The eagle has landed
- Updated: May 16, 2021
LeCroy makes eagle on 18 when birdie would do, wins RTJ Silver Lakes Championship shootout by 2
| SILVER LAKES LEADERBOARD | |||
| Jacob LeCroy | 68- | 71– | 139 |
| Corey Ray | 73- | 68– | 141 |
| Harrison Hughston | 71- | 70– | 141 |
| Andrew Brooks | 73- | 69– | 142 |
| Scott Martin | 70- | 72– | 142 |
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
SILVER LAKES – They told Jacob LeCroy on the 18thtee Sunday he needed birdie to win the RTJ Silver Lakes Championship. He did them one better.
The South Alabama sophomore hit a brilliant 9-iron from 174 yards to inside seven feet on the final hole of the tournament and slipped the eagle putt into the left side of the hole to win the most tightly contested event on the County Tour in several years by two shots.
The eagle put him in red numbers for the day (71) and gave him a two-day total of 5-under 139. Corey Ray (68) and Harrison Hughston (70) finished tied for second at 141. Andrew Brooks (69) and Scott Martin (72) tied for fourth at 142.
It was his second career win on the County Tour. He also won the 2018 Wilfred Galbraith ACC Invitational, the only Tour event he entered that year.
“My main goal there was locking up the birdie,” he said. “I was going to leave myself the best spot to make birdie, that’s all I was doing. An eagle was a by-product. I happened to hit a great shot and it just ended up working out like that.
“As coach says on par-5 even if I have a short iron in you’re looking to make the easiest 4 you can make and if you happen to get up there and you leave yourself a good eagle putt, so be it. You’re trying to make a 4.”
Ray was already in the clubhouse at 3-under and Hughston was in the process of putting out for par on 18 for 3-under when LeCroy reached the 18thtee. A birdie on 17 got him back to 3-under after he fell out of the lead with a bogey on 16 catching a flier out of the left rough with his approach shot that found the hazard behind the green.
He let the wind take his drive to the same place he was in Saturday’s opening round. He thought 8-iron might be a tad much under the circumstances, so he took the 9, the ball took the slope on the green and settled about seven feet in front of the hole, leaving him a straight uphill putt.
“It was an awesome shot; happy I did it,” he said. “Hit it just dead like I wanted: A little baby draw, the wind moved it just a shade and it landed right of the pin and rolled down therer to it. I couldn’t have done it any better.”
Seven players held at least a share of the lead during the round, four held it by themselves (but for never more than one hole) and eight times three players were tied at the top.
Martin held the solo lead on the front nine when he got to 5-under, but he made four straight bogeys coming through the turn and settled into the dogfight that was the rest of the round.
Ray got himself atop the leaderboard by making birdie on each of his last three holes. He hit 16 in 2 and two-putted from 20 feet. He made a 10-footer on 17 and tapped in for his 69 on 18.
It was his second runner-up finish in three Tour starts this season.
Three of the players in their foursome – Ray, Dane Moore and Andrew Brooks – all shot rounds under par, all finished in the top six and found themselves in the hunt late in the round. They combined for 17 birdies and an eagle.
“To be honest I don’t think either one of us thought we were even in the hunt until, really, standing on the 18th tee; I don’t think it really crossed our minds,” Ray said. “We were just trying to be the low man in our group and then we get on the 18th tee and we’re like, ‘Holy cow, we might actually be in this thing.’ It kind of snuck up on us.
“I felt like I really needed to do more on 18 to have a true chance but then when we got done that definitely changed. It felt like a playoff was possible, but then obviously that shot (LeCroy) hit on 18 was incredible.”
Hughston held the outright lead at 4-under after back-to-back birdies on 10 and 11 and had a chance to get back to 4-under on 18, but hit his drive into the high grass right of the fairway and had to take a drop. Still, he gave himself a chance at birdie when he followed what he called his worst shot of the tournament with his best shot, putting his 225-yard 5-iron approach to a tucked front left pin just off the green.
He missed the putt and then waited to see what his Donoho teammate was going to do on 18.
“I told you yesterday I hadn’t been playing like the best golf, I’ve been swinging at it good, but really hadn’t been stringing shots together and I feel like I made some progress this weekend,” Hughston said. “Obviously, I made too many mistakes to win the tournament but I didn’t let it get to me.
“I hit some great shots, put some shots together finally, and made a lot of birdies in the tournament (11).”
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