Adam Mitchell’s approach shot to the 11th green Friday at Pinehurst No. 2 disappeared from his view about 160 yards back in the fairway.

“I thought it was off the green,” Mitchell told The Golf Channel. “But then everybody on the green started cheering.”

The Chattanoogan’s eagle on No. 11 gave him a 2-up on lead on Charlie Holland of Dallas and enough cushion to defeat the University of Texas junior 2 and 1 in the quarterfinals of the 108th U.S. Amateur Championship.

“It was just a wild day and a lot of fun,” Mitchell said via cell phone. “It’s really cool that everybody is telling me they saw me on TV.”

Leading up to the shot of the day, the McCallie School graduate made another remarkable shot on No. 7 when he holed out from about 60 yards for a birdie. He was staring at being three holes down after hitting his tee shot into the woods and having to punch out, but he went to one down instead.

“It all happened in a heartbeat,” said Mitchell, now a senior at the University of Georgia. “That’s the beauty of match play. Things can change in a hurry.”

Another Mitchell birdie at No. 8 squared the match, and he took the lead on No. 9 with a par.

“He had total control of his emotions today, and he’s obviously playing very well,” said Mitchell’s swing coach, Zeb Patten. “The biggest thing for me was to monitor his frame of mind, because I want him to continue being Adam Mitchell.”

The U.S. Amateur can be a circus compared to collegiate events, or even the Porter Cup that Mitchell won earlier this summer. This event is televised live, has galleries 10 times larger than college tournaments and requires more off-the-course availability than even the Palmer Cup that Mitchell played in Europe.

The Golf Channel is scheduled to televise the semifinals in a slight tape delay from 1 to 4 p.m. today.

“He’s taking it all in and I told him to enjoy it, but not get too wrapped up in all of the attention,” Patten said. “We talk about it every night, what frame of mind he has to be in.”

If Mitchell defeats Florida State sophomore Drew Kittleson today, beginning at 9 a.m., he will earn an invitation to play in the Masters next April, and he would earn an exemption into the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black.

“I still have a long ways to go and there’s a lot of golf left,” Mitchell said. “It’s been a little hectic around here for a while, but I’m trying to be like I’m just back home with my buddies at the country club.”

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