2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Storylines...

The U.S. Open qualifier storylines are fun, but the inaugural Four-Ball takes things to another level with some of the eclectic teams teeing it up in Saturday and Sunday's stroke play at Olympic Club. 

Golf World's Ron Sirak set the table for this inaugural event that essentially replaces the U.S. Amateur Public Links on the USGA championship schedule. And the rest of us can imagine competitors will be enjoying Bill Burgers as Webb Simpson did Monday.

The low 32 advance to match play starting Monday. Fox Sports 1 carries the final two days of competition May 5th and 6th from 4 to 6:30 PT.

From the USGA, with a few interruptions for other stories written about the competitors.

Oldest Competitors: Robert Polk (59, born 6-18-55), Brady Exber (59, born 3-29-56), Jim Williams (59, born 4-4-56)

Youngest Competitors: Ahmed Ali (15, born 12-22-99), Ashwin Arasu (16, born 1-4-99), Kyosuke Hara (16, 10-24-98), Kyle Suppa (16, 5-13-98)

Average Age of Field: 34.76

Oldest Teams: Iain MacDonald (58) & Robert Valerio (56), Kenneth Bakst (57) & Jonathan Doppelt (54), Robert Polk (59) & Bill Fowler (51)

Youngest Teams: Kyosuke Hara (16) & Kyle Suppa (16), Ashwin Arasu (16) & Sahith Theegala (17), Jacob Huizinga (17) & William Wrigley (17)

Largest Age Difference (Team Members): 36, Oliver Rheinfurth (55) & Marc Reyes (19); 35, Marc Apps (55) & Tyler Apps (20); 35, Michael Board (52) & Drew Jones (17)

U.S. States Represented – There are 42 states and the District of Columbia represented at the 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball: California (30 players), Texas (22), Florida (13), New York (12), Pennsylvania (12), Illinois (10), North Carolina (10), Maryland (9), Arizona (8), New Jersey (8), South Carolina (8), Ohio (7), Alabama (6), Colorado (6), Georgia (6), Nevada (6), Virginia (6), Connecticut (5), Kansas (5), Massachusetts (5), Washington (5), Louisiana (4), Minnesota (4), Oregon (4), Nebraska (3), New Hampshire (3), Oklahoma (3), Utah (3), Wisconsin (3), Hawaii (2), Iowa (2), Maine (2), Michigan (2), Missouri (2), New Mexico (2), Rhode Island (2), Tennessee (2), Arkansas (1), Idaho (1), Indiana (1), Kentucky (1), North Dakota (1) and District of Columbia (2).

International – There are five countries represented at the 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball: United States (248), Canada (4), Australia (1), Germany (1) and Philippines (1).

Some notables in my book are below, but you can read them all here.

Ahmed Ali, 15, of Palo Alto, Calif., & Hussain Ali, 20, of Palo Alto, Calif.
Ahmed Ali, the youngest player in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball field, and Hussain Ali are one of nine sets of brothers among the 128 teams. Ahmed is a sophomore at Palo Alto High School. The left-hander tied for second at the AJGA Junior All-Star at Innisbrook on Feb. 14-16. Hussain attended Dominican College, an NCAA Division II school in California, in 2013-14.

Marc Apps, 55, of Phoenix, Ariz., & Tyler Apps, 20, of Phoenix, Ariz.
The father-son team will each be competing in their first USGA championship. Marc, a real estate broker, has won four state golf association events. His wife, René, will serve as his caddie. Tyler, a junior on the Grand Canyon University golf team, sank an 80-foot par putt on the second extra hole in a four-team playoff to help the duo advance out of sectional qualifying at Desert Forest Golf Club. Tyler took an unplayable lie and found the green with his third shot, a 200-yard approach from behind a tree.

Ashwin Arasu, 16, of San Diego, Calif., & Sahith Theegala, 17, of Chino Hills, Calif.
Arasu, a junior at Canyon Crest Academy, advanced to the Round of 32 at last year’s U.S. Junior Amateur, losing to eventual runner-up Davis Riley after dramatically chipping in on No. 18 to win his Round-of-64 match with an eagle 3. He competed in the inaugural Drive, Chip & Putt Championship at Augusta National in April 2014. Theegala is a senior at Diamond Bar High who recently decided to enroll at Pepperdine University in 2015-16. Theegala has qualified for match play at the last two U.S. Junior Amateurs (2013, Round of 32 & 2014, Round of 16).

Virhat Badhwar, 19, of Australia, & Maverick McNealy, 19, of Portola Valley, Calif.
Badhwar and McNealy are both sophomores on the Stanford University golf team. Badhwar, who hails from Australia but was born in India, has a pair of top-10 finishes this season and tied for 16th at last year’s Pacific 12 Conference Championship. McNealy has won two college titles this season. He qualified for both the 2014 U.S. Open and 2014 U.S. Amateur. McNealy advanced to match play at two U.S. Junior Amateurs (2012, quarterfinalist & 2013, Round of 32).

Ryan Herrington on McNealy's record-setting performance in the Pac-12 Championships, including a final round 61.

