Latest U.S. Amateur Four-Ball run by former Coloradan Drew Stoltz and partner Drew Kittleson ends in ‘OT’ in Sweet 16
By Gary Baines
Match-play matchups don’t get much tighter than the one Tuesday involving former Coloradan Drew Stoltz and partner Drew Kittleson in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball in their hometown of Scottsdale, Ariz.
Following 11 of their first 12 holes against Louisianans Lawrence Allan and Grady Brame Jr., the match was tied. And overall, never did one team or the other lead more than 1 up.
And it was also a well-played affair, with the pairs combining to record 14 better-ball birdies, with five different holes tied with birdies.
Alas, no matter how well both teams might play, there can be only one winner in a match, and on Tuesday Stoltz and Kittleson ended up on the wrong side of the ledger.
Allan and Brame, former Southeastern Louisiana college teammates, defeated the second seeds by making a winning birdie on the 19th hole of their match. Stoltz and Kittleson had forced an extra hole by posting a winning par on No. 18.
Thus ended the latest U.S. Four-Ball run by Stoltz, who grew up in Fort Collins and won the 2004 CGA Amateur and the 2001 5A state high school individual title in Colorado, and Kittleson, a fellow reinstated amateur who was runner-up in the 2008 U.S. Amateur.
Stoltz and Kittleson have made match play in each of the last five U.S. Four-Balls, finishing national runners-up in 2022 and ’23, going to the round of 16 this year and to the round of 32 in 2024 and ’25.
On Tuesday, the Drews ended up 6 under par, best-ball, for 19 holes, while Allan and Brame were 7 under.
Stoltz and Kittleson are now both residents of Scottsdale, with the two competing this week less than an hour from their homes.
Here are the results for players with strong Colorado ties at the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball:
MATCH PLAY ROUND OF 16 (Tuesday)
Lawrence Allan, Baton Rouge, La./Grady Brame Jr., Hammond, La., def. former Coloradan Drew Stoltz/Drew Kittleson, 19 holes
MATCH PLAY ROUND OF 32 (Monday)
Former Coloradan Drew Stoltz/Drew Kittleson def. Charles Beeson, Roswell, Ga./Nicholas Canitano, Milton, Ga., 1 up
STROKE PLAY (Saturday and Sunday)
Advance to Match Play
T2. Former Coloradan Drew Stoltz/Drew Kittleson 63-66–129
Failed to Advance to Match Play
T30. Nick Fallin, Highlands Ranch/Charlie Tucker, Castle Pines 71-66–137 (lost in playoff)
38. Former Coloradan Parker Edens/Trey Kidd 65-73–138
47. Chris Thayer, Golden/Bryan Rusin, Denver 69-70–139
105. Jason Browder, Gunnison/Sean Thomas, Castle Rock 76-71–147
About the Writer: Gary Baines has covered golf in Colorado continuously since 1983. He was a sports writer at the Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, then the sports editor there, and has written regularly for ColoradoGolf.org since 2009. The University of Colorado Evans Scholar alum was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. He owns and operates ColoradoGolfJournal.com