FORT WORTH, TX (September 7, 2009)--Going into the final round of the Fort Worth men’s city championship, former North Texas golfer and 2005 champion Clarke Kincaid knew he needed to post an under-par round. After all, defending champion John Bearrie sat just a stroke behind Kincaid at the start of the day and, more importantly, Lelan Chiles, who won the 2006 Fort Worth senior championship, entered the final round with a two-shot lead.

Kincaid, though, came through when it mattered most. He birdied three of the final five holes and posted a 3-under 67 on Monday at Pecan Valley Golf Course, winning the tournament by one shot with a 54-hole total of 205. Chiles, who lives in Granbury, finished second with a 206, while Bearrie, an Arlington resident, came in third at 207.

"I knew I was going to have to beat two guys today because John and Lelan are very good players," said Kincaid, who went to Argyle Liberty Christian. "It’s nice to win. It’s just fun beating good competition, and it was a really good field this year."

Not only did Kincaid defeat a good field, he also had to overcome a little bit of slow play. Kincaid plays extremely fast, not waiting very long between shots. But, of course, at amateur events, the play tends to be slower than normal.

"It’s just one of those things you have to overcome," Kincaid said.

He certainly overcame it Monday. Kincaid made five birdies, along with two bogeys, to post the low round of the day. Chiles and Bearrie didn’t go down easy, though.

Chiles finished birdie-birdie, draining two lengthy putts to put him in the hunt.

Bearrie, meanwhile, strung together three straight birdies on the back nine — 12-14 — and briefly held the lead. But on the par-3 17th, Bearrie found a greenside bunker and missed an 8-foot par putt to all but end his chances.

"I really lost this tournament on the first day, shooting a 1-over 71 at Rockwood," Bearrie said. "That’s not a good enough score there to try and win the tournament. I had to play catch-up the rest of the tournament."

In the end, nobody could catch Kincaid. He simply didn’t make any mistakes down the stretch, with birdies at 14, 16 and 18. On the front side, Kincaid birdied Nos. 1 and 6.

"I knew I had to make birdies today," Kincaid said. "I started paying attention to what the other guys were doing at around hole 14 and just made some good shots."

After graduating from North Texas two weeks ago, Kincaid is a player to keep an eye on in the coming years for local amateur golf. Rather than trying to grind it out on the professional circuits, Kincaid said he intends to stay an amateur for the foreseeable future.

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