Zach Murray (Photo by Golf Australia)
MELBOURNE, Australia (Jan. 9, 2015) — At age 17, Zach Murray of Essendon, Australia, a suburb of Melbourne, took his home town by storm with a record-setting victory at the Australian Master of the Amateurs.
He became the youngest winner of the tournament's green jacket, which models the famous Masters Tournament green jacket, when he posted 276 in the 72-hole event, 12-under par, to win by two shots over fellow Aussie Cory Crawford.
Entering the final round with a two-shot advantage after shooting 69-69-67 in the first three rounds, Murray only needed a one-under par 71 on the final day at Royal Melbourne to claim the title.
Crawford made a nice run with a 69 on Friday but fell two shots short of the tournament's youngest winner.
Bryson DeChambeau of Clovis, Calif. rebounded nicely from an opening-round 74 to finish in a tie for third place with first-round leader Ben Eccles. DeChambeau, a collegiate player at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, got back into contention with a 66 on Thursday before carding 70 on Friday to jump into third.
Eccles, of Torquay, Australia, led with a 66 after the first day but dropped back after a 74.
Though he took 14th place, Thursday was a special day for Cameron Davis as his third-round score of 63 tied the course record. The Sydney native, who is also a Golf Australia national squad member, jumped from five-over to four-under, putting him in a tie for eighth place and seven shots back. His 72 on Friday settled him in for a top-15 finish.
Murray, with his win, earns exemptions to the 2015 British Amateur and 2015 Porter Cup, as well as the Players Amateur and Dogwood Invitational.
ABOUT THE Master of the Amateurs
The Master of the Amateurs, a 72-hole medal play
Championship,
has rapidly become one of the
elite championships in amateur golf. Like The
Masters, the champion
receives a Green Jacket. Contestants
participate in the first round of the
championship with professional golfers in a
unique Am-Pro Invitational.
The Master of the Amateurs winner gets an
invitation to the Porter
Cup in the U.S. Likewise the winners of those
two tournaments receive invitations to the
next Master of the Amateurs tournament.
A qualifying round (see tournament
website for date and handicap requirement)
allows
three non-exempt players to earn invitations
into the prestigious field.
View Complete Tournament Information