Furman golfer withstands heat to reach S.C. Amateur Match Play final
Duncan’s Connor Bruns never held a lead greater than 1-up all Saturday, but still managed to earn a berth in the championship match of the South Carolina Amateur Match Play after closing out a 39-hole day with a 1-up semifinal victory over Columbia’s Jarrett Grimes at Bear Creek Golf Club.
Aynor’s Johnson Holliday grabbed the other spot in Sunday’s final with a 2-up victory over Charleston’s Parker Dudley, winning the final two holes after squandering an early 4-up advantage.
Sunday’s 18-hole championship match will get underway at 8 a.m.
“I haven’t played a match-play event since back in high school. I have definitely learned a lot this week,” Bruns told a tournament liaison.
A rising sophomore at Furman, Bruns needed 21 holes to prevail in his quarterfinal match against Bluffton’s J.D. Hoft. Bruns never led after the third hole and still found himself 2-down with three holes left before back-to-back birdies at Nos. 16 and 17.
After matching pars for three holes, Bruns advanced with a birdie on the third extra hole.
Moving almost immediately into the semifinal, Bruns four times took a 1-up lead only to see Grimes answer on the very next hole. There weren’t any holes left, though, after Grimes lost his drive at No. 18 to decide it.
Holliday, a junior at USC Aiken, won his quarterfinal 2 & 1 over Columbia’s Tripp French and seemed well on his way after three birdies and an eagle in the first eight holes in his semifinal. Dudley, however, managed to pull even with two holes to play.
“It got tough when the wind kicked up,” Holliday said. “It was tough to get up-and-down (for pars). I got a little tired and my mental game slipped a little bit for a while.”
But Holliday held steadiest at the end, regaining the lead with a par at No. 17 and watching Dudley’s second shot at the 18th splash down into a pond.
This story was originally published June 18, 2016 at 8:22 PM with the headline "Furman golfer withstands heat to reach S.C. Amateur Match Play final."