In the finals, Don Bell, of Port Orange, secured the title beating David Brown, from Eustis, 1 up. After nine holes, Bell was 1 up, with Bell winning the 1st and 3rd holes. After increasing his lead to 3 up through 13 holes, Brown, a sophomore at Southern Wesleyan University, would win holes 14 and 16 to cut into Bell’s lead. Playing the difficult 18th hole leading 1 up, Bell would make clutch 15 foot putt for the title. Bell’s great season continued Sunday with his second State Championship of the season. Earlier in the year Bell captured the Mid-Amateur Stroke Play Championship and finished second at the Mid-Amateur Four-Ball North Championship.

En route to the finals, Bell and Brown each won five matches to meet Sunday afternoon. Bell, who earned the 13th seed after posting a 74 in the seeding round, defeated Chip Hoch, from Port Orange, 5 and 4 in the first round. Bell defeated the 2009 Boys Junior Champion Brandon Park, of Weston, 2 up to advance to the round of 16. Bell then defeated Sam Ryder, of Longwood, 3 and 1 to earn his spot in the quarters. Playing Ian McConnell, from Riverview, Bell won 2 and 1 to advance to the semifinals. On Sunday morning, Bell faced Pete Williams, from Juno Beach, and beat Williams in 21 holes to face Brown in the final match.

Since the number of entries received has always surpassed the capacity of the Championship, a qualifying stage was instituted four years ago. More than 300 players attempted to qualify at one of seven sites across the state. In the qualifying, players competed in 18 holes of stroke play in hopes of reaching the Championship at Southern Hills Plantation Golf Club. The Match Play Championship begins with an 18-hole seeding round to seed the 64 player field. Single elimination match play will follow to determine the Match Play Champion.

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