1986 U.S. Amateur: Buddy Alexander wins at Shoal Creek
Buddy Alexander won the 1986 U.S. Amateur at Shoal Creek in Shoal Creek, Alabama, beating Chris Kite 5 & 3 in the final.
Updated October 22, 2026
Walk this draw in the U.S. Amateur room.
- Edition
- 86th
- Dates
- August 26, 1986 to August 31, 1986
- Course
- Shoal Creek, Shoal Creek, Alabama
- Stroke-play co-host
- Country Club of Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama
- Format
- stroke-play qualifying (36 holes) + match play
- Champion
- Buddy Alexander · age 33 · United States · none (Louisiana State University golf coach)
- Champion's title
- 1st U.S. Amateur
- Runner-up
- Chris Kite
- Final
- 5 & 3
- Losing semifinalists
- Brian Montgomery and Bob Lewis
- Stroke-play medalist
- Len Mattiace (137)
- Defending champion
- Sam Randolph · did not play (turned professional)
- Entries
- 4,071
What happened at the 1986 U.S. Amateur
Final: Kite birdied the 22nd, 23rd and 24th to cut the deficit to one, but Alexander birdied the 25th and closed out with birdies at the 32nd and 33rd.
Medalist Len Mattiace, 18, lost to Chris Kite 1 up in the second round.
The draw
Every match is recorded through the round of 64.
The final, 1986 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buddy Alexander | def. | Chris Kite | 5 & 3 |
Semifinals, 1986 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Kite | def. | Brian Montgomery | 3 & 1 |
| Buddy Alexander | def. | Bob Lewis | 6 & 4 |
Quarterfinals, 1986 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Kite | def. | Chris Gustin | 2 & 1 |
| Brian Montgomery | def. | Mike Smith | 1 up |
| Bob Lewis | def. | Nolan Henke | 4 & 3 |
| Buddy Alexander | def. | Todd Hamilton | 2 & 1 |
Round of 16, 1986 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Kite | def. | Jim Hagstrom | 3 & 1 |
| Chris Gustin | def. | Greg Davis | 3 & 2 |
| Brian Montgomery | def. | Bryan Sullivan | 2 up |
| Mike Smith | def. | Ron McCann | 4 & 2 |
| Nolan Henke | def. | Jim Sorenson | 3 & 1 |
| Bob Lewis | def. | E.J. Pfister | 2 up |
| Buddy Alexander | def. | John Hayes | 4 & 2 |
| Todd Hamilton | def. | Billy Mayfair | won on 20th hole |
Round of 32, 1986 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Kite | def. | Len Mattiace | 1 up |
| Jim Hagstrom | def. | Mitch Voges | 4 & 3 |
| Greg Davis | def. | Billy Andrade | won on 20th hole |
| Chris Gustin | def. | Todd Franks | 3 & 2 |
| Bryan Sullivan | def. | Dennis Harrington | won on 19th hole |
| Brian Montgomery | def. | Adam Kase | 1 up |
| Ron McCann | def. | Jim Begwin | won on 20th hole |
| Mike Smith | def. | Bill Loeffler | 1 up |
| Jim Sorenson | def. | Tim Straub | 1 up |
| Nolan Henke | def. | Gregory Jones | 3 & 2 |
| E.J. Pfister | def. | David Jackson | won on 19th hole |
| Bob Lewis | def. | Jonathan Baker | 2 & 1 |
| John Hayes | def. | Brian Watts | 4 & 3 |
| Buddy Alexander | def. | Jeff Cranford | 8 & 6 |
| Billy Mayfair | def. | Tom McKnight | 5 & 4 |
| Todd Hamilton | def. | Randy Sonnier | won on 19th hole |
Round of 64, 1986 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Len Mattiace | def. | Rex Kuramoto | 2 up |
| Chris Kite | def. | Eric Woods | 2 & 1 |
| Jim Hagstrom | def. | Richard Holland | won on 21st hole |
| Mitch Voges | def. | Jay Sigel | won on 20th hole |
| Billy Andrade | def. | Rod Huff | 3 & 1 |
| Greg Davis | def. | Kevin King | 3 & 2 |
| Chris Gustin | def. | Robert Huxtable | 5 & 3 |
| Todd Franks | def. | Bill Pelham | 2 & 1 |
| Bryan Sullivan | def. | Schley Purvis | 1 up |
| Dennis Harrington | def. | Michael Lopuszynski | 4 & 3 |
| Brian Montgomery | def. | Dave Esler | 5 & 4 |
| Adam Kase | def. | Sam Farlow | 3 & 2 |
| Ron McCann | def. | Shawn Baker | 3 & 2 |
| Jim Begwin | def. | Jim Holtgrieve | won on 19th hole |
| Mike Smith | def. | Robert McDonnell | 2 & 1 |
| Bill Loeffler | def. | John Parsons | 3 & 2 |
| Tim Straub | def. | Jeff Teal | 2 & 1 |
| Jim Sorenson | def. | Brian Connor | 5 & 4 |
| Gregory Jones | def. | Downing Gray | 3 & 2 |
| Nolan Henke | def. | Kevin Hester | 4 & 3 |
| David Jackson | def. | Paul Spadafora | 2 & 1 |
| E.J. Pfister | def. | Steve Flesch | 5 & 4 |
| Jonathan Baker | def. | Steve Maddalena | 2 & 1 |
| Bob Lewis | def. | Jack Kay Jr. | 2 & 1 |
| Brian Watts | def. | Michael Bradley | 3 & 2 |
| John Hayes | def. | Bob Estes | 2 up |
| Buddy Alexander | def. | Mike Podolak | won on 19th hole |
| Jeff Cranford | def. | Steve Lamontagne | unknown |
| Billy Mayfair | def. | Randal Lewis | 4 & 3 |
| Tom McKnight | def. | George Zahringer | won on 19th hole |
| Randy Sonnier | def. | Eddie Carmichael | 3 & 1 |
| Todd Hamilton | def. | Allen Doyle | 3 & 1 |
How this was built
Every value is shown as recorded in GNN's U.S. Amateur data set (research collected through October 20, 2026). "unknown" means no source confirmed it; nothing is estimated. Where sources disagree, the USGA's own record is used.
Data: us-amateur.json.