ARDMORE, PA — And then there were eight golfers left vying for the Havemeyer Trophy at the 2026 U.S. Amateur. \n A marathon Thursday is in the books at Merion. The day began with the Round of 32 before the Round of 16 took stage in the afternoon, and now only eight players are left with a shot to win the biggest men's amateur championship in the world. \n Among the quarterfinalists include the one remaining Pennsylvanian, the winner of the Western Amateur and others looking to play spoiler on the weekend. \n Here's a look at all eight quarterfinalists in the U.S. Amateur at Merion, as well as Friday matchups and TV information. \n Editor's note: Golfweek's Cameron Jourdan is following all the action from Merion. You can follow along on his social media (X/Twitter, Instagram) and check out Thursday afternoon's coverage. \n No. 48 Brandon Knight \n
\n Brandon Knight, a rising senior at Colorado, didn't lead his match for a single hole until winning on the 18th... with a bogey. He knocks off Oklahoma State's Gaven Lane, who led 3 up at the turn but struggled down the stretch. Knight admitted he's learning how to play in events like this because he has never been in this situation before. \n Quotable: "I'm definitely learning that I can compete with these guys. I feel like I belong here, which is obviously a great feeling to have. I feel like I'm getting lucky. It's a good feeling to have." \n No. 9 Carter Loflin \n
\n A Georgia Bulldog won this championship last year. Carter Loflin is trying to go back-to-back. He knocks off world No. 5 William Jennings in 19 holes and is in the quarterfinals for the first time. He was 2 up with two to play, but Jennings fought back to force extras before Loflin birdied the par-4 first to win. \n Quotable: "It's kind of weird to think about how many opportunities there are to win this tournament because you have to have so much go your way. So many things can happen. I've just got to remember that it's not going to be easy. I can't worry about making it look good. It's just like, get the job done, try to move on. Everybody is tired. That's kind of the main thing." \n No. 29 Adam Bresnu \n
\n Bresnu, from Morocco, is set to begin his senior season at Texas Tech this fall, but first he has a chance to lift the Havemeyer Trophy. Ranked 30th in the world, he was a third-team All-America selection as a junior. He transferred to Texas Tech from Odessa College, where he was the No. 1 JUCO player in the country. \n Quotable: "I'm so happy to be here, to be honest. I'm so happy to be here, it's unbelievable. To be the first Moroccan ever to play the U.S. Am and to make it to match play, it's unbelievable, so I'm just happy to be here." \n No. 60 Jack Whaley \n
\n The Englishman got through the Wednesday playoff just to make it into match play, and now he's a quarterfinalist. He nearly holed out for an ace on that hole, too. Whaley is trying to earn a spot on the GB&I Walker Cup team, and his run thus far is giving captain Dean Robertson plenty to think about. He knocked off Christian Cavaliere, the last mid-am in the field, 4 and 3, to advance. \n Quotable: "The last 36 hours, I didn't really expect it coming into this week. I knew my game was pretty solid. I knew I was playing nice. But obviously there's so many good players in this field, you can never really say, wow, I'm going to win. It's always a goal, but you never know." \n No. 15 Jay Leng Jr. \n
\n The hottest player in amateur golf is into the quarterfinals. Jay Leng Jr., a rising junior at Stanford, knocks off the No. 2 seed and third-ranked amateur Tyler Watts 1 up. Watts led 2 up after 4, but Leng buried a long birdie putt on the seventh hole to flip momentum and took control from there. The matchup of biggest names in the Round of 16 didn't disappoint. \n Quotable: "I've always played pretty free. You can tell by my swing that I don't really have any swing thoughts. But I would say I've been playing with a lot of confidence, that's for sure." \n No. 7 Jack Turner \n
\n There were eight Florida Gators in the field when the week began at Merion, and Turner is the last standing. He knocked off teammate Joshua Bai, 5 and 3, and is trying to interject his name into Walker Cup conversations. Ranked 19th in the world, Turner is set to begin his senior year but is trying to get a trip to Ireland. \n Quotable: "I actually played against one of my teammates in match play in another tournament, so I kind of had some experience with that. Just kind of knowing -- of course I know their game really well; I've played with them a million times. But just try to forget about that and just stay focused on myself and just play against the course, and whatever he does, he does, and I can't control that." \n No. 19 Michael Lugiano \n
\n A Pennsylvanian has made it to the quarterfinals. Michael Lugiano knocks off No. 3 seed Drake Harvey 1 up to move to Friday. Lugiano made the NCAA Men's Golf Championship earlier this year, winning his regional as an individual from Liberty to advance. Ranked 335th in the world, he's the highest-ranked player remaining but will have an entire state behind him. \n Quotable: "If you'd asked me two weeks ago where I was going to be, I was thinking about withdrawing from this event. That's how bad of golf I was playing. After the Western, I was sick of playing bad, and I got to work, found a feel, and really worked hard on it for that week coming into this event, decided to eventually play because I got confident with my game again." \n No. 11 Logan Reilly \n
\n It took 20 holes, but Logan Reilly outlasted Ryder Cowan to advance to the quarterfinals. The rising Auburn sophomore had the clinching putt two months ago when the Tigers won the national championship, and even though he lost a 2-up lead with two to play, he's moving on. \n U.S. Amateur 2026 quarterfinal matchups \n All times ET \n 1:15 p.m.: No. 48 Brandon Knight vs. No. 9 Carter Loflin 1:30 p.m.: No. 29 Adam Bresnu vs. No. 60 Jack Whaley 1:45 p.m.: No. 15 Jay Leng Jr. vs. No. 7 Jack Turner 2 p.m.: No.19 Michael Lugiano vs. No. 11 Logan Reilly \n Where to watch U.S. Amateur 2026, TV information \n Friday, Aug. 14 \n Quarterfinals: Peacock/NBCSN, 3 p.m.-6 p.m. \n Saturday, Aug. 15 \n Semifinals: Peacock, 3 p.m.-4 p.m. Semifinals: NBC, 4 p.m.-6 p.m. \n Sunday, Aug. 16 \n Championship Match (Afternoon 18), Peacock, 3 p.m.-4 p.m. Championship Match (Afternoon 18): NBC/Peacock, 4 p.m.-6 p.m. \n Watch the U.S. Amateur on Peacock \n Cameron Jourdan is an assistant editor of Golfweek, covering college and amateur golf, the PGA Tour and plenty more. Follow Cameron on X/Twitter (@Cam_Jourdan) or Instagram (@GolfweekJourdan). \n This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Meet the quarterfinalists in the 2026 U.S. Amateur at Merion