Queensland’s Jed Morgan will meet England’s Gian Marco Petrozzi in the final of the NSW Amateur Championship after a thrilling day of matches at Royal Canberra Golf Club.
Morgan, 18, from Wacol west of Brisbane, will be making his first appearance in a senior amateur title after an impressive junior career that included back-to-back NSW Junior titles in 2016/2017, a Queensland Junior Title and the Northern Territory Men’s Amateur title.
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Petrozzi got the better of a gallant Joshua Armstrong in a match that saw no less than 15 birdies between the pair in 18 holes, while Morgan got the better of Newcastle’s Blake Windred, winning one up on the last.
Morgan, while not exactly thrilled with his form late in the day, was elated to make his first State Amateur final, and paid tribute to his semi-final opponent, Windred.
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“I played pretty well this morning then this afternoon; I got off to a hot start with an eagle and birdie to be three up after three holes,”
“The golf was a bit patchy now and then, but I did enough to get it done,”
“Convincing myself that I was good enough to beat him was the hardest thing out there for me today. He’s been in great form, and I knew it was going to be tough,”
“I’ve never made a senior amateur final before, so winning all these matches has been pretty cool,” Morgan grinned.
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Morgan believes his key to victory in tomorrow’s 36-hole final will be plenty of rest, lots of hydration and a good meal tonight.
“A lot of water, a lot of food. It’s 36 holes, so it's going to be a long day. I’m going to prepare myself by getting some rest tonight and preserve myself as much as I can for out on the course,”
As for his chances, Morgan is upbeat. He played the medal rounds with the Englishman and has a good idea of what to expect.
“I played the first two rounds with him. He’s a good player. He’s fiery, so it will be a good match, it will be fun out there.
“I’m looking forward to it, definitely,” Morgan smiled.
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England’s Gian Marco Petrozzi and Canberra’s Josh Armstrong staged a battle royal around Royal ’s Westbourne course this afternoon, with the Englishman coming out on top on the very last hole.
“It was a great match, we were both well under par,” ?
“I got two up early on the back nine, then Josh got a few holes back. We were all-square coming down the last,” ??“Josh is a great player and he has a good future ahead of him. It was great to win and get into the final tomorrow,” Petrozzi said.
Petrozzi, who won the 2017 Welsh Amateur title by nine shots, is part of a four person England squad that has been in Australia for the last four weeks. and it seems to some that Petrozzi, has saved his best form till the last.
“I’ve enjoyed the trip, I haven’t played my best golf up until now. But I’ve played nicely all week and hopefully tomorrow it will happen again,” he smiled.
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The NSW Amateur has been a happy hunting ground for the English recently with names like Jack Senior, Paul Howard, and last years winner, 2016 British Amateur Champion, Scott Gregory taking the title.
When asked about joining that list of winners, Petrozzi just smiled.
“I know Scott, so that’s the idea,” he said.