Midway through the final round of the Championship at Berkeley Hills, at least a dozen players were in excellent position to score a victory in the Georgia PGA tournament.
None of the 14 players within two strokes of the lead after the opening round was able to establish control at the top of the leader board, with only a handful of the contenders managing to break par on the front nine.
Among the players unable to make a move on the opening nine was amateur Tyler Mitchell, who was one shot off the lead after carding a 3-under 69 the previous day, and was paired in the final group with Georgia PGA veterans Clark Spratlin and Russ Davis, who shared the lead going to the final round at 68.
Mitchell, a Chatsworth native who recently graduated from Dalton State College, was three shots behind Berkeley Hills member Matt Luckett at the turn. Consecutive birdies at holes 7, 8 and 9 moved Luckett into the lead, with fellow amateur Michael Lee of Columbus, Laurel Springs head professional Christopher Dare and Spratlin quickly joining Luckett at 5-under early on the back nine.
Birdies at the 12th hole by Lee and Luckett reduced the four-way tie for the lead to a two-man share of first place, but Mitchell was beginning to make his move behind them.
Consecutive birdies at 10, 11 and 12 pulled Mitchell within one shot of the co-leaders, and he let a chance to tie them at 6-under slip away when he failed to capitalize on a huge drive and a deft pitch at the 13th, the longest and most difficult par 4 at Berkeley Hills.
Undeterred, Mitchell came back with consecutive birdies at 14 and 15, capping a five-birdie run in six holes to take the lead. Luckett lost his share of the lead when he bogeyed the 13th before parring the last five holes to finish at 5-under. Lee, a former Georgia PGA Junior champion, stayed close until a bogey-double bogey finish ended his hopes of a victory.
Mitchell’s birdie binge ended when he bogeyed the par-4 16th, but a pair of pars at 17 and 18 was enough to secure his first individual tournament win. He finished with a second straight 69 for a 6-under 138 total and a one-stroke victory over Luckett, who closed with a 70.
Tying for third at 140 and sharing low pro honors were Kyle Owen of Dunwoody Country Club and Travis Nance of Coosa Country Club.
Owen, the winner of the Chicopee Woods Players Championship in May, birdied four of the first five holes on the back nine to get to 4-under, but parred in from there for a final round 68 after notching seven birdies on his first 14 holes.
Nance, who lost a playoff in the inaugural Rivermont Championship in April, stalled after making three birdies on a four-hole stretch on the front nine and closed with a 70, pulling even with Owen when he birdied the 17th. They both took home $1,850.
Lee and Davis tied for 5th at 141 with Jennings Mill assistant Seth McCain, whose final round 67 was the low score of the tournament. McCain. who started on the 10th hole, shot 4-under 32 on his first nine and got to 3-under for the tournament when he birdied the first hole, his 10th of the round. A double bogey at the par-3 fourth dashed his hopes of a comeback victory, with late birdies at holes 7 and 8 moving him up the leader board.
Davis, the Director of Instruction at Cherokee Town & Country Club, managed his only birdie of the day at the par-3 14th, with a bogey at 17 costing him a tie for low pro. He shot 73 after his opening 68.
Spratlin, the Director of Golf at Currahee Club in Toccoa, bogeyed three of his last seven holes after gaining a share of the lead, tying for 8th at 142 with a final round 74. Also tying for 8th was Dare, Georgia PGA veterans Stephen Keppler and Tim Weinhart, and Georgia State golfer Nathan Mallonee of Lexington.
Like Spratlin, Dare bogeyed three of his last seven holes after tying for the lead early on the back nine. Weinhart had a brief share of the lead early in the day, but a triple bogey at the par-4 fifth knocked him out of contention.
Also making a move the final day was Georgia Golf Center assistant Chris Nicol, who won the Rivermont Championship in a playoff over Nance. Nicol, in the first group of the afternoon wave off the first tee, went out in 32 and had a chance to take the lead outright, but just missed an eagle opportunity at the 10th. His birdie moved into a tie for the top, but he settled for a 70 and a tie for 13th at 141 after three bogeys over his final seven holes.
