Choate Champions 35th Metropolitan Amateur
Westwood, MO - The 35th playing of the Metropolitan Amateur Championship has come to a close at Westwood Country Club. The championship started with 148 players, was cut to 42 players, and came down to one champion. This year’s field represented 44 clubs from across the Metropolitan area and had an age range of approximately 43 years. Five past champions returned to the competition this week and all five survived the cut. The players who made the cut were met with sunny skies, comfortable temperatures, and windy conditions for the Final Round. As we entered into the final day of championship play, Justin Bryant and Corey Choate were tied for the lead at five-under (-5) par. Bubba Chapman followed by Brad Carpenter sat behind the lead at three-under (-3) and two-under (-2) par, respectively. Play began at 7:00am with the final pairing taking the course at 10:23am.
In the third to last pairing, David Strickland of Tapawingo National Golf Club sat four off the lead. Strickland started the round strong with a bogey-free front nine that included three birdies. Making the turn, he was suddenly one stroke back and making a statement to the rest of the field. The back nine was not as kind to Strickland, and a bogey on the last had him finish with a total of three-under (-3) par. Though the leader in the clubhouse at that time, there were still strong competitors on the course behind him. Brad Carpenter of Franklin County Country Club and Bubba Chapman of Bellerive Country Club were paired just behind Strickland. The two fought throughout the round to stay in it. Double bogey for both on Hole 17, dropped Carpenter and Chapman back with no room left to make it up.
The final pairing saw Corey Choate challenge defending Champion, Justin Bryant. By the third hole, Corey Choate of The Legends Country Club had taken the lead with a birdie. Justin Bryant of St. Louis Country Club got off to a slow start and was in trouble by the sixth hole. Bryant tried to hold on, but was unable to find the magic he had in the first round. Dropping back, Bryant finished the championship at two-under (-2) par. Choate also found some trouble on Hole 6, but pulled himself back together following a bogey there. From that point on, Choate made par after par to finish out the rest of the round bogey-free. With an even par round for the day, Corey Choate clenched the 35th Metropolitan Amateur Champion title at five-under (-5) par.
Consistency proved to be the winning factor in this edition of the Metropolitan Amateur. No players carded all three rounds under par. Corey Choate stayed calm, cool, and collected to be the only player to have all rounds come in at even par or better. In the final round, Joe Migdal of Persimmon Woods Golf Club returned the lowest round of the day at three-under par. Six players shot rounds of two-under par today, which included David Strickland, Andrew Rottschalk of the Metropolitan eClub, Sam Migdal of St. Louis Country Club, Jarrett James of the SIGA eClub, Jason White of Tapawingo National Golf Club, and Hudson Shy of Bogey Hills Country Club. These under par rounds helped move them up the leaderboard. For Rottschalk, it moved him into the top 5, and today’s round moved J. Migdal into the top ten.
At the conclusion of the 35th Metropolitan Amateur Championship, Corey Choate is the Champion lifting the Jim Tom Blair Trophy. David Strickland is the runner-up. The top 5 is completed as follows: Justin Bryant (-2), Brad Carpenter (-1), Andrew Rottschalk (E), Joseph Willliams (E), Drew Pranger (E), Chris Kovach (E), and Thomas Wuennenberg (E). Finishing out in the top 10 are Joe Migdal (+1), Conner McCall (+1), and Bubba Chapman (+1).