Matt Hoffenberg Russell Boring understands the magnitude of the U.S. Amateur Championship, the oldest golf championship in the country.

“It’s the biggest amateur golf tournament in the world,” said Boring, a 2007 Agoura High graduate and Westlake resident.

Boring earned a trip to this year’s U.S. Amateur by winning a qualifying tournament Aug. 4 at Crystalaire Country Club at Llano, Calif.

Boring paced the field of 76 with a two-day total of 136 for 8-under-par.

Royal graduate Matt Hoffenberg will join Boring and 310 other golfers at the championship, which takes place Aug. 24-30 at Tulsa, Okla.

Hoffenberg finished second at Crystalaire, two shots behind Boring.

“It means a lot,” Hoffenberg said of the championship. “It can make or break your summer depending on how you play in this tournament.

“Obviously, I’m happy about qualifying. That’s not the end of it. I don’t want to get there and enjoy it. I want to play well once I’m there.”

For Boring, 20, the U.S. Amateur Championship is a chance to make history.

Tiger Woods won the event three times. Other winners include legends Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer.

“All these great players have won the tournament,” said Boring, who will transfer to UC Santa Barbara in September after spending the past two years honing his game at Ventura College.

“The biggest thing is to be able to see how my talent goes up against the rest of the nation’s talent.”

The former Charger was two strokes shy of qualifying last year.

Missing the cut stung Boring, who sat in second place after the first day of the tourney.

“I told my cousin that we’re going to make it this year,” he said. “And we did.”

His cousin, Brian Boring, will caddy for the Agoura graduate at Tulsa’s Southern Hills Country Club and Cedar Ridge Country Club.

Boring, who has nine siblings, will be joined by his father, Robert; brother Ryan; sister Eva Payne; uncle Rich; and Brian Boring’s wife, Ruby.

The golfer, whose home course is Sunset Hills Country Club at Thousand Oaks, has played rounds at more difficult courses at Saticoy and Santa Barbara to prepare for the event.

He’s also practicing every day, taking lessons from Ted Lehman and working on his down swing.

Boring said about 7,000 golfers around the world attempted to qualify, but neither he nor Hoffenberg will be content to play the first 36 holes and fly home.

After two days, the field of 312 gets whittled down to the top 64 golfers. The tournament then shifts into match play.

The winner of the championship earns automatic berths to play three of the four major golf tournaments: the Masters, the U.S. Open and the British Open.

Hoffenberg, 20, is excited to qualify for his first U.S. Amateur but knows what’s at stake.

“This is a high-pressure situation, as big as you can get in amateur golf,” said the San Diego State junior-to-be. “It’s a good experience. It’s good to see how you stack up against everyone else in the world.

“It’s as big as it gets until you’re a pro.”

Hoffenberg hasn’t played in a tournament since qualifying. He said he expected to play more this week to get back in a rhythm.

The former Highlander has been working on his short game, including putting and chipping.

Since graduating Royal in 2007, Hoffenberg said his consistency has improved the most.

“My work ethic has gotten better,” he said. “I was never too big on practicing. But I started noticing that it’s pretty obvious that the more you practice, the more consistent you are.

“I’m not better at anything than I have been in the past. But on a day-to-day basis, I’m more consistent hitting the ball and putting well. Before, I’d go on hot streaks for a month or two months and then go real cold.”

Unlike Boring, Hoffenberg will bring a small contingent to Tulsa. Hoffenberg said he will be joined only by his caddy, Alex Ferrari, a former Royal teammate.

“I’m just going to treat it like any other tournament,” Hoffenberg said. “I want to make it to match play and be in the top 64. It sounds easy, but you still have to play against some of the best players in the world.

“From there, I feel like I’m a pretty confident match player. I want to make it to match play and see where it goes from there.”