West Australian Jarryd Felton has come up agonisingly short in the final round of the Argentinian Strokeplay Championship.
Felton, 19, fired an even-par 70 in the final round at the Tortugas Country Club in Buenos Aires to come up one short of the host nation’s Matias Lezcano who birdied the final hole to seal victory at four under.
Felton was three over for the first seven holes and made another bogey on the 10th.
The Golf Australia national squad member rattled off three birdies from the 11th to the 17th to put himself back in the frame, but could do little more than acknowledge Lezcano who rolled in an 8m bomb on the last to sign for a 67 and avoid a playoff.
Felton was one of only three golfers who finished under par on the testing layout, with Frenchman Jeremy Gandon storming home for third at two under after a final-round 65.
Felton, a member at Perth’s Gosnells Golf Club, was the leading Aussie in a four-strong contingent, all members of the national squad.
First-round leader Cory Crawford, of Queensland, couldn’t recapture his early magic, but hung on to finish tied 10th at four over.
Cam Davis, of New South Wales, closed with a 75 to T13 finish at six over, while Victorian Brett Coletta will rue a triple-bogey to close his third round that left him with a 77 before a 69 today left him tied 15th at seven over.
All four players will now prepare for this week’s Southern Cross Invitational at the nearby Nordelta Golf Club, also in the northern suburbs.
The Invitational’s format is four rounds of strokeplay, with the three best scores each day counting towards the team’s overall score.
Teams from Canada, Chile, France, Ireland, Portugal, South Africa and the host nation will also compete.