BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- Frank Esposito Jr. of Monroe, N.J., had fought hard to get a berth in his first PGA Championship. He was one of five in a sudden-death playoff in June at the PGA Professional National Championship, going to a third extra hole before securing a berth at Oakland Hills Country Club.

On Friday afternoon, Esposito was near the finish line, needing a bogey on the 18th hole to become the only PGA Club Professional of 20 in the field to make the cut of 8-over-par 148.

Moments later, Esposito's dream finish of playing the weekend in the season's final major slipped away.

The 45-year-old PGA head professional at Brooklake Country Club in Florham Park, N.J., Esposito struggled to a double bogey 6 on the final hole, finishing with a 78 and a 36-hole total of 149.

"I was the last guy into this (from the PGA Professional National Championship) and to be able to bump up to the top, and have a chance to be here for the weekend was a good accomplishment," said Esposito.

Esposito's saw his chance fade away when his tee shot landed in a left-hand fairway bunker. From there, he hit a thin recovery shot out to 66 yards short of the hole on an elevated green.

But, his sand wedge approach ran over the green into the back fringe, from where he chipped past the hole 12 feet.

"I hit the approach too hard. It must have been a little adrenaline," said Esposito.

The bogey putt that he needed trickled up and just right of the hole.

"I didn't know what the cut mark was until I got into the scoring area and looked on the monitor," said Esposito. "It wouldn't have dictated how I played, had I known. I thought I played hard and fought hard. It was a great experience for me.

It was nerve-wracking at times, and you do things that you normally don't do. You have to trust yourself. Will I be upset tonight? Yeah, I'm Italian, with some Greek mixed in. I can't help it."

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