Teenagers Patrick Moriarty and Evan Katz, along with veteran Mark Cusic claimed the three available places during U.S. Amateur qualifying at Mountain Branch Golf Club in Joppa, July 7, but not without a lot of nervous moments.

At the end, Moriarty, 19, had the medal with 70-67–137, followed by Cusic, 68-70–138, and Katz, via a playoff after posting 70-69. Katz, who just turned 17 last week and the youngest player in the 72-man field, thwarted MSGA Amateur finalist Mike Stackus with a superb approach shot to set up a three-foot birdie putt at the first extra hole. Stackus had forged the tie with a share of the day’s low round, and afternoon 67 to go with an earlier 72.

The leaders’ nerves took a beating as there were perhaps a dozen others who were in position to challenge for the lead during the afternoon round. At the halfway mark, Cusic and Mark Benevento were at 68, followed by MSGA Amateur titlist Ben Warnquist and Conner Hayden at 69, trailed by five at 70 and five more at 71. Par for the Harford County course is 36-36–72 and it was played at 6,839 yards.

Cusic was among the early afternoon finishers, closely followed by Moriarty and Katz. Stackus checked in midway through, but most of the main contenders were bunched in the final groups. One by one they fell. Maclain Huge, a former Washington Metropolitan Amateur champion finished 70-71; Conner Hayden, 69-71; Elliott Grayson, 71-69; Warnquist, 69-71; David West, 71-77, and, finally, the last man in, Mark Benevento, 68-76.

This was Moriarty’s finest hour. The Argyle CC member who lives in Rockville said, “I had won a couple of junior tournaments, but this is my first USGA event.” In his second round, he started on hole 1, and birdied three of the first four holes to turn in a 3-under 69. Coming back, the highlight was an eagle-3 at 12 where he hit a hybrid club to seven feet. The finish, however was marred by missed greens at 17-18 that led to bogeys, and then he had to wonder if he had thrown it away. He managed, however. to sandwich two birdies, one on a 30-foot putt, between the eagle and the rough ending. He is going into his junior year at Appalachian State University.

“My short game was good and I putted well,” said Katz, a Washington resident who will be a Landon School junior in the fall. He birdied two of his first three holes in the second round, turned in 35, then had two birdies, one bogey through 17. “At 18, I knew I needed a birdie, hit my third shot on the par-5 [519 yards] to 10 feet and made it, Katz said. The Bethesda CC member’s morning 70 included four birdies, four bogeys and an eagle-3 at the 528-yard 12th.

Cusic, 36, had reason to be relieved. The Southern Maryland resident (California) had been in this position before and with the numbers around him, worrying seemed reasonable. “A few years ago, I was playing O.K., just not at a high level. Three-four years ago, I crossed the threshold and now have a [more sound] game. Here, from tee to green I was good and my putting was solid except for one double-bogey.” Indicative of his recent surge, triggered by a MSGA Amateur title in 2011. Since then, there has been a been a steady stream of USGA events — two Amateurs, including this one; three Mid-Ams; two Amateur Public Links, and two State Teams.

“This was the first time I had really seen the golf course — I rode around a bit Monday — and this was about as good as I can play. It’s nice to get rewarded for it,” the Breton Bay Golf & CC member said.

As a result of one of the two playoffs needed at the finish, Stackus, who lives in Elkridge and plays from the University of Maryland GC, became first alternate, but what-might-have-been hovers as the result of going bogey-bogey on his 35th and 36th holes (Nos. 17-18). Four early back-nine birdies got him to 7-under ahead of that. In the other playoff, three (of four) at 140 were after the second alternate and Jake Leavitt, from Woodbine and Cattail Creek CC, picked that up at the first extra hole with a two-putt par after Hayden and Grayson flew the green on their approach shots and failed to recover.

The championship will be played Aug. 17-23 at Olympia Fields CC outside of Chicago.