Nathan Jetton, tourney founder Casey Boyns win Christmas Classic titles on final hole

December 4, 2022 | by Pete Wlodkowski of AmateurGolf.com

Nathan Jetton (AmateurGolf.com photo)

Jetton, a Bandon Dunes caddie, survived a three-way playoff at Del Monte, while Boyns broke a tie on the final hole of regulation

Nathan Jetton (Bandon, Ore.) won the Christmas Classic on Sunday, chipping in on the first playoff hole at Del Monte Golf Club in Monterey, Calif.

The Bandon Dunes caddie shot consecutive rounds of 71 to finish at 2-under 142 on a challenging weekend of golf that started with rain and ended with sunshine.

He was joined at that number by first-round leader Mikey Burkland (Alamo, Calif.) and Michael Carrillo (Chualar, Calif.). Both Jetton and Burkland birdied the last two holes to get into the playoff, while Carrillo, despite four birdies on the back nine to get into contention, suffered a bogey on his 36th hole after finding his tee shot stymied behind a tree.

Jetton, after trying to reach the green in two with a driver from the fairway, chipped in for birdie four on the first playoff hole to take the title.

"I saw where Michael's drive was and figured he could get home in two," said Jetton. "So I decided to hit driver off the deck."

Jetton's third shot from the small trees didn't get to the green, leaving him a delicate pitch over the bunker to the short-sided pin. Any previous mistakes were forgiven when he lofted the delicate shot to just over the bunker, and it rolled in like a putt as he fist-pumped his way to pick up the ball.

As Carillo failed to get up and down from pin high in two, and first-round leader Mikey Burkland's birdie putt slid by, the title belonged to the Bandon Dunes summer caddie. (If you are making a trip up there, and need a good looper, just ask for "Nate.")

Kyle Gentry (AGC photo)

Kyle Gentry (Palo Alto, Calif.) took low mid-amateur honors. finishing T7 overall with rounds of 73-73 to edge out Daren Johnson (Covina, Calif.) by a single shot. Gentry -- a former Stanford golfer and the co-host of "Golf U" on Sirius XM with Stanford coach Conrad Ray -- was pleased to keep things together after hitting a ball O.B. on No. 17.

"I birdied with my second ball, then made a birdie on No. 18 to finish things off without falling apart, so I'm pleased about that," said Gentry.

Charles Richesin and Casey Boyns (AGC photo)

In the Senior Division, Casey Boyns (Monterey, Calif.) added another chapter to his Christmas Classic history, making a birdie on the 36th hole to win by one shot over three players. Like Jetton, Boyns is a caddie at a world-class resort. He is a longtime looper at Pebble Beach, and a two-time champ of the California Amateur at the world-famous course.

Boyns is also the founder of the Christmas Classic -- the original name of the tournament was Casey's Christmas Classic when he started it in 1985.

Related: Bing had his Clambake, Casey has his Christmas Classic

Boyns, who turns 67 next week, also won the low Super Senior honor however, in the spirit of not "double dipping," the award went to multiple past champion of this tournament Charles Richesin of Lodi.

Tom Natividad (AGC photo)

In the Net division, Tom Natividad (Walnut Creek, Calif.) earned a three-shot victory over Sylvia Chu (San Mateo, Calif.) with rounds of 75-71.

>> FINAL RESULTS

>> PHOTO GALLERY

Results: AGC Christmas Classic

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Nathan Jetton	Diamond Springs, CA	100	71-71=142
T2	Michael Carrillo	Chualar, CA	65	71-71=142
T2	Mikey Burkland	Alamo, CA	65	69-73=142
T4	Papon Sawatyanon	Berkeley, CA	30	76-67=143
T4	Cameron Keith	Alamo, CA	30	71-72=143

View full results for AGC Christmas Classic

About the AGC Christmas Classic

Nathan Jetton, tourney founder Casey Boyns win Christmas Classic titles on final hole

The Christmas Classic was founded by 2-time California State Amateur Champion Casey Boyns over 20 years ago and it always attracts a great field. This is our most popular event, and year in and year out it sells out. Field limited to 104 players; Cha...