America’s Ethan Fang won The 130th Amateur Championship on Saturday after coming through a tense 36-hole final against Ireland’s Gavin Tiernan at Royal St George’s Golf Club in Kent.
In a closely contested match, the seventh highest player in the world amateur rankings defeated the 1340th-ranked Tiernan by one-hole to become the 23rd champion from the United States in the history of the event and the first since Drew Weaver in 2007.
As well as adding his name to an esteemed list of champions, the 20-year-old Oklahoma State University student secured his place in The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush, the US Open and the Masters Tournament. In addition to the three major championships, he also earned an invitation to play in the Betfred British Masters, a DP World Tour event that is being held at The Belfry in August.
Fang and Tiernan, the last two players standing from the 288-player field representing 45 countries, went shot-for-shot over the first 18 holes. The Irishman took an early one-up advantage with consistent golf, while his opponent battled early nerves.
Fang quickly recovered to level the match after 14 holes with a conceded eagle. However, Tiernan regained the lead before the mid-way break with a precise tee shot on the par-3 16th, setting up a short birdie putt. He halved the 16th and 17th holes to complete a strong morning session, in which he was never behind.
After lunch, Fang returned as the more consistent of the pair, biting back to hit the front for the first time on the 23rd hole. Typical of their contest, Tiernan answered with a conceded eagle on the 25th and the pair went into the closing nine holes all square.
With the duo never separated by more than a hole, Fang finally put some space between himself and his opponent, who looked fatigued after playing 139-holes before today’s Final. Fang moved two holes clear after the 33rd following a birdie and a par, but Tiernan’s resilience was on full display for the large crowd that had gathered to witness an epic finish.
To their delight, Tiernan conjured some more magic, rolling in two lengthy birdie putts on the 34th and 35thholes to draw level with one to play.
However, Fang proved why he’s one of the world’s top amateur talents, delivering two exceptional golf swings worthy of the champion to set-up a five-foot birdie putt for the title. After Tiernan’s birdie attempt shaved the edge, Fang calmly rolled in the winning putt, securing an amateur career-defining achievement.
Speaking after the match, Fang said: “It feels great. Still doesn’t feel real yet. But I’m sure it’ll kick in, and I’ll celebrate with my team. I was hitting it well all day, and I knew if I just stayed in it, some putts would drop, kind of have him work for it, and it ended up working out. It’s probably the most consistent golf I’ve played in my life. It’s a super long championship, it and just feels really good to finally get it done.”
“I heard going into the week that an American hasn’t won this championship in 15-plus years. Representing your flag, that’s what it’s all about, and I’m glad we did it for USA. The Masters, The Open, I’m just glad it’s all done now, and I can just take a second to think about everything I did this week and just kind of enjoy it.
After playing over 140 holes just to get to the final, Tiernan was understandably deflated to have gone so far only to fall at the final hurdle. “I’m tired. Obviously, I’m disappointed,” he said. It was touch and go the whole time. I made a couple of silly mistakes around the middle part of the back nine, and that really cost me, and then had to make up for it with birdies on 16 and 17. He hit an amazing shot in on 18. Just a great birdie. Fair play to him.”
“I still feel like I am the best player here, even though I lost. I made a lot of silly mistakes that could have been avoided. I think if I played to my capabilities, I could beat anyone. Obviously, it’s fresh; I just lost on the last hole, so that doesn’t feel great. But I know in the next couple of days, in reviewing it, I’ll be pretty happy with it.”
The R&A provided live streaming coverage of the quarter-finals, semi-finals and Final, plus highlights, on www.randa.tv and The R&A’s YouTube channel, with coverage also broadcast by Sky Sports in the UK.