Cooper Smith survives four man playoff to win Monroe Invitational

July 27, 2024 | by Justin Golba of AmateurGolf.com

Cooper Smith (Submitted Photo)

Smith made two pars on the two playoff holes to win after bogeying the final hole in regulation to fall into the playoff

Cooper Smith won the 2024 Monroe Invitational at Monroe Golf Club in Pittsford, New York, after surviving a four-man playoff.

Smith carded rounds of 68-70-68-67 to get to 7-under, tied with Drew Doyle, Carter Loflin, and Kyle Downey to force the playoff.

"I was trying to stay as patient as possible," Smith said. "My plan for the whole week was to play conservatively aggressively."

In the final round, Smith birdied Nos. 15 and 17 to move from one down to one up on the leaderboard, but an untimely bogey on No. 18 forced a playoff. They had to play No. 18 again as the first hole of the playoff.

"It shows growth for myself because I could have freaked out or tried to do something extra," Smith said about putting the late bogey behind him. "If I am nervous, my normal go-to shot is a tee'd down, low cut, and it works really well."

Smith added, "In the playoff, I did that, and it worked. I hit a really solid drive on No. 18, and on No. 10, I hit an even better one. Going back to what I know has consistently put me in the best position has worked."

This is Smith's second win of the calendar year, as he won the New Year's Invitational to start 2024.

"I wasn't going to try to let the moment get too big for me," Smith said. "It was amazing; this is why I practice and play. I want to feel these nerves and why I love golf."

Results: Monroe Invitational

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Cooper Smith	Tampa, FL	700	68-70-68-67=273
T2	Carter Loflin	Duluth, GA	500	67-72-69-65=273
T2	Drew Doyle	Louisville, KY	500	69-67-72-65=273
T2	Kyle Downey	Rochester, NY	500	70-70-67-66=273
T5	Ryan Terry	Nashville, TN	400	71-69-71-63=274

View full results for Monroe Invitational

About the Monroe Invitational

Cooper Smith survives four man playoff to win Monroe Invitational

The Monroe Invitational is held at Monroe Golf Club in Pittsford, NY, and is one of the oldest amateur tournaments in the United States, dating back to its first playing in 1937. The course is a Donald Ross design that is a Golfweek Top 100 Classic C...