Denny McCarthy shot a 72 in the opening tound of stroke play qualifying Monday at Cherry Hills, Colo. / Photo by Kevin Dunleavy

Recent Maryland graduate Joey Rice (72), recent George Mason grad Josh Apple (72), and University of Virginia sophomore Denny McCarthy (72) got off to promising starts in the U.S. Amateur Monday at Cherry Hills (Colo.).

Tuesday in the second round, they look to finish in the top 64 and advance to the first round of match play Wednesday. McCarthy and Rice, who played Cherry Hills on Monday and are at 1-over-par are tied for 64th. Apple, who played nearby Common Ground, is at 2-over-par and is tied for 84th.

Several other local players have work to do in the second round, including Martinsville’s Jack Adkins (75), University of Virginia golf coach Bowen Sargent (77), Virginia Tech-bound Maclain Huge (79), Potomac’s Rusty Pies (84), and Gaithersburg’s Steve Delmar (86).

University of Alabama junior Bobby Wyatt (64) shot the best round of the day, one shot better than his college teammate Justin Thomas and five others. Wyatt achieved instant fame in 2010 when he shot a 57 in the Alabama Junior Amateur. Thomas was runner up in the 2010 U.S. Junior Am.

Other players of note in the field are Texas sophomore Jordan Spieth (69), Jack Nicklaus’ son, Gary Nicklaus (71), U.S. Open contender and California high school senior Beau Hossler (72).

Kdunleavy@washingtonexaminer.com