southwind. At the end of day one, only three are left. 

Local Dentist Grant Vollertsen, who drew arguably the toughest first round match, knocked out his buddy TJ Vilkanskas, birdying five holes on the day, including three on the back nine to win 1-up. The most important of those birdies came on 16 with the match all squared. Vollertsen made a birdie put to give him an advantage he never relinquished. 

Meantime, high school teammates Taylor Larsen and Logan Durst, who play against each other all the time on the practice course, went head-to-head in the round of 64. As well as Durst played, Larsen was just too much. The soon-to-be senior birdied five of his first nine holes en route to a 2-and-1 victory. Larsen advances to play Salina’s Grant Herrenbruck. 

The closest match of the day belonged to financial adviser Sean Thayer, who finally knocked out Colby Yates in a playoff. Thayer parred the final hole and watched as Yates missed a put for par, moving the 1999 amateur champ into the round of 32.