Kensington, Connecticut (June 13, 2025) – In match play, you never know when the key moment will present itself. For Adam Friedman, that moment came on the par-5 third hole at Shuttle Meadow Country Club during the afternoon round of the 123rd Connecticut Amateur presented by Middlesex Health championship match.
Friedman (Great River GC) blitzed Bradley Sawka during the opening 18 holes and carried a 5-up lead into the final round. However, Sawka (Ellington Ridge CC) wasn’t going to fold.
The UConn rising junior quickly started to cut into the deficit with a win on the par-4 second hole and then seemed to be in position to win the par-5 third as well.
Both players were in a strong position off the tee on the 566-yard par-5 and looking to attack. Sawka did successfully but Friedman hit maybe his worst shot of the day, firing a 4-wood off a tree leaving himself 83 yards in for his third.
With Sawka putting for eagle, Friedman’s third shot found the green leaving him 20 feet for birdie. Needing to make the putt to maintain his advantage the 2024 Connecticut Public Links winner did just that.
Two holes later, Friedman rolled in another 20-footer for birdie on the par-4 fifth to regain his 5-up advantage.
“If I didn’t make that putt on No. 3 Bradley would have won three of the last four holes in the match and momentum would have been totally with him,” Adam Friedman said. “If he had won that hole who knows what would have happened after that. But being able to make that putt and then being able to make another putt on No. 5 helped keep the cushion I needed for the eventual comeback that he made.”
The comeback Friedman is referencing began on the 131-yard par-3 13th. Following seven consecutive holes of matching pars Sawka had his back against the wall needing to win five of the last six holes just to force a playoff.
Needing to start somewhere, Sawka began his charge by nearly holing out for an ace on No. 13. The result was a conceded birdie that trimmed Friedman’s advantage to 4 up.
Another birdie for Sawka followed on the par-4 14th and then after he drilled a hard swinging right-to-left putt from 30 feet on the par-3 15th for a third straight birdie the comeback felt real.
In what felt like a blink, Sawka went from having nothing going to being right back in the match.
Meanwhile, on the other side Friedman was unfazed. “Bradley tried but you can’t birdie every hole. I just did my best to make sure I didn’t bring bogey into play. (My goal down the stretch) was to par as many holes as I could. Then if putts fell, they fell.”
For Friedman, that strategy paid off. Sawka continued to play aggressively hitting strong approach shots into Nos. 16 and 17. However, when the birdie putts didn’t drop Friedman was in position to capitalize.
First, he was in a position to tie the 16th to move the match to dormie and then he was in a position to capture the title on No. 17.
Leading 2 up with two holes remaining Friedman blasted a drive on the 383-yard par-4 17th leaving himself just 124 yards to the pin. With his 46-degree club in hand, Friedman stuffed his approach shot to three feet. Sawka now needed to make his birdie putt to extend the match. Seeking his fourth birdie in five holes, Sawka sent the putt on its way but watched as it rolled past the cup.
Once the putt rolled past the hole Sawka removed his cap and conceded the birdie putt that won Adam Friedman the 123rd Connecticut Amateur by a final tally of 3&1.
“It’s really cool to be the last man standing in a match play event,” Friedman said after his wire-to-wire victory. “I give a lot of credit to Bradley for the way he played at the end there. He really made it tough on me.”
Sawka found himself in such a big hole because Friedman played lights-out golf during the morning round. Locked in from the get go, Friedman birdied the opening hole of the match, the first of five birdies during the round.
Sawka did birdie the back-to-back par-5s late on the front nine to cut the deficit from 3 down to 1 down but Friedman just kept coming.
Friedman pushed the lead on the back nine as far 6-up before settling for a 5-up advantage at the break.
“My goal (today) was to get off to a quick start because, for some reason, the previous three morning rounds, I shot higher than all the previous three afternoon rounds,” Friedman explained. “My main focus going into this one was to make proper decisions, take your time, to go over your process, make sure you’re committed to everything you’re doing.”
That mindset worked time and time again for Friedman. It is also a process that Friedman will be able to utilize at the 125th U.S. Amateur at The Olympic Club from August 11-17.
“I’ve been trying to play in national amateur events for a while now, and I missed three of them by a shot in the last year,” Friedman said of his automatic exemption into this year’s U.S. Amateur. “So to be able to get fully exempt into this one, I mean, I just look back and think about all the hours of work and time I’ve put in. There are no guarantees in anything, but that’s why you put the work in.”
About the Connecticut State Golf Association
The Connecticut Amateur presented by Middlesex Health is one of 20 championships conducted by the Connecticut State Golf Association. The CSGA functions as an extension of the USGA and provides stewardship for amateur golf in Connecticut. Founded in 1899, it is the country’s oldest state golf association and conducts over 60 Championships, Qualifiers, and One Day Tournaments throughout the year.
