8 up with 8 to Go, Ding Wins Jr. Am Final 3&2

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BANDON, Ore. -- Wenyi Ding played virtually perfect golf for 28 holes at the demanding Bandon Dunes course on Saturday, and the result was an 8-up lead with eight holes to go in the championship match at the U.S. Junior Amateur. But he made his first bogey of the day on the 29th hole, and Caleb Surratt birdied the next four holes (one of them with a concession), cutting the deficit to 3 down. 

Golfers never actually come back from 8 down with eight to go, do they?

As it turns out, no. It did look as if it might be possible on Saturday, but it didn't happen.

After Surratt had defied the odds just by winning five holes in a row, Ding narrowly missed his birdie putt at the 16th hole, and he tapped in for a par to tie the hole and claim a 3&2 victory.

He is the first player from China to win the Junior Am, and the third to win a USGA championship. With the victory, the 17-year-old Arizona State recruit (for 2023) earned a place in this year's U.S. Amateur and next year's U.S. Open. 

Surratt, an 18-year-old who has already enrolled at the University of Tennessee for his freshman year, hadn't trailed in any of the five matches he had to win just to get to the final, and he birdied the first two holes on Saturday morning to go 2 up. But Ding had pulled even by the time they made the turn, and he won the 10th, 11th and 12th holes to take a lead that he would never relinquish. 

Ding, who is No. 20 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, was still 3 up after 17 holes. He and Surratt tied the 551-yard, par-5 18th hole with birdies. It was the sixth birdie of the day for both players, but Ding had a clean scorecard, and Surratt, who's No. 19 in the WAGRs, had five bogeys on his.

They started the afternoon session with a pair of pars at the par-4 first hole, and then Ding took over. He birdied the 224-yard, par-3 second hole and eagled the 554-yard, par-5 third to go 5 up. Both players parred the next two holes, both long par 4s (460 and 461 yards), but Ding birdied the par-3 sixth (193 yards). They tied  the par-4 seventh with birdies, and then Ding went 7 up by winning the eighth with a par.

Surratt made his third birdie of the front side at the par-5 ninth (595 yards), but he didn't win any of those holes. He turned in 34. Ding turned in 30!

Ding then hit his approach to within 3 feet of the cup at the 28th hole of the match (No. 10, 381 yards, par 4). He was 13 under for the day at that point -- and 8 up.

It was at the 455-yard, par-4 11th that he finally showed a  hint of mortality. He hit a pulled hook off the tee, and the ball ended up in a bush, which cost Ding a penalty stroke -- and a bogey. Surratt won the hole with a par. He had to win every hole to keep the match going by now, and he made a 14-foot birdie putt at the next hole, the 148-yard, par-3 12th. A gorgeous 4-iron second shot at the 564-yard, par-5 13th left him with a 15-foot eagle putt, which he just missed, but his birdie kept him alive.

Surratt hit a wedge shot stiff at the 14th (385 yards, par 4), and he won the 200-yard, par-3 15th with a conceded birdie, after Ding played Annie Annie Over (the green) with a couple of miss-hit chip shots.  

The 16th hole at Bandon Dunes is over 300 yards (it was listed at 361 yards, but it didn't play that long Saturday during the final), and both players hit 3-woods a few yards beyond pin high, just left of the green. Ding hit his pitch first, and it ran 15 feet past the hole. Surratt caught the wrong part of a slope with his pitch, and had a 25-footer for his birdie. He missed, which meant that Ding had only to two-putt for the winning par.  


U.S. Junior Amateur 

At Bandon Dunes Golf Resort 

Bandon Dunes (par 72)

Bandon Trail (par 71) 

Bandon, Ore. 

Stroke Play

Final results (the top 64 advanced to match play, beginning Wednesday 

1. Keaton Vo                    69 BT 65 BD -- 134

T2. Jaydon Ford              68 BD 68 BT -- 136

T2. Grant Lester               66 BT 70 BD -- 136

T4. Joshua Koo                69 BT 68 BD -- 137

T4. Nicholas Gross           68 BT 69 BD -- 137

T4. Jack Cantlay               67 BD 70 BT -- 137

T4. Dianchu Wu                 67 BT 70 BD -- 137

T8. Luke Potter                   69 BD 69 BT -- 138

T8. Caden Pinckes             68 BD 70 BT -- 138

T8. Zachery Pollo               69 BD 69 BT -- 138



Playoff (11 for 5)

Qualifiers

Weston Jones birdies first hole (No. 1, 367 yards, par 4)

Connor Williams pars first two holes, birdies third (No. 18, 361 yards, par 4)

Oscar Bach pars five holes

Carson Brewer pars five holes

Emilio Gil Leyva pars five holes 

Eliminated 

Sam Udovich pars first hole, double bogeys the second (No. 2, 212 yards, par 3)

Logan Batiste pars the first four holes, but bogeys the fifth (No. 2, 212 yards, par 3) 


Match Play

Round of 64

(1) Keaton Vo def. (64) Carson Brewer 4&3

(63) Oscar Bach def. (2) Jayden Ford 3&2

(3) Grant Lester def. (62) Gil Leyva 20 holes

(4) Jack Cantlay def. (61) Connor Williams 4&3

(5) Nicholas Gross def. (60) Weston Jones 5&3

(59) Aidan Cohl def. (6) Dianchao Wu 5&4

(7) Joshua Koo def. (58) Jonas Appel 3&2

(8) Caden Pinckes def. (57) Omar Khalid Hussain 4&3 

Round of 32

(32) John Broderick def. (1) Vo 1 up

(31) Caleb Surratt def. (63) Bach 3&1

(30) Nicholas Dunlap def. (3) Grant Lester 3&2

(4) Jack Cantlay def. (29) Aidan Emmerich 2 up

(37) Jeffrey Guan def. (5) Gross 1 up

(27) Johnnie Clark def. (59) Aidan Cohl 3&2

(7) Joshua Koo def. (39) Ethan Lien 3&1

(8) Cade Pinckes def. (25) JeanPhilippe Parr 2&1

(9) Luke Potter def. (24) Nicholas Prieto 5&3 

(43) Luke Clanton def. (11) Akshay Anand 5&4 

Round of 16

(16) Wenyi Ding def. (32) Broderick 5&3

(9) Potter def. (8) Pinckes 7&5 

(45) Eric Lee def. (4) Cantlay 2&1

(37) Guan def. (44) Charlie Palmer 5&4

(31) Surratt def. (50) Ethan Fang 7&5

(23) Preston Stout def. (7) Koo 3&2 

(30) Dunlap def. (46) William Love 1 up

(43) Clanton def. (27) Clark 3&1 

Quarterfinals

(16) Ding def. (9) Potter 1 up

(45) Lee def. (37) Guan 20 holes

(31) Surratt def. (23) Stout 1 up

(30) Dunlap def. (43) Clanton 19 holes

Semifinals

(16) Ding def. (45) Lee 20 holes

(31) Surratt def. (30) Dunlap 4&3

Final (36 holes)

(16) Ding def. (31) Surratt 3&2