By Pete Borello

Los Altos Hills resident Adam Sollers is closing in on a berth in one of golf’s biggest events: the United States Open.

Sollers last week placed second at a U.S. Open local qualifier at Sharon Heights Golf & Country Club in Menlo Park; the top five finishers move on to this week’s sectional qualifier.

If the 2001 graduate of St. Francis High can finish in the top five at the sectional - set for Monday at Lake Merced - he’s off to next month’s U.S. Open.

Sollers shot 71 at the local qualifier, the best score among the amateur players competing. Although the 36-hole sectional tournament will feature plenty of pros, Sollers doesn’t seem intimidated.

“I’m playing well right now and I just need to hope I keep playing well,” said Sollers, who redshirted at the University of Arizona this year. “If I play up to my potential, I should have a chance out there. I’m very capable.”

Sollers said he is helped by the fact that Lake Merced is similar to Sharon Heights, which is his home course.

“They’re both tree-lined and have small greens,” he said.

Sollers said he plans to play a few practice rounds at Lake Merced prior to the sectional.

At the May 20 local qualifier, played in wet conditions, Sollers found himself 2-over-par after seven holes. He was even with four holes left, then came a two-hour rain delay. Sollers finished his round with a crucial birdie.

“If I had bogeyed that hole, I wouldn’t have qualified,” he said.