After Michael Weaver’s short putt went awry, Steven Fox didn’t miss.
Fox made an 18-foot birdie putt on the 37th hole Sunday, completing a remarkable rally to win the U.S. Amateur at Cherry Hills in suburban Denver.
The 21-year-old Fox, from Hendersonville, Tenn., was 2-down with two holes to play against Weaver, from Fresno, Calif., before rallying to force the extra hole.
“This is unreal. This whole week is like a dream to me,” Fox said.
Both players earned spots in the U.S. Open next year, and will likely receive invitations to the Masters — if they remain amateurs.
Weaver, a 21-year-old redshirt junior at the University of California, had been ahead most of the day and he rattled in a 12-foot birdie putt on the 34th hole to take a 2-up lead.
“Once he made that, you know, I thought it was over,” Fox said.
A senior at Tennessee-Chattanooga, Fox made an 11-foot birdie putt to win the 35th hole.
Still with a 1-up edge, Weaver needed only to make a 5-foot par putt on the 36th hole at the 18th green to win, but it lipped out, extending the match to a 37th hole.
“I thought I made my putt,” said Weaver. “I kind of looked away, and I thought it went in, but it didn’t. That’s golf, but just to see it slip through my fingers, it (stinks).”
The miss on the short putt stunned Fox as well.
“It was like dead center from my angle, and when I saw it bounce out, I kind of gasped a little bit,” Fox said. “I was shocked.”
Fox won when he made his 18-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole.
ELSEWHERE
Rain stopped the final round of the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, N.C., with leader Sergio Garcia on the fifth hole. Play will resume today. … Willie Wood won the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open in Endicott, N.Y., for his first Champions Tour title. He closed with a 6-under 66, including a long birdie putt on No. 18, to tie Michael Allen. Wood made par on the first playoff hole to win. … Japan’s Mika Miyazato won the Safeway Classic for her first victory on the LPGA Tour, closing with a 2-under 70 to beat Brittany Lincicome and Inbee Park by two strokes at Pumpkin Ridge’s Ghost Creek Course near Portland. ... Shawn Stefani shot a 7-under 64 in suburban Kansas City for his first victory on the developmental Web.com Tour.
TRACKING LOCAL GOLFERS on the PGA Tour
Last week: Wyndham Championship, Sedgefield Country Club, Greensboro, N.C.
In the field: Puyallup’s Ryan Moore, Tacoma’s Troy Kelly.
Moore’s fourth-round score: 3-under-par 67.
Kelly’s fourth-round score: 1-over 71.
Position: Moore (6-under 274) is tied for 38th, and Kelly (1-under 279) sits 63rd. Play was suspended with Sergio Garcia (15-under) in the lead, and will resume today at 6 a.m. (PDT).
Recap: Moore got plenty of air time on national television Sunday – of his 2009 victory at this tournament. Before the rain came, the Cascade Christian graduate finished his round. And he had two holes to remember coming home: After wading into the water hazard at the 15th hole to punch his ball out, he saved a birdie on the par 5 with an 11-foot putt; then he holed out from 134 yards in the right rough for an eagle-2 on the 17th hole. … Kelly (four bogeys, three birdies) had his highlight at No. 7 when he made a 25-foot chip from right of the green for birdie.
Next: Moore, Kelly and Gig Harbor’s Kyle Stanley have advanced to the FedEx Cup playoffs starting Thursday at The Barclays at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y.
todd.milles@thenewstribune.com
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