It seemed rather fitting that the last match of the day required extra holes to set the stage for the Heart of America quarterfinals.
Chase Hanna, the 2015 Watson Challenge winner, and teammate Preston Fleenor, the 2016 Kansas City Amateur champion, were one of six teams that needed 19 or more holes of golf to punch tickets to the next round of matches.
Hanna and Fleenor dispatched William Gantz and Bradley Lane in 20 holes during the round of 16, and knocked off Brent Mertz and Darrel Holden 2 and 1 in the opening round of match play.
While Hanna and Fleenor required a much more grinding effort to handle their opponents, Mark Addington and Steve Groom needed only 27 holes to advance to the quarterfinals.
The opening round saw Addington and Groom defeat Kevin Handlan and Bill Hanger 5 and 4, while Mark Worthey and Dave Kirschbaum fell to the 2016 Kansas City Fourball senior division champions 7 and 5.
Tomorrow has six matches slated, including four quarterfinal bouts and two semifinal showdowns.
Hanna and Fleenor face Matt and Max Lazzo at 8:36 am, while Addington and Groom begin their day at 8:12 am against Park Ulrich and Alex Higgs.
Jeff Bell and John Platz face Gage Ihrig and Conrad Walcher at 8 am, while Ben Fernandez and Connor Knabe take on Tavin Dugan and Justice Valdivia at 8:24 am.
Complete results and pairings can be found here. 