Sean Rowen of Greenwood grabbed his third win of the 2016 tournament season today at the IGA Match Play Championship at Otter Creek GC in Columbus. Rowen defeated defending champion Zack Carrabine, Bargersville, 2 and 1.
Early this morning, Carrabine got off to an early lead, going 1-up on the par-4, 2nd after a three-putt from Rowen. Rowen went on to three-putt again on the par-3, 3rd to remain 1-down in the match.
“I didn’t let it bother me,” Rowen said. “I stuck to mechanics and continued to make good strokes and my putts starting falling as the day progressed.”
On the par-4, 4th Rowen made par to Carrabine’s bogey and the match was back to all square. From that point forward, Rowen never trailed in the match. With birdies on holes 6, 7 and 9, Rowen headed to the back nine with a 3-up lead.
“I was hitting my irons very well today and gave myself a lot of birdie opportunities,” Rowen said. “I didn’t miss many greens until late in the round and felt like I played really steady.”
On the par-4, 12th, Carrabine got one back after converting a ten-footer for birdie. Rowen answered with a birdie on the par-5, 14th and headed to 15 with a 3-up lead.
On the par-4, 15th Carrabine and Rowen shared bogeys after both missing the green off the tee. Rowen headed to 16 dormie, at 3-up with three holes to play.
However, Carrabine proved he was not ready to give up yet. He made par to Rowen’s bogey on 16 and won the hole to get to within two. Once again, Rowen found himself dormie.
On the par-4, 17th both players hit their approach shots close, with realistic looks at birdie. Both missing their chances, Rowen and Carrabine shared pars and Rowen walked away with a 2 and 1 victory.
“It feels really good to get a win this week,” Rowen said. “I haven’t participated in the Match Play Championship for probably the last ten years, so it feels great!”
Earlier this week, Rowen qualified for the US Amateur Championship, which will be contested August 15th through 21st at Oakland Hills CC in Bloomfield Township, Mich.
In the Senior Division, it was Sam Till, Fort Wayne, who came out on top. Till defeated Dave Vlasic, Valparaiso, 1-up in the Championship match yesterday afternoon. However, Vlasic did not go down without a fight.
Vlasic birdied holes one and two to get off to a fast start. It was not until hole 11 that Till was able to get the match back to all square.
Till went on to make birdie on 12 and Vlasic answered with a birdie on 13. Once again, the match was tied.
Vlasic went on to win hole 15 and Till responded with a win on 16. On the par-4, 17th, Till won with par to go 1-up with one hole to play. Both players made par on 18 and Till grabbed his second match play victory, with a previous win coming in 2012 at Ackerman Hills GC in Lafayette.
“It feels really good to win this event,” Till said. “I had back surgery last April and haven’t had the opportunity to play as much lately as I would like. It feels really nice to get back into playing competitively again.”
Till plans to play in the Mid-Amateur Championship and Senior Championship later this season. He also hopes to qualify for the US Senior Amateur Championship.
In the Super-Senior Division, Jerry Crouch, Indianapolis, defeated defending champion Dave Bates, Newburgh, yesterday 1-up to grab his first match play victory.
Crouch had a rough start early on, and Bates capitalized, going 4-up through the opening seven holes.
It was not until the par-3, 8th that Crouch won his first hole of the day. From that point forward, Crouch continued to win holes and close the gap. He won holes 10 and 11 and saw himself only 1-down.
After an errant tee shot on 13, Crouch was back to 2-down. An eagle on the par-5, 14th put him back in the mix and he headed to the par-3, 15th, 1-down.
Crouch and Bates shared bogeys on 15 and 16, and Bates headed to 17 with a 1-up lead.
Both players missed the green with their approach shots on 17, and a double hit by Bates on his chip shot caused him to lose the hole and the lead for the first time all day.
With a par to Bates’ bogey on 18, Crouch grabbed his first match play victory with a 1-up finish.
“I’m surprised and very excited to have won this event,” Crouch said. “I’ve known these guys for years and I absolutely love the competition.”
This is Crouch’s second IGA win, with a previous victory coming last year at the IGA Super-Senior Amateur held at Prairie View GC.
Click here for IGA Match Play Results.
Click here for IGA Senior Match Play Results.
Click here for IGA Super-Senior Match Play Results.