(Texas Golf Association)
HOUSTON, Texas (June 16, 2013) — The final round of the 104th Texas Amateur Championship got underway Sunday morning at Lakeside Country Club as players arrived to stake their claim at capturing the title of Texas Amateur Champion and hoisting the H.L. Edwards trophy. Fifty-seven players endured the cut to enter weekend play and heading into the final round it truly was anyone’s championship to win. In an event that has been dominated by collegiate players over the past eleven years, several Mid-Amateurs found themselves in the mix heading into today’s final round. Enduring the high humidity, Lakeside Country Club was full of spectators who had arrived to watch the state’s best amateur golfers compete at the highest level.
Thursday and Friday leader, Doug Manor, entered the final round trailing Texas Wesleyan’s Nathan Anderson by two strokes. Manor, 32, was one of only a few Mid-Amateurs who found themselves in the mix against a handful of current collegiate players heading into Sunday’s final round. Once again it was a back and forth round with Anderson as the two players traded birdies. On the long par 3, fourth hole, both players found themselves within fifteen feet of the hole both starring at their first birdies of the day. After Manor rolled in his putt, Anderson confidently stepped up and rolled his in as well, maintaining his two stroke lead. Manor got one shot back on the par 5, sixth, after executing a perfect approach to twelve feet. His birdie there closed the gap to just one shot with the difficult 7,8, & 9 finish to close the opening nine. After trading pars on seven and eight, Anderson regained his two stroke lead rolling in the improbable twenty-five footer. Heading into the back nine it looked as if it was all Nathan Anderson but after a double bogey on the eleventh hole followed by two consecutive bogeys on twelve and thirteen, momentum had quickly changed. Within three holes Manor found himself going from two down to now sitting on fourteen tee two up. After adding another birdie on the on the fourteenth, Manor found himself three up on Anderson with four to play. Even with a birdie on the par 4, sixteenth, Anderson could not catch the steady play of Manor. With an approach that came up short on the eighteenth, Manor was faced with a twenty foot putt to save par and claim the title. As he had done all week, Manor buried the putt center cut and his journey to the H.L. Edwards trophy was complete.
"This is just a tremendous honor”, Manor stated. "Heading into the week my main goal was to make the cut and just have a good time. I putted great all week and I really just can’t believe that this is happening.” Manor was the epitome of steady golf all week. Not a tremendously long hitter off the tee, Manor’s game was all about execution and placement. "Nathan (Anderson) is a tremendous player and hits the ball a long way which really gave him an advantage on the par fives. I just tried to stay within myself and play my game all week making sure I was mentally aggressive through the back nine.” That he was, with a final round of three under par, 69, which had no trace of bogeys on the card. Manor’s tournament total of twelve under par, 276, gave him a three shot victory over Anderson and crowned him 2013 Texas Amateur Champion. His victory earns him an automatic exemption into the 2013 Texas Mid-Amateur Championship to be held at Cordillera Ranch later this year and next year’s Texas Amateur which is scheduled to be held at Brook Hollow in Dallas. Manor, who recently got his Master’s at the University of Texas and plans on starting work within the next few weeks hopes he can make both events. "My competitiveness is there. I just really hope my boss lets me schedule those days off now!”
Three collegiate golfers found themselves rounding out the top five of the Championship. University of Texas starter Kramer Hickok finished with a tournament total of seven under par, 281, which included a final round of even par 72. Claiming fourth was Wesley McClain of the University of Houston. McClain who had only made one bogey through his first thirty-six holes struggled to find the same rhythm over the weekend and finished with a closing round of two over par, 74, giving him a championship total of five under par, 283. SFA golfer, Luke Sheehan also struggled on Sunday but found himself in fifth with a four day total of four under par, 284. In all, seventeen players finished under par for the championship including 2012 Texas Amateur Champion, Thomas Birdsey, who finished in a tie for sixth at three under par, 285.
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ABOUT THE Texas Amateur
72 hole medal play walking-only championship first
played in 1906. At the completion of 36 holes the field
is cut to the low 54 and ties plus all players within 10
strokes of the lead.
18-hole qualifying rounds are held throughout the state
for players not otherwise exempt into the tournament
proper. Visit the Texas Golf Assocation website for
qualifier information.
View Complete Tournament Information