Competing in the championship flight for the first time and surviving a playoff to make the 31st seed, Blick got off to a fast start with birdies at 2, 4 and 8. Blick was 3-under par and 4-up after eight holes. He birdied the 12th but then took bogeys at 13, 15, 17 and 18 only to give a few back to Payne, a graduate student at Cal. Blick finished up the first 18 holes 1-up.
After adjusting to the cooler weather and rain for a few holes, Blick got his putter going again on the second 18, carding birdies on the front nine at holes 4, 6, 8 and 9. He jarred a long putt at the sixth and a 25-footer at No. 8. His plan of playing aggressively paid off again with birdies at 10 and 12. He was 1-up after 15, but bogeyed 16 giving one back to Payne and squaring the match. He won the par 3, 17 with a par and they headed to 18 with Blick 1-up. Blick capped his round with a clutch 8 foot birdie at 18 to take the title 2-up.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet,” Blick said when asked how it feels to have his name on the same trophy as golfing greats like Ken Venturi, Johnny Miller and Tom Watson.
The senior at San Ramon High will play golf for San Jose State in the fall. He will attempt to qualify for the U.S. Amateur and the U.S. Open this summer.
When asked Saturday after his quarterfinal win over Nicolas Noya, what his biggest tournament finish was so far, Blick answered: “It was a second place finish at an AJGA tournament at Castlewood Country Club where I finished with a final round 66."
He also finished tied for sixth in the amateurgolf.com Christmas Classic last December. Now, Blick has a new victory for the top of his list.
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