A moment of short-game magic secured Ben Brown the biggest victory of his career at the English Men’s Amateur at Ferndown.
FORMAT: 18-hole stroke play qualifier / 6 rounds of knockout matchplay
The Yorkshireman, whose big brother Dan won the title in 2016, was staring down the barrel after hitting a ‘terrible iron shot’ at the second extra hole in Sunday’s final. England Boys champion Tyler Weaver was also just 15 feet away in one.
But the Romanby player stunned the watching crowd by holing a beautifully flighted chip from 25 yards and his playing partner could not follow him in.
Brown said: “It was a terrible iron shot off the tee but with how soft the greens were, I’d left chip shots shorts all day, so I told myself to land it far enough up there. Luckily it managed to creep in.
“I didn’t celebrate it because Tyler had a 15-footer for birdie so I didn’t want to get my hopes up!”
The two teenagers had played some excellent stuff in the run-up to the final.
The White Rose ace had qualified in second thanks to a stunning 65 (-6). A double bogey at the last denied him something really special.
In the matchplay stages Brown was cumlatively nine under for his five matches ahead of the final while Weaver was 13 under par.
And both started strongly, halving the first with birdies but the in-form Suffolk ace won the third with par before going two-up with a birdie on four.
Brown pulled one back after birdieing the par-five seventh before an extraordinary eighth hole. The Yorkshireman reached the front edge of the 302-yard par-4 while Weaver’s tee shot was pulled towards spectators. Remarkably, the ball looked to be heading out of bounds but fortunately hit a buggy, rolling down the path and onto some grass. The recent Carris Trophy recipient remained composed in front of the many onlookers to produce a tough chip onto the green, before holing a stunning 25-footer for birdie. His opponent also knocked in his birdie in for the half.
The pair were soon level after Brown’s par beat his playing partner’s bogey on 11 and the Romanby member went birdie-par through 13 and 14 to go two-up.
The Suffolk golfer hit back with a birdie on 15 and then levelled matters at the 17th before a sublime up-and-down from Brown meant Weaver had a 10-footer for the win but it slid by to send them into a play-off.
Pars on the first play-off took them down the second as the rain came down once again, but the England Boys international delivered a super tee shot to give him a 15-foot putt before his opponent hit the trees right, dropping into the rough. He knew he needed an up-and-down for a chance to keep the game going, but he went one better, hitting the edge of the green and watching the ball roll into the cup for birdie. In response Weaver’s putt was just short.
Earlier in the day Brown had another great battle with his Yorkshire team-mate Jack Whaley (Rotherham).
The South Yorkshire player went ahead at the first as Brown made a mistake but the 2022 Fairhaven Trophy champion birdied six and seven to go ahea.
He then doubled his lead on the eighth as Whaley hit two poor tee shots and conceded and Brown turned three ahead after a solid par on the ninth made his lead was extended further.
A birdie on 10 and then another on 15 from Whaley cut the gap to one but a par on the next from Brown was enough to put him two up.
However the duo would have to play the last – a wayward approach shot at the 17th cost Brown the hole – but he holed out from four feet at the last to secure his place in the final.