Bryson Barnes wins Long Beach Match Play Championship

Bryson Barnes of Long Beach, Calif., completed a strong two-week run at the Long Beach Match Play Championship with a finals win over fellow Long Beach resident Jonny Saunders on the 19th hole.

The tournament was played over two weeks, from May 24 to 26 and May 31 to June 2, at Recreation Park Golf Course in Long Beach, California.

First, Barnes shot even-par 72 to finish T-4 and take the No.5 seed in the tournament. Austin Trcka and Ryan Curlee shot matching 2-under 70 in the qualifier to earn the No.1 and No.2 seed positions.

In Round of 64 he defeated No. 60 seed Jack Hayes by 5 & 4. In the Round of 32, he faced off against the No. 37 seed Kyle Weiner, and secured a convincing win by 1 UP to advance to the Round of 16. In this stage, Barnes defeated No.44 seed William Pirtle by 4 & 3, thereby earning his spot in the Quarter Finals.

In the Quarterfinals, Barnes beat Nick Mardesich by 7 & 6, propelling him into the semifinals. There, he faced the No.1 seed, Austin Trcka, whom he defeated by 2 & 1. This paved the way for his showdown in the Championship Finals against No. 15 seed Jonny Saunders, who earned his spot in the Finals by defeating the No. 19 Alex Resurreccion by 2 & 1.

Barnes triumphed over Saunders on the 19th hole after they tied scores following the 18 holes of competition.

Last year, Barnes was defeated by Brannon Fahrny by 7 & 6 in the quarterfinals, who later went on to win the title.

79 golfers participated in the tournament, of which 64 made the cut and qualified for the matchplay section.