BANDON — The 100th Oregon Amateur started under blue skies at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort on Monday, but a stiff afternoon wind served as warning that the resort will prove a tough site for the 157 golfers in the tournament this week.

The 111 men and 46 women in the tournament played the first of two 18-hole qualifying rounds Monday. After another 18 holes today, the field will be cut to 64 men and 32 women for the match play portion of the tournament.

Only one player shot par Monday, 51-year-old Bryon Patton of Tigard, who was the runner-up at the Oregon Senior Amateur last year. Just behind Patton were Jim Dunlap of Tigard, the Oregon Golf Association’s golfer of the year in 2008 after reaching the round of 16 in the U.S. Mid-Amateur, and Ian Dahl of Longview, Wash., who each shot 73.

Local favorite Tim Tucker, a Bandon Dunes caddie, was at 74, while former Siuslaw High School standout Jesse Schutte was tied for 31st after shooting a 79 Monday.

Another former high school standout from the area, Marshfield graduate Skyler Johnson, had an afternoon tee time and will have a lot of work to do today to reach the match play portion of the event. With his former high school coach, Casey Matthews, serving as his caddie, Johnson struggled to an 18-over 90 on Monday.

All the players with afternoon rounds toiled in the wind. The lowest score among the later tee times was an 82, while two-thirds of the morning starters shot 81 or better on the challenging 7,212-yard layout.

The players who teed off in the afternoon Monday will have morning tee times today, which should provide an opportunity for better scores.

Match play will begin at 8 a.m. Wednesday.

The men will play their second and third rounds Thursday and quarterfinals and semifinals Friday before the 36-hole championship match on Saturday. The women will play a single match Wednesday and Thursday, with the quarterfinals and semifinals Friday and the 36-hole final Saturday.

The Oregon Amateur often is considered the Northwest’s major amateur event, said Brent Whittaker, the OGA’s director of tournament operations.

“It’s always a great field,” Whittaker said of the tournament, which draws many of the top high school and college players from the region, along with most of the state’s top amateur golfers.

The event has the toughest entry requirements in the region, including a handicap of 3.4 or better.

It also remains true to the match play format in a time when many states have gone to stroke play for their championships.

Whittaker said match play suits Bandon Dunes well because after qualifying, opponents always face the exact same weather conditions. While the players have to account for the wind, they don’t have to worry about shooting a low score, only winning more holes than their foes.

“That’s what makes this golf course so good,” Whittaker said. “When you get to match play, it’s so much better.”

On Monday, 66 men shot 83 or better, which suggests the cut line today will be somewhere around 20 over par for the two rounds.

Among the women, the top score Monday came from Kendra Little of Eugene, a member of the University of Oregon’s golf team, who had an outstanding 77 in the afternoon wind. Her score was five strokes better than Amy Beth Simanton of Lake Oswego, the runner up in the Class 6A state tournament this spring and second-place finisher in the Oregon Junior Amateur at Bandon Dunes last summer.

Defending champion Kate Hildahl opened with an 88, while 2007 winner Kristen Svicarovich had an 84. That was the same score of Charisse Spada, the winner in 1982 and 1999 and a past president of the Oregon Golf Association.

Two South Coast women also are in the field. Marie Simonds of Coquille was tied for 17th after shooting a 93, while Kiri Carnahan of Bandon was just out of the top 32, shooting a 100 on Monday.

The course is playing 6,131 yards for the women.

The tournament includes some interesting combinations of family members.

Gary Harding of Portland is joined by two sons, Trevor and Alex. Other father-son combinations include Michael and Sam Kloenne of West Linn, Bob and Adam Harrington of Portland, and Bill and Dustin Andres of Tualatin. Husband and wife Alan and D’Nise Minor of Aloha also are competing, along with one pair of siblings, Ryan and Erica Omlid, who attended Thurston High School in Springfield.

Qualifying scores and match play pairings will be posted online  tonight at www.oregonamateur.org.