Higgins advances to match play at U.S. Junior Amateur

Add another major accomplishment in the brilliant junior career of Miles Russell. The 17-year-old Jacksonville Beach, Fla., phenom earned medalist honors for the first time in a USGA championship – sharing it with fellow Floridian Sohan Patel and Southern Californian Brayden Jones – at the 78th U.S. Junior Amateur at Saucon Valley Country Club.

Finishing before an afternoon thunderstorm delayed Tuesday’s second round for 70 minutes, the left-hander, who tied for 39th in last month’s U.S. Open and was recently named to the 2026 USA Walker Cup Team, carded a 5-under-par 66 on the Old Course for a 36-hole total of 6-under 135.

Later in the afternoon, first-round co-leaders Patel, 17, of Weston, Fla., and Jones, 17, of Seal Beach, Calif., each came in at 135, the former shooting a 1-under 69 on the Grace Course, the stroke-play, co-host venue, and the latter posting a 2-under 69 on the Old Course.

Vaclav Svub, 18, of Czechia, who will join Jones at Arizona State in the fall of 2027, finished two strokes back of the trio after shooting a 67 on the Old Course.

On the local front, Reed Higgins of Edmond advanced to match play after shooting rounds of 74-70 to finish tied for 39th at 3-over. Higgins is playing Tripp Depoy of The Woodlands, Texas in the first round today. Live scoring is here. 

Ainslee Stanford III and Chase Blaser of Edmond did not finish among the top 64 for match play.