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White, Marshall Advance to Championship Match at AZ Am


For Immediate Release
August 13, 2021

Contact:

David Bataller
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(602) 944-3035

WHITE, MARSHALL ADVANCE TO CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH AT THE 97TH ARIZONA AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

2019 Champion White, AGA Tournament stalwart Marshall to battle for Kachina trophy

SCOTTSDALE – 2019 Champion Evan White and Kristoffer Marshall survived a tough day of match play to advance to the Championship Match of the 97th Arizona Amateur Championship Presented by PXG. White and Marshall each won matches in the Round of 8 and Round of 4, setting up their duel Saturday morning at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Talon Course.

“I’m super excited – I feel super blessed to have another opportunity to win this tournament means a ton to me,” said White, a 2 & 1 winner over Austin Quick in the semifinals. “It’s just so much fun, with so many good players. It’s a blast.”

“I kept it in the short grass and played to my strength – I just tried to keep things in a reasonable and manageable aspect all week,” said Marshall, a 2 & 1 victor over Reece Nilsen. “I hit it good and I was never down in any of my matches ever. That’s probably what feels the best.”

White built a 3 up lead on the 15th tee box, but Quick made birdie to White’s par to make it a two-hole advantage with three to play. But the two players matched scores on 16 and 17, ending the match in White’s favor.

“I think getting [to the Round of 4] we both played incredible matches and were making a ton of birdies,” said Scottsdale’s Quick, a Chaparral High School and Arizona State University grad. “And then we kind of stalled out a little bit and we were grinding out pars and tying. It was a grueling match, it was a great match.”

Marshall needed all 18 holes to get past Nilsen, a redshirt senior at Northern Illinois University. Leading by one on the par-5 18th tee, Marshall hit his second shot to seven feet, forcing Nilsen to press for a shot at eagle to extend the match. But his second shot fell short of the green, and the ensuing eagle chip slid past the whole, leading to the concession on the final hole.

“This week I played great in the stroke play, and I played great yesterday,” said Nilsen. “Just today I wasn’t giving myself the really good birdie opportunities I was giving myself the rest of the week.”

For White, an Arizona Amateur Championship Match is familiar territory, something he hopes will give him an advantage Saturday morning.

“Mentally I think I’m better at controlling my emotions and not giving my opponent anything by my demeanor,” said White, a redshirt sophomore at Texas State University who won in 2019 at Superstition Mountain Golf and Country Club. “In 2019 I didn’t have much match play experience. I feel like winning that and going through so many match play rounds really helped me to be prepared for this situation.”

In the Friday morning matches, White defeated upstart Anawin Pikulthong 5 & 3, making quick work of the youngest player in the field. At just 16-years-old, the Arizona State University commit and incoming junior at Hamilton High School had turned heads with his play on the Talon Course.

Quick defeated Grand Canyon University junior Mathew Braley, 2 & 1, ending Braley’s Arizona Amateur Championship run in the quarterfinals for the second straight year. Quick found himself down two after two as Braley opened birdie-par, but fought back to tie the match at the turn, and never looked back after taking the lead on 10.

Down one through nine holes, Nilsen stepped up on the back nine to defeat David Scott, 3 & 1. A Nilsen birdie on the 126-yard par-3 17th ended the match, beating Scott’s par.

Marshall needed 19 holes to take down Carl Miltun in a fantastic match that featured a combined 10 birdies. Miltun was down one on the 17th tee before a birdie evened the match, with Marshall only able to manage a par. Marshall was able to par the 19th (1st hole), eliminating Miltun’s bogey.

The Championship Match tee’s off at 6:30 a.m. at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Talon Course. Follow along on all of the Arizona Golf Association’s social media channels: Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Full Bracket can be found by clicking here.