Mitchell, in the second group out off the 10th tee in the opening round, did not take long to establish himself as a championship contender. He began the first round with birdies on his first three holes, and got to 6-under on the day when he birdied the second hole and eagled the par-5 third.
But he followed with a bogey at the fourth and ended his day with back-to-back bogeys at holes 8 and 9.
Mitchell said he “lost focus on the last two holes” of the opening round, costing him the outright lead. “I was over-thinking things.”
Despite the poor finish, Mitchell “was happy I was in contention. I knew there was a lot of golf left and I tried to stay positive.”
Mitchell had not played Berkeley Hills before a tournament practice round, but took an immediate liking to the layout.
“I really love the course. It fits my eye. After I came back, I told my dad I might shoot 65 both days,” he said.
He was a little off on his prediction, but a pair of 69s was good enough to earn him the victory. Prior to the Championship at Berkeley Hills, Mitchell’s best victory came in a team event. He paired with fellow Dalton G&CC member David Noll to win the Coosa Invitational 4-Ball a little more than a week prior to the Berkeley Hills tournament.
Mitchell played just one season of college golf, with Dalton State not beginning a program until his senior year. He was the low the amateur in last year’s Georgia Open at the Legends at Chateau Elan, and tied for third in the recent GSGA Four-Ball Championship with Dalton State teammate Chase Jones at Cartersville Country Club.
Midway through the final round at Berkeley, it did not appear that Mitchell was going to add an individual victory to his team title at Coosa.
“I was one-over through nine and knew it was time to take it low on the back,” he said.
Things did not start well on the incoming nine for Mitchell, as his tee shot on the narrow 10th ended up in the right trees. He said he hit his second shot “perfect, right at the pin,” but came up just short in the greenside bunker. He blasted out to three feet for birdie and was on his way.
A tee shot to four feet on the short, par-3 11th resulted in a second straight birdie, and he made it three in a row with an even shorter birdie putt at the 12th following a huge 3-wood that got him within 65 yards of the 400-yard hole.
An even more massive 3-wood left him with another short approach on the 13th, but he missed a 6-footer for birdie that he said, “I really wanted to make.”
Mitchell pulled even with Lee when he rolled in a putt he estimated at “25 to 30 feet” on the 14th, and took the lead when he struck a wedge within two feet at the par-5 15th. He came up just short of the green with his approach on the 16th, and made bogey after chipping past the hole.
After a solid par at the 17th, Mitchell went to the 18th with a one-shot lead. With out of bounds tight down the right side, his tee shot was pulled into the left trees, leaving him with what he described as “a very dangerous” second shot through and over some encroaching obstacles.
Mitchell was able to successfully negotiate the shot into the middle of the green for an easy two-putt par and a victory he hopes will help in the process of finding a sponsor to assist him with the expenses of turning professional.
“A pro told me I need to win something and get my name out there.” Mitchell said. “I’ve got the game, but I’ve got to prove it.”
Mitchell first made a name for himself in golf when he qualified for the Georgia Amateur at the age of 14, and was headed to Macon after his victory to compete in this year’s GSGA Championship.
Mitchell was one of a number of players to offer up some highlights in the opening round. Davis holed a 5-iron for eagle on the 13th and added a pair of late birdies for a 68 to tie Spratlin, who had six birdies on his scorecard.
Charlie King, head pro at Griffin Golf Course, was 3-over after seven holes, but holed his second shot for eagle on the 17th and added five more birdies for a 69. Weinhart and Keppler both were 5-under at one point in their opening rounds before finishing with scores of 70. Weinhart faltered late with bogeys on two of his last three holes and Keppler suffered three straight bogeys at holes 11, 12 and 13 after a 5-under 31 in the front nine.
The tournament was sponsored by pennywise.ly, a do-it-yourself money management firm.