Catonsville UPS driver advances to U.S. Open final qualifier: ‘I love this’

Nick Barrett left no doubt.

By finishing his round with a birdie on the 18th hole of a local qualifying event for the 126th U.S. Open at Turf Valley Resort in Ellicott City, the 32-year-old UPS driver from Catonsville cemented his spot in a final qualifier.

Barrett shot a 1-under 69, tying for fourth place with Oliver Clark of Baltimore and Charlie Hanson of Manakin Sabot, Virginia. Francisco Perez of Hyattsville led the 132-player field with a 4-under 66, and Daniel Azallion of Okatie, South Carolina, and Chase Nevins of Great Falls, Virginia, tied for second place with a 2-under 68.

Barrett’s birdie on No. 18 lifted him from a group tied at even-par 70 and meant he had avoided a playoff with eight other golfers for one of seven coveted qualifying berths and two alternate spots. “Definitely making it interesting,” he quipped.

In his first nine holes, Barrett made eight pars and bogeyed the par-4, 430-yard second hole. He opened his second nine with a birdie on the par-4, 385-yard No. 10 and then added another birdie on the par-5, 507-yard No. 14.

But on the par-4, 366-yard 16th hole, Barrett shockingly three-putted from about 15 feet. Afterward, he said a birdie putt on the 15th that did not reach the hole influenced him to send his first putt on the 16th about four feet past the hole.

“I had this little breaker to the right for par, and I let it go,” he said. “I just missed it. Obviously bummed about that.”

On the par-3, 197-yard No. 17, Barrett dropped the ball about 12 feet from the hole, but missed the birdie putt. On the par-4, 427-yard No. 18, he laced his drive about 315 yards. “One of the better drives I’ve ever hit,” he said, and then hit a wedge from about 110 yards that ended with the ball about three feet from the hole.

A gallery of family and friends that swelled from 10 to 25 people cheered Barrett’s birdie. After completing his round, he told them, “Guys, I’m just going to bolt it to scoring. I’ll say hi to everybody when I get finished up.”

Barrett wasn’t being rude. He was ensuring that there would not be a repeat of June 2, when his attempt to qualify for the 125th U.S. Open ended prematurely because he was disqualified for failing to sign his scorecard in the allotted time after completing his first 18 holes at Woodmont Country Club in Rockville.

Julia Barrett, Nick’s wife, who walked the last eight holes while ferrying their five-month-old Benjamin in a personal carrier, described that moment as “tough.”

“He was on such a high at the end because he had just birdied 18,” she recalled. “So it was gut-wrenching to see him go through that. He took everything with grace, and I don’t think he will ever do that again.”

While Barrett said he had to forget about that three-putt bogey on No. 16, his father Don, who followed his son for the entire round, compared himself to a duck that looks composed but is furiously paddling its legs under the surface.