As his putt rattled home on hole No. 18, Owensboro Catholic sophomore Jakob Wellman gave a huge fist pump of satisfaction and relief.
By sinking the 10-footer for birdie, Wellman overcame a one-shot deficit heading into the final hole to claim individual honors at the City-County golf tournament Tuesday at Owensboro Country Club.
Wellman missed a short birdie putt on No. 17, leaving Daviess County senior Daniel Love ahead by one as they strode to the final tee box. Love’s drive went a little right and he finished out the hole with a bogey.
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For a full photo gallery from the game, click here.
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Wellman crushed his drive and his approach left him with a chance to at least force a playoff, but a birdie sealed the deal. He finished with a 3-under-par 69 (35-34), while Love took second place with a 30 (35-35).
“Going into that hole, I knew I had to put myself in a good position off the tee in order to finish,” Wellman said. “I was able to hit a wedge about 10 feet from the hole. Then I was able to hit a good putt. I haven’t really been playing that well going into this, so it’s good to gain some momentum and get stuff going before the region tournament.”
The finish for the girls wasn’t quite so dramatic, as Apollo sophomore Macey Brown created separation down the stretch. Using a string of birdies, she shot a 1-under par 35 on the back nine holes, finishing with a 1-over-par 73 total.
“I was a little shaky at first, but I stayed steady,” Brown said. “It’s an honor to win. I didn’t think I was going to be where I am this year.”
Brown entered the day tied with Owensboro Catholic senior Emma Payne after they each shot 38 on the front nine Monday. Payne recorded another 38 on the back, earning second place individually among the girls’ field with a 76.
In team competition, Love helped the DC boys easily claim first place with a 303. Head coach Lars King said they nearly met their season goal of breaking 300 so he was relatively pleased, but they struggled on the final few holes each day.
“It was our best round of the year as a team total,” he said. “But it’s still a little disappointing since we struggled to finish. It was a real up-and-down tournament for us.”
The biggest highlight for the Panthers came Tuesday on hole No. 13, when Chris Salamah hit his first career hole-in-one.
Salamah (34-40—74) finished second for DC and Braden Whistle (36-39—75) was third, while Nick Johnson (44-40) and Brady Huckleberry (41-43) each shot 84.
Owensboro (346) took second place with scoring from Jack Lashbrook (38-39—77), Andrew Chancellor (42-43—85), James Rhinebburger (48-43—91) and Lucas Lyons (47-46—93).
Catholic (352) finished third with help from Wellman, receiving other scores from JT Payne (42-42—84), Sam Mitchell (45-54—99) and Noah Johnson (51-49—100).
Apollo (400) place fourth and received scoring from Isaac Crabtree (44-51—95), Ethan Dych (45-52—97), Nathan Payne (48-53—101), Tanner Klee (54-53—107).
Trinity (432) took fifth with scoring from Blake McBrayer (46-49—95), Landon Huff (51-56—107), Brady McBrayer (50-60—110) and Hunter O’Bryan (61-59—120).
On the girls’ side, Payne lead the Lady Aces to a team win. Catholic shot a 343 with other scores coming from Maddi Roberts (40-43—83), Abby Bahnick (44-43—87) and Conleigh Osborne (52-45—97).
“My top three have always been solid since I got them three years ago,” said Catholic head coach Stacey Johnson. “They’ve continued to drop strokes every time. But when the four and five come out and they shave 20 or 30 strokes from the previous year, that’s what helped us win today.”
Daviess County (369) finished second as a team and got scoring from Holly Holton (41-43—84), Addison Heady (49-43—92), Emilee Clark (45-47—92) and Kirsten Henderson (52-49—101).
Apollo (398) placed third, with the rest of their scoring coming from Brooke Brown (46-54—100), Mary Lyons (50-52—102) and Addison Carter (66-57—123).
Owensboro did not field a complete team, but was led by Ellie Watson (66-73—139).
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2019 golf coverage is presented by The Pearl Club at The Summit.