Ken Bakst, 57, of Riverhead, N.Y., & Jonathan Doppelt, 54, of Great Neck, N.Y.
Bakst, who is playing in his 23rd USGA championship, and Doppelt, who is making his 12th USGA championship appearance, are the second-oldest team in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball field. Bakst won the 1997 U.S. Mid-Amateur by defeating Rick Stimmel, 1 up, in the final. Bakst is a developer and managing member at Friar’s Head, a golf club on Long Island. Doppelt owns a jewelry manufacturing company in Manhattan.

Is there a low super-senior team medal?

Brian Bardier, 46, of Dayville, Conn., & David Jones, 53, of Norwich, Conn.
Bardier and Jones have played golf as a team for 15 years and will be competing in their first USGA championship. Bardier was a volunteer firefighter for nearly 18 years and rose to the rank of lieutenant. Jones is a teacher and three-sport coach at a local elementary school. His right lung was removed in 2002 after he suffered complications from a viral infection.

Todd Burgan, 46, of Knoxville, Tenn., & Tim Jackson, 56, of Memphis, Tenn.
Burgan, a pharmacist at Kroger Company, is playing in his 12th USGA championship. He advanced to the U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinals in 2010 and the quarterfinals in 2009. Jackson has captured two U.S. Mid-Amateur championships (1994, 2001). Jackson, who owns a car wash company, is competing in his 51st USGA championship, including five U.S. Senior Opens. He played on two USA Walker Cup Teams (1995, 1999). The duo has represented Tennessee in three USGA Men’s State Teams.

Kyle Crawford, 26, of Coos Bay, Ore., & Tim Tucker, 46, of Coos Bay, Ore.
Crawford and Tucker are caddies at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, site of this year’s inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship. Crawford graduated from Oregon State University and earned an Evans Scholarship. He has played in several Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA) events. Tucker, who has competed in three U.S. Mid-Amateurs, spent four years in the U.S. Air Force and another three years working as a security officer for the U.S. State Department.

Alistair Docherty, 21, of Vancouver, Wash., & Lee Gearhart, 20, of Roseville, Calif.
Docherty and Gearhart are both juniors on the California State University-Chico golf team. Docherty was a first-team Division II All-America selection who finished fifth in the 2014 NCAA Championship. Gearhart, who played at Woodcreek High School and won the 2011 Sacramento City East title, was a 2014 honorable mention All-America selection at Chico State.

Gene Elliott, 51, of West Des Moines, Iowa, & Mike McCoy, 52, of Des Moines, Iowa
Elliott and McCoy led Iowa to a third-place finish in the 2014 USGA Men’s State Team Championship. Elliott is playing in his 21st USGA championship and was a 2006 U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist. Elliott, who owns a sanitation and street equipment company, had open-heart surgery in 2000. McCoy is playing in his 43rd USGA championship. He won the 2013 Mid-Amateur as the second-oldest champion and was low amateur in the 2014 U.S. Senior Open. McCoy and Elliott are members of the Iowa Golf Association Hall of Fame.

Brady Exber, 59, of Las Vegas, Nev., & Kevin Marsh, 42, of Henderson, Nev.
Exber and Marsh will each be playing in their 18th USGA championship. They have partnered in other events and won three Champions Cup Invitationals. Exber won the 2014 Senior British Amateur Championship and tied for 41st in the 2007 U.S. Senior Open. Marsh, a commercial real estate developer, won the 2005 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship.

Jeffrey Fortson, 41, of Palm Desert, Calif., & Michael Walton, 39, of Indian Wells, Calif.
The lives of Fortson and Walton have been connected since their junior golf days. They were the Nos. 1 and 2 golfers on the Palm Desert High School squad. They have caddied for each other and were grouped together (with Jason Day) in 2006 PGA Tour Qualifying School. They were groomsmen at each other’s weddings and their wives teach at the same school. Fortson, a Callaway demonstration day representative, and Walton, who works in real estate, are reinstated amateurs. Walton advanced to match play in the 2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur and Fortson accomplished the same feat last year.

Here's a nice Larry Bohannan story on these two.

William Gordon, 18, of Davidson, N.C., & Steve Harwell, 52, of Mooresville, N.C.
Gordon and Harwell shot a 9-under 62 in sectional qualifying at Pinehurst’s Pinewild Country Club, just their second time playing as a competitive team. Gordon, who will enroll at Vanderbilt University in 2015-16, is a two-time all-state selection who advanced to the Round of 32 in the 2013 U.S. Junior Amateur. Harwell is playing in his 13th USGA championship. He works as a financial professional for New York Life and was inducted into the Guilford College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006.

And a nice story on this odd-couple pairing by Bill Kiser.

Kyosuke Hara, 16, of Honolulu, Hawaii, & Kyle Suppa, 16, of Honolulu, Hawaii
Hara and Suppa form the youngest team in the inaugural U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. Hara, who qualified for last year’s U.S. Amateur, is a member of the Monanalua High School team. He has studied karate for seven years and has advanced to black belt. Suppa, who qualified for the 2014 U.S. Junior Amateur, is the current Hawaii State Amateur champion and plays for the Punahou School team. He started snow skiing at age 3.

