Top Seeded O’Neill Wins Final Match

After firing the low round of 66 for the 18-hole stroke play qualifying at The Fort GC in Indianapolis, Peter O’Neill of Carmel became the 2007 IGA Match Play Champion after five rounds of match play golf.

Peter O'Neill

O’Neill faced off against Nathan Wine of Fort Wayne in the finals, and emerged as victor with 3 strokes up on Wine with 2 holes to play.

O’Neill, who will be a freshman at Xavier University this fall, posted nothing but sub-par rounds for the four-day tournament. Turning to the back nine in the final match with 34, O’Neill had Wine 2-down to his even par nine.

The two played the first two holes all-square before O’Neill won the third hole after Wine missed the green and settled for bogey. O’Neill quickly added another win on the fourth hole, and Wine spent the remainder of the match trying to get back to all square.

Wine, who will be in his first year at University of Toledo this fall, put his new putter to good use on the fifth hole when he made a sliding 40-footer to win the hole and get one back from O’Neill.

The pair traded wins on seven and eight, and then O’Neill made a 20-footer on nine to make the turn at 2-up over Wine.

Both players elected to lay-up on the short 311-yard par four tenth hole. O’Neill, playing first, stuck his shot to about two feet from the hole. Wine matched the shot, landing his to about four feet. Wine drained his putt, but O’Neill did not allow him the hole when he too, drained his birdie putt.

The magic on Wine’s new putter momentarily wore off when he three putted the par-five #11 after reaching the fringe in two. O’Neill, who never veered from his course management strategies, got up and down from in front of the green for birdie and put Wine 3-down.

Getting back to 2-down, Wine made birdie on #13 that went unmatched by O’Neill. Both competitors halved the next two holes with pars and stood at 2-under on the back nine.

Needing to win or at least halve the hole to continue on, Wine hooked his tee shot on the 16th hole and was forced to play a provisional in case the first was out of bounds. Finding has first inbounds, Wine was forced to punch out, and his third fell wide of the green. Once again under a tree, Wine had no choice but to punch up onto the green and the ball rolled over the putting surface. Lying four with O’Neill at 15 feet in three, Wine conceded the hole and the match to O’Neill.