By: Shane René, USGA P.J. Boatwright Intern
Fourteen years ago in Midland, Texas, Nate Smith holed a 35-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to earn his first and only win on the Korn Ferry Tour at the WNB Golf Classic.
Now 40 — the better part of a decade removed from the day he tucked his clubs away, letting dust collect so he could build a life away from the professional game — Smith found himself stalking a 25-foot putt for eagle on Saturday afternoon, tied for the lead with two college sophomores on the final hole of the 96th Idaho Men’s Amateur Championship. And just like that day at Midland Country Club, he arrived at BanBury Golf Course two strokes off the lead and walked away flexing his clutch gene and holding the trophy.
“I’m just flooded with emotions,” Smith said after the round. “We spoke yesterday — yes, maybe I don’t care as much as I used to, but I still care a lot. And this means a lot, especially getting it done on the last hole. You always want to see your competitor do something exceptional to beat you — you don’t want to win on a mistake — and I felt like I went out and took it from them. That’s rare.”
Left to right: McArthur and his father, Smith up ahead in his cart, Lekkerkerk and his girlfriend — all making their way down the 7th.
Before that putt tumbled into the heart of the hole, Smith entered the final round as the least known commodity in the final pairing — despite his professional pedigree. Derek Lekkerkerk stood on the first tee at 10-under par with a two stroke lead over Smith and recent IGA Junior standout Ashton McArthur.
Lekkerkerk had posted bogey-free scores of 30 on BanBury’s front nine each of the first two days, and used a birdie-birdie finish to get into the clubhouse Friday after a rare double-bogey at the brutish, water-laden par-3 14th. The Twin Falls native was seeking his second IGA Championship of the summer — winning the Match Play for a second consecutive year in June — and stormed into the Men’s Amateur after a deep run into the semifinals at the PNGA Men’s Amateur. McArthur was coming off a Friday 63 (-8) and is a player that Idaho’s elite amateurs have increasingly recognized as one of the most talented southern-Idaho golf products in recent memory.
“It was an absolute dogfight out there today,” Smith said. “The two guys I played with were exceptional young players; I look forward to watching them continue in the game — their careers are on a great trajectory.”
After a trio of opening pars, Smith flagged his approach into the par-5 2nd to inside of 10 feet, looking at a putt for eagle to presumably close the gap if not take the lead. But then Lekkerkerk hit his approach into less that two feet. Smith made his, Lekkerkerk cleaned up, and the lead remained unchanged. McArthur made par, falling two stokes back of Smith.
After Lekkerkerk made bogey from the bunker on the par-3 3rd, his lead shrunk to one. On the par-5 4th, Lekkerkerk found the left trees and scrambled his way up to the green. Smith then holed his green-side bunker shot for his second eagle in three holes, and Lekkerkerk missed his birdie effort.
Smith had taken his first outright lead of the tournament.
But Lekkerkerk fired back on the par-3 5th, holing a 20-foot put for birdie as Smith two putt from off the green for par. They were tied at the top again. McArthur also made birdie, keeping himself within striking distance of his playing partners.
All three players missed good looks at birdie on the 6th. Then Lekkerkerk and Smith found themselves with nearly identical putts short of the hole on the 7th. Lekkerkerk makes. Smith misses. Lekkerkerk leads again.
Lekkerkerk sent his tee shot at the on the par-3 8th hooking toward the water, taking one long hop before it disappeared into the reeds. Smith, possibly spooked by the prospect of a rightward miss, found the left bunker. McArthur showed them how it was done, hitting a proper shot at the middle of the green. Lekkerkerk caught his chip heavy, leaving himself a good 15-20 feet for bogey and Smith continued his bunker clinic, knocking one inside three feet for his par. Then Lekkerkerk poured his bogey putt in the center to keep a share of the lead.
Lekkerkerk would go on to bogey the ninth, handing the lead back to Smith who would make par. But, in a predictable fashion at this point, Lekkerkerk made birdie at the 10th, taking back a share of the lead. And when Smith found trouble at the 11th, Lekkerkerk’s par gave him the outright lead once again.
McArthur’s approach into 12
But this trend of yo-yoing leads would not let up. Lekkerkerk’s tee shot on the strategic par-5 12th found the water as he attempted to lay up with an iron, and both McArthur and Smith took outrageous lines up over the trees into the second portion of fairway. (If you’ve never played BanBury, reaching the second portion of fairway off the back tee is NOT the recommended line of play). Lekkerkerk failed to scramble his way in for par, tapping in for bogey after Smith and McArthur cleaned up for routine birdies.
Two shot swing, Smith leads at -12. Lekkerkerk -11. McArthur -10.
The 13th featured a rare laps in Smith’s bunker play, leaving himself a slippery 12-footer down the hill for par — he missed to fall back into a share of the lead.
McArthur and Lekkerkerk made routine pars, and then the final pairing held their breath and made a trio of bogeys at the often-disastrous par-3 14th.
Smith’s bunker shot into 12
The fifteenth gave all three players fair looks at birdie, but this time it was McArthur who would pay it off, bringing the final pairing into a deadlock at the top of the leaderboard at -10.
Smith nearly holed his chip on the par-3 16th, but the trio moved onto the gettable 17th where all three players missed birdie putts on nearly identical lines long of the hole — setting the stage for a three-way tie and a par-5 finish.
Finding the right trees, Lekkerkerk played first. Then McArthur and Smith followed each other with gargantuan drives into the heart of the fairway. Lekkerkerk, forced to lay up, knocked his second inside 100 yards, opening the door to McArthur and Smith. McArthur’s approach looked perfect in the air, but whether it be the heat or adrenaline, his ball pitched just over the green, leaving a delicate chip some 15 feet above the hole.
This was a moment where Smith’s background in big moments at the highest level seemed to be giving him an edge. He found the middle of the green, playing away from the tucked left pin over the water, leaving himself a quality look at eagle from 25-feet. Lekkerkerk played up and two putt for par. McArthur left his chip three feet left of the hole.
Then Smith did his thing, finding the middle of the cup right when mattered most.
“It’s difficult to win golf tournaments,” Smith said. “I’ve been doing this for a long time — with a hiatus — but it never gets any better. You have to celebrate these times because golf is full of disappointment more often then it is with success. And so when it happens it’s really special — I feel blessed to be in this moment and I’m just thankful that everything came together.”
Smith’s victory earns him a spot in the 124th U.S. Amateur Championship. Last year, he made a deep run into the quarterfinals of the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. He will join the 95th Idaho Men’s Amateur Champion, Trevor Garus, at Hazeltine National Golf Club next month, who is making his second consecutive appearance in the championship after making it through final qualifying last week.
Garus used a Saturday 65 to finish in a tie for 4th behind Lekkerkerk.
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