Tuesday, August 05, 2008
By Nick Brockman
Messenger Sports Reporter
nbrockman@the-messenger.com
Although Sunday’s last group out in the championship flight boasted the previous two winners of the Eli Barron Golf Tournament, the battle for first was between the lesser-known duo of the foursome.
Adam Legate took a two-stroke lead over 2007 champ Andy Roberts and three-stroke lead over five-time winner and 2006 champion Jimmy Riddle, into the final round.
By day’s end, however, Jerry Price, a 22-year-old from Owensboro who now lives in Louisville, etched his name into the record books at Madisonville Golf and Country Club, overcoming a three-stroke deficit to begin the day.
Trailing Legate by two strokes after the front nine, Price, a 2008 graduate of Murray State University, began his ascent to the top as the group moved to the back.
“I was making progress, that’s all I needed,” Price said. “The back nine is where you’ve got to make your move anyway. Just stay in it on the front nine, which is what I did.”
Price benefited from another golfer’s misfortune right before the group made the turn, however, when Legate stumbled on holes eight and nine.
Legate led Price by four strokes after seven holes, but the tide quickly turned in Price’s favor.
“It was tight,” Legate said. “I had a four-shot lead there and he made a long putt on eight (for par), and I made two bogeys on nine and ten, so three shots gone right there.”
Meanwhile Roberts and Riddle posted 37 and 38 respectively on the front nine, three and six shots behind the leader Legate at three under par.
“I just didn’t hit it good enough off the tee to score,” Roberts said.
“I had three penalty shots, so I couldn’t get it in position enough consistently to get something going.”
Roberts gained a stroke on the 11th after his second shot fell within five feet of the pin, and he tapped in for the group’s only birdie of the hole.
Price, an Owensboro native, broke away from the pack with a birdie on the 12th and an eagle on the par-five 13th.
After a strong tee shot to the middle of the fairway on 13, Price knocked his second shot, from 240 yards away, within two feet of the pin. He tapped in for eagle from there.
“That shot he hit on the par five was just amazing,” Legate said. “Two feet from 240, flip-flopped (the momentum).”
Roberts agreed with Legate that Price’s play on 13 allowed him to break away.
“That eagle he made, that pretty much separated everybody unless he made some huge mistake,” Roberts said.
After the hole, Price held a two-shot lead over Legate, his closest competitor.
Price said it was his ability to consistently hit greens that allowed him to move in front.
“I think I only missed two or three greens all day,” Price said. “I was just making routine pars and taking advantage of the shorter holes and par fives.”
Legate picked up a stroke on the next hole when Price’s drive went off the left side of the green on the par-three 14th hole. Price chipped on and two-putted for bogey and Legate finished with a par.
On the very next hole, however, Price regained his two-stroke advantage as he hit yet another green and made par, while Legate bogeyed.
Despite the two-shot lead with just three holes remaining, Price said he never felt completely in command of his competitors.
“Not really, because with this course you can make a bogey here pretty quick if you hit an off-line tee shot,” he said.
“The greens are always tricky, so I knew I had to keep making pars coming in, make them come after me since I had a two-shot lead, just trying to make, which is what I did.”
Price parred each of his final three holes, but Legate threatened to send the duo to a playoff with an eagle opportunity on the par-five 18th.
Legate made the green in two shots and had a chance to pull even with Price on a 20-foot uphill putt, but fell just short of the cup.
“I hit it pretty good, just misread it,” he said. “(Price) just played great on the back nine. I definitely didn’t play good, but I can’t take anything away from the way he played.”
Price finished with a three-under 68 on the day, one shot better than Legate for the tournament. Legate shot a 72 on Sunday while Roberts and Riddle each posted scores of 75.
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