Huskie Williams honored as leading men's amateur worldwide for 2012

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- Chris Williams of the United States will receive the Mark H. McCormack Medal as the leading player in the 2012 World Amateur Golf Ranking, the R&A has announced.

Williams, who lost in the quarterfinals of the 2012 U.S. Amateur last week to eventual winner Steven Fox, finished ahead of a clutch of exciting young amateurs, including compatriots Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Bobby Wyatt, last year’s Asian Amateur Champion Hideki Matsuyama from Japan and Daan Huizing from the Netherlands, to win the medal.

“It's a huge honor. My teammate Nick Taylor won it a few years back. I never dreamed I'd be winning it three years later,” said Williams, a 21-year-old from Moscow, Idaho. “My friend Patrick Cantlay won it last year. I never thought I'd be in the same circle as those guys. It's truly an honour. There's tons and tons of good players, and to be on top of that ranking is something I definitely cherish."

The McCormack Medal is awarded annually by the R&A and the U.S. Golf Association to recognize the leading player in the rankings following the European Amateur or the U.S. Amateur, whichever finishes last.

Williams’ performance at the U.S. Amateur capped an excellent season for the University of Washington senior, who won the Western Amateur earlier this month while also taking medalist honors there. His other victories are the NCAA Southwest Regional and Washington State Amateur.  He was awarded First Team All-America honors by the Golf Coaches Association of America, and represented the USA in the Palmer Cup team at Royal County Down, with a 3-1-0 record.

In 2011, Williams won the Sahalee Amateur Players Championship and the Pacific Coast Amateur, was medalist at the Western Amateur and qualified for the U.S. Open at Congressional, where he missed the cut by two shots. He was part of the U.S. Walker Cup Team and he recorded a 2-1-0 record.  He was a second-team All-American in that collegiate season.

The World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), which is supported by Rolex, was established in 2007 when the men’s ranking was launched. The Men’s WAGR encompasses more than 2,500 counting events, ranking more than 6,600 players representing 101 countries worldwide. The women’s ranking was launched in 2011.

Previous winners include Patrick Cantlay (USA) in 2011, Peter Uihlein (USA) in 2010, Nick Taylor (Canada) in 2009, Danny Lee (New Zealand) in 2008 and Colt Knost (USA) in 2007.