Scott Harvey, 36, of Greensboro, N.C., & Todd Mitchell, 36, of Bloomington, Ill.
Harvey won the 2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur, which earned him an invitation to the 2015 Masters Tournament. Harvey is a property manager for S&K Triad Properties. His late father, Bill, played in 23 USGA championships. Mitchell was the runner-up to Steve Wilson in the 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur and is playing in his 20th USGA championship. Mitchell was an all-conference shortstop at Illinois State. He was chosen in the 14th round of the Major League Baseball Draft by the New York Yankees.

Jason Higton, 35, of Fresno, Calif., & Ryan Higton, 32, of Fresno, Calif.
The Higton brothers were both collegiate golfers. Jason, a Johnson & Johnson sales representative, was the 2002 Big West Conference player of the year at the University of the Pacific. He has played in three USGA championships. Ryan, who works as a real estate agent, was a two-time NAIA All-America selection at The Master’s College in California.

Iain MacDonald, 56, of Fullerton, Calif., & Bob Valerio, 58, of Hawthorne, Calif.
MacDonald and Valerio comprise the oldest team in the 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. MacDonald, who was born in Scotland, is competing in his ninth USGA championship. He works in sales for a publishing company and has survived two strokes. Valerio, who is retired after working for a global security company, played competitively on the junior and collegiate levels before he stopped playing for 10 years. He is competing in his 10th USGA championship.

James Mastaglio, 39, of Garden City, N.Y., & Timothy Schmitt, 44, of Garden City, N.Y.
Mastaglio was an All-Ivy League basketball guard at Princeton University who played on three NCAA Tournament squads. The Tigers won a pair of first-round games, including a 1996 upset of defending champion UCLA. Mastaglio, who works in the hedge-fund industry, is a four-time club champion at Cherry Valley Club. Schmitt has played in two U.S. Amateurs (1997, 2004). His father, John, was the starting center on the New York Jets’ Super Bowl III championship team.

Drew Olson, 32, of Piedmont, Calif., & David Reneker, 46, of Santa Monica, Calif.
Olson and Reneker are both UCLA graduates. Olson is third on UCLA’s all-time passing list and played for the NFL’s Baltimore, Carolina and San Francisco franchises as an undrafted free-agent quarterback. He qualified for the 2012 and 2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships. Reneker, who played in the 2009 Mid-Amateur, was a Bruins’ golf team walk-on (teammates were Scott McCarron and Brandt Jobe) and is a three-time club champion at Bel-Air Country Club.

Tim Rosaforte profiled the above team in this week's Golf World.

Marc Reyes, 19, of Philippines, & Oliver Rheinfurth, 55, of Encino, Calif.
The team of Reyes and Rheinfurth features the largest age difference between partners. Reyes, who is 36 years younger, is a native of the Philippines and played at Venice High School and Orange Coast College. Rheinfurth, a dual citizen of Germany and the United States, is the CEO of a finance company. He was a teammate of Corey Pavin’s at UCLA and he has qualified for two U.S. Amateurs.

Andy Sajevic, 24, of Fremont, Neb., & John Sajevic, 58, of Fremont, Neb.
The father-son team, which shot 10-under 62 to earn medalist honors in sectional qualifying, has plenty of USGA championship experience. Andy, a three-time Nebraska State Amateur champion, has competed in two U.S. Amateurs and one U.S. Junior Amateur. He played as a collegian at Charlotte and North Carolina. John, an automotive salesman, has played in 10 USGA championships, including seven USGA Men’s State Teams.

Nathan Smith, 36, of Pittsburgh, Pa., & Todd White, 47, of Spartanburg, S.C.
Smith and White, one of three teams who were fully exempt into the 2015 U.S. Amateur Four Ball Championship, were members of the victorious 2013 USA Walker Cup Team. Smith is a four-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012). Smith, an investment advisor, is playing in his 33rd USGA championship. White, a high school history teacher, is playing in his 16th USGA championship. He advanced to the 2012 U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinals and reached the quarterfinals in 2014.

Jim Williams, 59, of Orinda, Calif., & Scott Williams, 25, of San Francisco, Calif.
The Williamses are one of three father-son teams in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball field. Jim, a partner in a private equity firm, was a member of the USGA Executive Committee from 2010 through 2012 and worked as a Rules official. Jim, who is a Golden State Warriors minority owner, served on the USGA Championship Committee when the Amateur Four-Ball championships were proposed. Scott, who like his brother and sister, played golf at the University of Pennsylvania, won the 2010 Ivy League individual title and led the Quakers to the league championship in 2012. A Fulbright Scholar, Scott is a project manager for an energy company.

There was also this excellent story from a few months back on Brent Grant (18) doing all the qualifying lifting for his much older partner Bill Walbert (47). David Shefter had it for USGA.org.

The USGA's website devoted to news and scoring for the Four Ball.