Eagle on 14 highlights magnificent finish for Jack Dyer at the National Championships
Hobbs, NM-Even during back-to-back frustrating rounds, Jack Dyer's confidence never wavered.
And despite a rocky start on Friday, which included three bogeys on the front-nine, the freshman collected himself and shot 3-under on the backside, finishing the day at 1-under par and 2-over for the tournament. He is currently tied for 23rd at the 2024 NJCAA Men's Golf National Championships at Rockwind Community Links.
Teeing off with the early group before 8 am local time, Dyer two-putted the first hole. He responded with four straight pars followed by a chip for birdie on six. But after a par on seven, the same hole that derailed his day 24 hours earlier, Dyer bogeyed eight and nine. He was 2-over heading to the back.
"It was really about trusting what coach and I have gone over with this course; trusting the numbers," Dyer said.
After a par on 10, Dyer made birdies on 11 and 13. But that was nothing compared to his approach shot on 14, a treacherous 573-yard par five that he navigated with perfection. His drive got him more than halfway home; then he delivered arguably the shot of the tournament when he delivered a 20-yard chip off the fairway that rolled into the cup for eagle. It dropped him to 2-under.
"It was a thing of beauty," Head Coach, Jaden Chavez said.
If he didn't bogey a pair of tricky par three's (15 and 17), his round would have looked even better. Especially after he birdied 18 to move to 1-under for the day.
Oh, what could have been.
There is still the outside chance that Dyer could finish in the top 20, depending on the traffic jam of players who are in front of him.