 |
|
David Johnson |
|
David Johnson
defeated Carlos Velez in the final match to win the
Florida State Amateur Match Play Championship at Quail
Valley Golf Club in Vero Beach on August 7-10.
In the finals, David Johnson, of Palm Bay, secured the
title on the 17th hole beating Carlos Velez, from Miami,
2 and 1. After nine holes, Johnson and Velez were all square
heading to the back nine. On the 10th hole, Johnson, a senior
golfer at the University of Central Florida, jumped in front
making birdie to go 1 up. Velez brought the match back to even
with a birdie on 11. On the par 3 12th hole, Johnson took the
lead again making par. Johnson then birdied the 14th hole to go
2 up and increased his lead to 3 draining a 12 foot birdie putt
on 15. On 16, Velez made a birdie putt from off the green to
extend the match. On the 17th hole, Johnson closed out the match
sinking a 25 foot birdie putt for his first State Championship
title. “It feels great to win,” said Johnson. With a 3rd place
finish at the State Amateur and a semifinal finish in this
year's US Amateur Public Links, Johnson said, “I’ve been waiting
for this win.”
En route to the finals, Johnson and Velez each won five matches
to meet Sunday afternoon. “I played well all week,” said
Johnson. “My ball striking was really good and my putter caught
up in the end.” Johnson, who earned the 7th seed after posting a
69 in the seeding round, defeated the 2005 Match Play Champion
Kelly Gosse, from Inverness, 4 and 3 in the first round.
Johnson continued on winning his Round of 32 match 3 and 2 to
face two-time Public Links Champion Kevin Aylwin, from
New Smyrna Beach, in the Round of 16. Johnson defeated Aylwin 3
and 2 for his spot in the quarters. Playing Chris Piumelli,
from Vero Beach, Johnson won 1 up to advance to the semifinals.
On Sunday morning, Johnson was up against 3rd seed Thomas
Murray, from Orange Park, the highest seed remaining in the
field, and beat Murray 4 and 3 to face Velez in the final match.
Johnson was under par in all of his matches. “The course was in
perfect condition,” said Johnson. “The whole week was a lot of
fun.”
Since the number of entries received has always surpassed the
capacity of the Championship, a qualifying stage was instituted
last year. More than 320 players attempted to qualify at one of
six sites across the state. In the qualifying, players competed
in 18 holes of stroke play in hopes of reaching the Championship
at Quail Valley. The Match Play Championship began with an
18-hole seeding round to seed the 64 player field. Single
elimination match play followed to determine the Match Play
Champion.
For complete results,
click here. |
