The first 18 holes of the SA Smith West Texas Junior Invitational set the stage for an epic final round, and it didn’t disappoint.
Both the boys and girls competitions featured duels that tested the eventual champions, who both sat on overnight leads.
Odessa’s Chase Williams won the Boys 13-18 division, with a lights-out performance that allowed him to hold off Midland’s Kellen Young.
“It feels great. It’s my first big tournament win, put two solid rounds together, 69, 68 with a 31 back nine yesterday and a 32 back nine today, so I’m feeling really good going into my next tournament,” Williams said.
Williams and Young matched each other throughout the first nine, with the latter notching three birdies in a four-hole stretch to erase the one-shot lead held by Williams after the opening round.
As was the case Wednesday, however ,Williams was dominant on the back nine.
While both birdied No. 10, Williams fired off a drive that left him with just a pitch onto Odessa Country Club’s Old Course’s 11th hole.
He would make birdie, and would further extend his lead after Young bogeyed the par-4 12th.
Young refused to back down, making back-to-back birdies on 14 and 15 after a pair of stellar iron shots, tying things up with three to play.
But Williams wasn’t going to give another tournament away.
“I wanted to win that bad. I wasn’t gonna let another one slip away like I have before.”
Both hit great drives off 16 tee, with Young’s ball just catching the rough on the right side and William’s up the left-center of the fairway.
Williams would pitch onto the surface and proceed to drain the 15-foot putt, which was quickly followed by a fist pump.
After a bogey from Young on the same hole, Williams stepped up to the tee on the par-3 17th and fired an iron to 15 feet.
He would drain yet another long birdie, effectively sealing the win.
On the Girls 13-18 side, Alexandra Escamilla put together another great round to defend her title.
Stephanie De Marco, who entered the final round three back, didn’t let Escamilla get the win without a good run for her money, however.
The 13-year-old matched Escamilla with an even-par front nine, missing just a single green and fairway over that stretch.
Although the defending champion would go through a rough stretch, including finding a near-perfect drive stymied behind a tree, she kept her nerves in check to close out the tournament.
“I really focused on my breathing, just taking it one shot at a time and not worrying about what anyone else was doing except for myself. I was really just focusing on getting my tee shots where they needed to be,” said Escamilla.
“Once I did that, I felt like I could finish it out from there.”
She would go on to close the tournament out in style, holing a 30-foot putt on the 18th green for par and a three-shot victory.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect to make that putt. I was just trying to lag it close, but then I started walking and I said wait, that kinda has a chance, and then it ended up going in,” said Escamilla.
Despite the thrilling finish and wire-to-wire win, the Lubbock Christian commit was humble in her victory.
“I’m super excited. Stephanie put up a good fight today, so that was actually pretty fun having someone to battle it out with.”
With the wins, both Escamilla and Williams earned exemptions into the Texas Junior Am, and will play together on the NTPGA Ben Hogan Cup team in August, carrying some added confidence coming off wins here at home in West Texas.
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