Ban, two other Bay Area players advance at U.S. Amateur

Shintaro Ban picked a fine time to rediscover his touch Wednesday at Pebble Beach.

Ban, a 22-year-old from San Jose, rallied to earn a 1-up victory over Skip Berkmeyer of St. Louis in their first-round match at the 118th U.S. Amateur.

Berkmeyer took a 2-up lead in part because Ban played the first 10 holes in 4-over-par. But he quickly bounced back to win Nos. 11, 14 and 15 by making birdie on each hole. Ban added another birdie on No. 18 to close out the victory.

This added another layer to Ban’s run since his graduation from UNLV in May. He qualified for the U.S.