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Tyler Matthews Captures 108th Men’s Amateur Championship Title
DuPont, Wash. (July 11, 2009) – Medalist Tyler Matthews of Redmond, Wash. can add his name to the elite list of champions as he captured the 108th PNGA Men’s Amateur Championship title over Josh Anderson of Murrieta, Calif. this afternoon at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash.
Matthews also joins the rare list of players to have won both the championship title as well as taking home 36-hole stroke play qualifying medalist honors.
Teeing off this morning under clear skies and in the shadows of Mount Rainier, Matthews got off to a rough start on his first hole of the 36-hole championship match with a lost ball on his tee shot to let Anderson grab a quick 1 up lead. The match went back-and-forth from there as both players played great golf the rest of the morning and ended the first 18 holes all square with each player being well under par in their respective stroke play scores.
After lunch, the two continued the match and Matthews was able to make birdie on three of the first eight holes to take a 4 up advantage with just ten holes to play. A bogey on the difficult par-4 9th hole cut his lead to 3-up going into the final nine holes. The pair would halve holes #10-#12 until Anderson was unable to convert an up-and-down on the 13th hole to give Matthews a 4 up lead with five holes to play.
After Matthews made a routine par on the 195-yard par-3 14th hole, Anderson was unable to make his 5-foot par putt to extend the match, crowning Tyler Matthews as the 108th champion of the PNGA Men’s Amateur Championship.
Matthews joins an impressive list of recent champions that includes Tiger Woods, Ben Crane, Jeff Quinney, Nick Flanagan, and Danny Green.
The PNGA Men’s Amateur Championship has a rich and storied tradition that dates back to the turn of the century. It’s played in the same format as the U.S. Amateur Championship with 36-holes of stroke play qualifying to determine the 64-man match play bracket. The championship has always been a springboard for talented stars entering into the next level of competition.
This year’s host club, The Home Course, will eventually house the offices of the WSGA, PNGA, and USGA activities in the Northwest, as well as other allied golf associations. In following the association’s vision, The Home Course will also serve as a home for junior golf programs, caddie programs, environmental stewardship and turfgrass research. Each year, The Home Course serves as the venue for some WSGA and PNGA championships and USGA national championship sectional qualifiers.
