Chris Selfridge Wins North of Ireland Amateur
7/13/2013 11:58:00 PM | Men's Golf
TOLEDO, OH - Junior-to-be Chris Selfridge captured another title at the Royal Portrush Golf Club with a victory in the championship match of the 2013 North of Ireland Amateur Championship. Selfirdge captured the Irish Amateur at Royal Portrush last summer.
Selfridge posted a 2 & 1 triumph today over Gary Hurley to win the title. He closed out the match on the 17th hole when he put his third shot on the par-five hole to within six inches. Hurley then needed to hole his chip for eagle but his attempt missed to the right.
Selfridge trailed by one through three holes before evening the match on the fourth hole with a 20-foot birdie putt. The match remained all square until Selfridge took the lead on the ninth hole only to see Hurley even the contest on the 10th hole.
Selfridge then took the lead for good when he sank a 25-foot birdie putt on No. 12. He then gained some breathing room when Hurley conceded the 15th hole.
Selfridge reached the finals by winning a pair of matches by 3 & 2 margins on Friday, defeating No. 1 seed Brian Casey (135) and No. 5 seed Cormac Sharvin (137). The two-time All-MAC selection took the lead for good in his quarterfinal match on the sixth hole before winning the first hole in the semifinals and never looking back.
Selfridge, who entered match play ranked No. 57 after shooting rounds of 76-71=147 in qualifying, Hurley (141) was the No. 15 seed.
A Castledawson, Northern Ireland native, Selfridge posted victories over fellow Rocket Jamie Richardson (146), 2 & 1; No. 12 seed Ryan Symington (140), 4 & 3; and No. 59 seed Michael Sinclair (147), 6 & 5 to reach the quarterfinals.
Selfridge enjoyed a stellar sophomore campaign and was named to the PING All-Midwest Region team after leading the MAC with a 72.1 stroke average. He finished as the top Rocket in nine of the 10 events that he competed and also registered nine Top-20 individual finishes, eight in the Top 10 and five among the Top Five -- including his first career win at the Georgetown Intercollegiate on Oct. 22-23 and a runner-up showing at the MAC Championship.
Selfridge has earned All-MAC accolades in each of his first two years as a Rocket, receiving second-team honors as a freshman before garnering first-team laurels this past season. He also became the first Toledo golfer to participate in the NCAA Regionals since 2004, tying for 25th place at the Columbus Regional.
Players Mentioned
