GLADWYNE, Pa. — BYU men’s golfers Drake Harvey and Kihei Akina, alongside former Cougar Tyson Shelley, all sit inside the top 64 as darkness suspended the second round of the 2026 U.S. Amateur Championship on Tuesday at Philadelphia Country Club and Merion Golf Club.
Harvey carded a 6-under 64 in the first round to tie the competitive course record at Merion Golf Club, achieved only twice previously. He finished stroke play at 4 under par in a tie for third.
Shelley posted a 2-under 36-hole total to finish tied for ninth after stroke-play qualifying. Akina finished at 2 over par and, with play suspended, is set to compete in a playoff for a spot in match play.
“It feels great to place so well in such a big tournament,” Harvey said. “Being my first [U.S. Amateur], I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I knew I had the ability to do what I did. Having Spencer [Dunaway] on the bag has been great, and we’ve always had a great connection, so I definitely have to give him a bunch of credit. I’m excited to see how far we can go.”
Harvey opened the first round with birdies on Nos. 4, 6, 8 and 9 before the turn to move to 4 under. After opening the back nine with another birdie, Harvey made a bogey on No. 12 and a birdie on No. 13. The incoming freshman added a birdie on No. 15 before offsetting a birdie on No. 17 with a bogey on No. 18 to finish the opening round at 6 under.
“Shooting 64 feels good,” Harvey said. “It was just super steady, and I played off of momentum. That just carried on throughout the day, so I just kept hitting great shots and putts and most of them fell. I didn’t know it was a record at the time, but it was super cool to see that.”
In the second round, Harvey made three bogeys on the front nine and added another on No. 10. He responded with birdies on Nos. 14 and 18 to finish Round 2 with a 2-over 72.
Recent graduate Tyson Shelley opened the first round with a bogey on No. 4, but made six birdies on the back nine, including four consecutive birdies on Nos. 12 through 15. After a double bogey on the final hole, Shelley finished the opening round at 3 under.
Shelley shot a 1-over 71 in the second round, making bogeys on Nos. 1 and 17 and a birdie on No. 14 to finish comfortably in a qualifying position.
Akina opened Round 1 with two birdies and a bogey to card a 1-under 69. Five bogeys and two birdies left him 3 over in Round 2, finishing stroke play at 2 over par in a tie for 54th.
Play in the second round was suspended due to darkness and will resume on Wednesday at 9 a.m. MT. Akina will compete in a sudden-death playoff following the round's completion to determine the final match-play qualifiers.
Match play will begin immediately following Wednesday morning’s playoff, starting with the Round of 64. Tee times will be released at the conclusion of the playoff, and live scoring is available at championships.usga.org.