Kansas Amateur: Zach Sokolosky ties course record in stroke play, goes on to title
Zach Sokolosky (Central Links Golf Photo)
Zach Sokolosky earned the top seed in the match play portion of the 113th Kansas Amateur at Falcon Lakes Golf Club.
And he never looked back.
Sokolosky shot a 5-under 67 and followed that up with a 9-under 62 in the two rounds of stroke play. The 62 tied the course record. Sokolosky finished 14-under and three shots clear of second place.
"I was extremely confident going in," Sokolosky said. "I was playing really well. I knew my game was in the best shape it probably has ever been in."
Sokolosky added "I played the practice round and felt good about how the course was playing. It wasn't incredibly hard but you could get out of position. They didn't mow the rough so it got tougher as the week went on but I was hitting the ball well."
Sokolosky had to play 23 holes on day two after a weather delay in the first round only allowed him to play 13 holes.
Sokolosky made three birdies in his first four holes to start his second round. He bogeyed the next hole after a three-putt.
"After that, my putter was lights light," Sokolosky said. "I think the three-putt was a little bit of an awakening because I made some 15-20 foot putts coming in."
From there, he made six more birdies and an eagle to shoot the 62.
The 14-under in stroke play gave him the confidence he needed heading into match play.
"I thought I left a mark in stroke play. 14-under felt really good," Sokolosky said.
Sokolosky found himself with his back up against the wall in his Round of 32 match against Colby Unruh, as he was 1-down heading into the final hole.
Sokolosky birdied No. 18 to force a sudden death playoff and made a walk-off eagle on the par-5 first hole to win the match.
In the round of 16, he beat the defending champion, Asher Whitaker, and then took down Drew Carlson in the finals.
He beat Chance Rinkol 1-up in the semifinals, but he had to finish birdie-birdie-birdie on holes No. 16-18 to hold off Rinkol. Both players shot 6-under par in the semifinal match.
In his final match of 36 holes against Michael Winslow, Sokolosky was 1-up after the first 18 holes.
"I always felt I played better in the afternoon so I felt really confident," Sokolosky said about his mindset on the final 18 holes. "Especially since I didn't feel like I had my best stuff in the morning."
A good example of just how well Sokolosky was hitting the ball was on the second 18 on hole No. 16, where he hit his drive in the fairway 380 yards.
He defeated Winslow 1-up to win the 113th Kansas Amateur.
ABOUT THE Kansas Amateur
36 holes of individual stroke play qualifying to
determine low 64 players advancing to single
elimination match play bracket. Any player that is
not
exempt from regional qualifying must go through
one
of the five regional qualifying sites or the second
chance qualifier to advance to the championship.
Open
to any male amateur golfer with an active
USGA/GHIN
Handicap Index through a KGA member club.
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