Byron Nelson Junior: Humphries breaks Jordan Spieth's record
Byron Nelson Junior champ J. Holland Humphries (Texas G.A. photo)
J. Holland Humphries of Austin won his first Texas Legends Junior Tour event today. And some victory it was.
Humphries set up the win with rounds of 67 and 64 which, despite getting him to 11-under, only put him one shot clear of 14-year-old Daniel Zou of The Woodlands.
In Thursday's final round, Humphries was cruising along fairly uneventfully through eight holes, getting to 1-under and extending his margin over Zou to three shots.
Then disaster struck.
After losing his tee shot tee shot left out of bounds and taking triple bogey, Humphries displayed the kind of mindset that will serve him well in his competitive career.
“Instead of worrying about where I was the whole time I kind of believed I was going to win,” Humphries told the Texas Golf Association. “It didn’t really phase me that I made a triple because I still felt like I was in the tournament the whole time.”
The 2021 Southern Methodist University commit unofficially set the tournament scoring record previously held by Jordan Spieth. He was four clear of another SMU-bound golfer -- Nathan Petronzio -- who will be heading there this fall under the cloud of the coronavirus pandemic.
Petronzio, of Bee Cave, had five birdies and an eagle to post 66 in the final round -- his best of the tournament following rounds of 71 and 68.
After recovering from that triple bogey at the ninth, the 17-year-old Humphries won the tournament with a nearly flawless final nine holes of 32, carding three birdies and six pars.
“It means a lot, especially considering how many great players were in the field this year and in the past,” Humphries said.
Finishing in a three way tie for third at 6-under-207 were Austin's Jackson Davenport, a 2020 West Virginia University commit, Cole Sherwood, a 2020 Vanderbilt commit, and 14-year-old Daniel Zou of The Woodlands.
Daniel Zou
Zou had the round of his life with a 64 on Tuesday, when he vaulted out to the round one lead.
Zou, just a high school freshman, playing in a field that includes many players heading for college in the fall, birdied four of his first six holes en route to a 31 on the front nine. If that wasn't enough, he made his third career hole-in-one on the par-3 14th hole. He came back with a 70 and was only trailing by one despite Humphries posting a 64 of his own in the second round.
AmateurGolf.com is definitely adding Zou to our "must watch" list.
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ABOUT THE Byron Nelson Junior
The championship is scheduled for 54 holes of stroke
play with a cut
to the low 39 players and ties following the second
round. Entries
are open to male amateur golfers who have an active
membership
with the Texas Junior Golf Alliance.
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