Ott climbs, then wins playoff for Southern Amateur title

July 20, 2019 | by AmateurGolf.com Staff

AJ Ott (Southern GA/Twitter photo)

AJ Ott, who will be a senior at Colorado State in the fall, had some ground to make up in the final round at Chenal Country Club.

The Southern Amateur came down to the very last minute, and neither of the men who had taken up residence at the top of the leaderboard throughout the week ended up with the trophy. Instead, Coloradoan AJ Ott, which a final-round 67, swept in for a last-minute victory at Chenal Country Club in Little Rock, Ark.

Ott, who will be a senior at Colorado State this year, opened with rounds of 70-73, but worked hard to get back in it over the last 36 holes. He finished 64-67, and at 10 under, was tied with Washington’s Noah Woolsey when regulation ended.

“Today was a nice day, got off to a nice start and birdied the first two holes. Made a few bad swings early but made some nice putts to make up for it,” Ott said. “Got to the back nine and was feeling a little bit of pressure and was able to make some nice birdies on the par 5s. Bogeyed 18 but kind of had to wait it out.”

Ott had to wait around at the end of the day because he had gone out in the fourth-to-last group on Saturday. Still, he only needed two extra holes against Woolsey. Ott birdied the second one to win.

PLAYOFF BOUND.

Ott vs. Woolsey. #18. Nail biter. pic.twitter.com/TaPeN6MrO9
— Southern Golf Assoc. (@sgagolf) July 20, 2019

It was generally a low-scoring day across the board. In addition to Ott’s 67, Woolsey had a final-round 69. Turk Pettit, of Sugar Grove, N.C., climbed to solo sixth with a 66 and Pinehurst, N.C., native Eric Bae had a 65 to get into a tie for seventh. Bae had the low round of the day.

Walker Lee, who had been in control of this event for much of the week, couldn’t seem to get much going, and despite a 2-under 34 on the back, closed in even-par 71. He tied for third at 9 under with Wilson Furr and Philip Barbaree.

Ott’s only other amateur start this summer was at the Southwestern Amateur. He finished runner-up there. During the college season, Ott was in the top 5 at the Mountain West Championship and the top 10 at the Western Intercollegiate. He is currently ranked No. 296 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

Results: Southern Amateur

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	A.J. Ott	Fort Collins, CO	1200	70-73-64-67=274
2	Noah Woolsey	Pleasanton, CA	900	67-70-68-69=274
T3	Philip Barbaree	Shreveport, LA	700	70-71-65-69=275
T3	Walker Lee	Houston, TX	700	65-71-68-71=275
T3	Wilson Furr	Jackson, MS	700	67-71-68-69=275

View full results for Southern Amateur

About the Southern Amateur

Ott climbs, then wins playoff for Southern Amateur title

The Southern Amateur, which dates back to 1902, is one of two competitions held by the Southern Golf Association (the other is the Southern Junior). This is a 72-hole stroke play championship with a cut made after 36 holes. Entries are open to any ma...