By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Defending champion Paul Huber and the top four scorers from the qualifying round won first-round matches in the Northern Kentucky Men’s Amateur on Tuesday at Highland Country Club.
Huber, an incoming freshman at the University of Cincinnnati, received the top seed in match play for being the returning champion and defeated No. 16 seed Donald Graven, 6-and-4, in one of eight championship flights matches.
The four golfers seeded behind Huber based on scores from the qualifying round also won first-round matches to stay in contention for the title. Those winners included Tyler Lippert, who shot the low score in the qualifying round, Jacob Poore, Greg Schuh and Mike Kessling.
Based on the seeding, there were two upsets in the first round — No. 11 Matt Bowling defeated No. 6 Matthew Recht, 3-and-2, and No. 10 Ross Sharp defefeated No. 7 Tye Lembright, 5-and-4. Mark Smith, the No. 8 seed, edged Brook Reeves, 2-up, in the other championship flight match.
Second-round matches will be played Wednesday and the four winners will advance to the final round on Thursday. The finalists will play 36 holes of medal play to determine the champion in the 75th annual Men’s Amateur that started in 1940.
Scores and match play pairings are listed on the Northern Kentucky Golf Association website.