Well, This Year’s U.S. Mid-Am Ending Was Awkward
- Updated: September 26, 2019
@GOLF_com
Closing out a match is never easy, especially when it’s the USGA Mid-Am and there are U.S. Open and Masters invitations on the line. It’s even more difficult when you have a 3-foot putt and your opponent fakes conceding and makes you hole it. Wait … what?
Take a listen to this clip from The Fried Egg podcast where 2019 USGA Mid-Am champ Lukas Michel explains the awkwardness that ensued on the 35th hole during the championship match against Joseph Deraney at Colorado Golf Club.
2019 U.S. Mid Am champion @LukasJMichel joins the podcast to talk about his win at Colorado Golf Club, his career to date, plans for the future and the awkward moment on the final hole of the final match. Listen on iTunes and Spotify.
— the fried egg (@the_fried_egg) September 24, 2019
iTunes: https://t.co/fifcRYZvt9 pic.twitter.com/E0Zfejk0mL
“The more I think about it the more I’m like wait a minute this guy was definitely trying to do something dodgy here.
We got to the 35th hole nd it was dormie in my favor [2-up with 2 to play.]
We both hit the green. I hit it about 30 feet and putted it up to 3 feet.
He had a 12 footer which if he holed for birdie we go to 18. If he missed I would then have to hole my 3-footer to halve the hole and win the event.
Well when he missed his 12-footer, he took off his hat and started walking towards me and I’m thinking ‘gee that’s a generous gimme he’s giving me here, but I’m also thinking ‘hold on … what’s going on?’
He comes over, extends out his hand, and I can’t remember exactly what he said but he said like ‘I’m making you putt this or something along those lines. Like it’s not a gimme, but good luck and shakes my hand.
Meanwhile, the USGA official thinks it’s done and he’s running over with the trophy towards me. And I have to go ‘No, it’s not good. I have to putt this’ and wave him off.”
Michel went on to hole the par putt, thankfully. But can you imagine the mess that would’ve been?!
Lukas Michel has done it!
— USGA (@USGA) September 19, 2019
The #USMidAm goes to the Aussie! pic.twitter.com/hxW5ofkLXx
If you call this gamesmanship, we call this B.S. In what world does taking your hat off and extending your arm for a handshake means NOT a concession? The damn USGA official was going to hand him the trophy.
Got to hand it to the 25-year-old Aussie credit for resetting himself and not blowing a chance to go to the Masters.
While we haven’t heard Deraney’s side of the story, there’s no way we’re buying he got confused or didn’t know the situation. You know exactly the deal when you’re in the finals of a USGA event.
But really though, if … IF this was a calculated play by Deraney to freeze Michel and get the match to the 18th hole, it was cold-blooded and borderline insane by golf standards.
What is the U.S. Mid-Am?
The U.S. Mid-Amateur is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for post-college amateur golfers, organized by the USGA. Competitors must be at least 25 years old as of the opening day of the main tournament. Competitors must have a USGA handicap index of 3.4 or lower, as opposed to 2.4 or lower for the U.S. Amateur.
Format: two days of stroke play, with the leading 64 competitors then playing a knockout competition held at match play to decide the champion.
Lukas Michel is from Australia and is the first international player to win since the tournament began in 1981.
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