Wheeler Set to Face Mahon in Championship Match
ROCKWALL — A Cinderella story came to an end, a hole-in-one kept a match alive, and a 22-foot birdie putt won a match to advance to the finals. Saturday’s action at the Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play was nothing short of cinematic.
Quarterfinals: The first two matches of the day finished in runaway fashion. One-seed Brad Mason downed (8) Brock Mulder 6&5, and (4) Harrison Mahon beat (12) Steven Holtgrieve 5&4.
The bottom half of the bracket consisted of a match with former champions battling, and another in which the 31-seed continued his shocking run. Former champions Chris Wheeler and Colby Harwell faced off, and Wheeler won in comeback fashion 4&3. Wheeler teed off on the par-5 6th down two holes. By the time he teed off on the 11th hole, he was 3-up. A run of pars gave him the win on the 15th hole.
In the match where the winner was set to face Wheeler, 31-seed Shane Heise prevailed in extra holes against 7-seed Chris Minton. A birdie on the match’s 19th hole made Heise one of the final four players in the bracket.
Semifinals: In what turned out to be the match of the day, 1-seed Brad Mason teed it up against 4-seed Harrison Mahon no more than three hours after their first matches of the day began. Mahon started the match 3-up through four holes, and it looked like Brad Mason’s run as the top seed would come crashing down quickly.
Brad would go on to attempt working his way back but needed some late magic to stay alive. After a win on the 7th hole, the next six holes were halved, and Mason remained 2-down with five to play.
And then the players approached the par-3 14th.
The co-medalist grabbed a pitching wedge from his bag, and from 149 yards out, landed his tee shot 3 feet short of the hole, and it trickled in.
An ace from the 1-seed.
He then would go on to birdie the 15th, tying the match with three to play. However, the excitement did not last long, as a bogey on hole 16 pushed Mahon back to the lead. Heading to the 18th, it remained that way.
Brad Mason hit his second shot on the par-5 to around 30 feet, leaving him with a lengthy eagle putt. After narrowly missing the attempt, Mason’s birdie putt was conceded. Harrison Mahon pitched his third shot to around 22 feet, in which a made putt would halve the hole, and win the match.
And of course, that he did.
In the later match to determine Harrison Mahon’s challenger, former-champion Christopher Wheeler never trailed once. This seems to be the norm for Wheeler, as his first four matches went a total of 62 holes, and he only trailed during the play of six holes total. Wheeler is yet to see the 17th or 18th hole during his matches this week.
Weather: Temperatures never reached 90 degrees during play, giving a milder feel. Today’s matches were met with gusts at times, but rarely got to over 15 mph.
Course: Located 25 miles east of Dallas, Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club (formerly The Shores Country Club) opened in 1979 with an 18-hole championship course originally designed by Ralph Plummer. In 2012, noted Texas-based architect Jeffery Blume supervised a comprehensive remodel of the course that included reshaping and reconstructing tee boxes, fairways, bunkers and green complexes. The par-72 layout, which is situated along the northeastern edge of Lake Ray Hubbard, is artfully routed through the natural environment with a compelling mix of holes trundling up and down over the rolling terrain. Stretching to 7,393 yards from the back tees, the course features an array of strategic elements that provide a rigorous challenge for even the most accomplished players.
Tournament Format: The 27th edition of the championship began with the mid-amateur (25 years and older) starting field playing 18 holes of stroke play qualifying on Thursday, July 24. Yesterday’s Round of 32 and Round of 16 brought the remaining field to 8 players, and today’s two rounds brought the remaining field to two.
POY Points Race: Statewide Player of the Year points will be awarded to the players making it to the Round of 16. The champion will receive 750 points towards the statewide honor followed by 500 for runner-up, 400 for semifinalists, 200 for quarterfinalists, and 100 for Round of 16 participants. For more information about TGA Statewide Player of the Year points, click here.
What’s Next: The championship match will begin tomorrow morning at 7:30 am.
About the TGA: The Texas Golf Association was established in 1906 with a mission to promote the playing and advancement of the royal and ancient game of golf in Texas. The association is one of the most respected in the country with an ongoing commitment to its members, contestants, volunteers and all who strive to preserve the great traditions of the game. For more information about the Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play, click here.