Taylor Floyd
2011 Oglethorpe Invitational Champion

SAVANNAH, GA., July 24, 2011 – Taylor Floyd and Buck Williams were both tired after 54 holes of golf over a three-day span in unrelenting heat at the Wilmington Island Club.

And neither player expected to play six playoff holes Sunday to decide the winner of the Oglethorpe Invitational, the area’s premier amateur tournament.

Floyd outlasted Williams, winning the third sudden-death hole by two strokes to take the championship.

Floyd and Williams both finished the regulation 54 holes with a six-under and Floyd took the six playoff holes by two shots.

“It was pretty tiring,” Floyd said. “I wish we could have played better during the playoff holes. I’m glad it’s over with.”

Floyd, a Macon native and senior golfer at Augusta State University, finally took control on No. 17, the last of the day’s sudden-death holes.

The difference on the par 4 hole came during each player’s second shot as Floyd placed the ball just beyond the green.

Williams’ shot landed in a sand trap short of the green, and his third shot was just outside another sand trap.

Williams double-bogeyed on his second putt for a two-over, and Floyd converted his second putt, giving him a par and the win.

“You can’t ever predict a six- hole playoff,” Floyd said. “It was a lot of fun.”

Williams, a New Orleans resident, missed a putt for birdie on the final regulation hole of the day, a shot that would have given him the win.

But Floyd, 21, also had a chance to win a few minutes later as he too had a chance to make a birdie putt from nine feet away.

Extra golf

Following each player’s par performance on the final hole, a three-hole playoff ensued, beginning on 14.

Each player bogeyed on the par 5 hole, but Floyd ended No. 17 with a one-stroke lead as he made par and Williams bogeyed.

On Hole 18, the final of the three-hole playoff, Floyd converted a par and Williams birdied, sending the showdown to a sudden- death hole on 17.

Each player hit par and they then matched pars on Hole 18 before the final showdown on the return to No. 17.

“I played great today,” Williams said. “I was just worn out after 18 holes. During the playoff, we both played sloppy. With the heat it was tough after getting 18 holes in. It caught me off guard in the playoff. We both had chances.”

Floyd, a member of the back-to-back championship golf teams at Augusta State, was playing in his second Oglethorpe Invitational.

“Just to play well was my goal,” Floyd said. “I didn’t play well (toward the end of the college season). I had to get back into the groove. I wasn’t trying to win.”

Floyd shot a two-under, 69 in all three rounds before the playoff.

Williams, 29, shot one over during the opening day, but bounced back with a four- under in the second round before shooting three under in the final round.

For Williams, the Oglethorpe Invitational was his first tournament since 2005, a professional event he played in a year after he graduated from Wake Forest with a business degree. His last amateur tournament was in 2004, and he regained his amateur status in June.

“I had no expectations,” Williams said. “I hadn’t played a round of golf in nearly a year, August until June. I was pretty surprised. It was fun playing against the college guys.”

Caulder Moore of Isle of Palms, South Carolina finished third with a 4-under, and Savannah native Brendan Gillins and Orlando’s Joey Petronio tied for fourth at three-under.

Sea Island resident Jack Hall, the 2010 champion, was the only senior who made the cut, giving him the senior title with a seven- over.

The tournament drew 128 players, with participants from countries as far away as South Africa, Kenya, Malaysia, Thailand and Argentina.