Watertown, Connecticut (July 11, 2024) – The championship match of the 83rd Connecticut Junior Amateur between Luke Stennett and North Chery was a tale of two nines.
The opening nine holes at Watertown Golf Club belonged to North Chery (Great River GC) however it will be the back nine tour de force put on by Luke Stennett (Tallwood CC) that will long be remembered.
Through nine holes it looked as if the day would belong to Chery. The Hamden Hall rising senior came out of the gates clicking on all cylinders and thanks to birdies on Nos. 1, 3, and 8 plus a win with a par on No. 9 he was able to build what appeared to be an insurmountable 4 up advantage.
On the back nine Chery continued to play stellar golf but on this day very few if any players could have competed with the nine-hole performance that Stennett turned in.
After bogeying the par-3 ninth to fall 4 down Stennett gave himself a pep talk as he waited to tee off on the par-4 10th.
“I told myself I just have to make something special happen,” Luke Stennett said.
What happened next was special indeed.
Needing to cut into the deficit quickly Stennett stuffed his approach shot into No. 10 setting up his first birdie and hole victory of the day. A second consecutive birdie followed on the ensuing hole and in a blink the deficit had been cut in half.
Now with momentum on his side for the first time all day Stennett kept applying the pressure. Both players birdied the par-4 12th, Stennett’s coming as the result of a spectacular 4-wood off the tee that found the green coming to rest pin high and 20 feet from the cup. Matching pars on the next hole sent play to the par-3 15th with Chery holding on to his 2-up lead.
Still with honors Stennett hit the green with his tee shot but left himself a lengthy look at birdie. Looking to answer Chery sprayed his tee shot well right of the green and when he had some difficulty getting up and down Stennett’s birdie was conceded and he was now just 1 down.
After a pair of pars on No. 15 play progressed to the 498-yard par-5 16th. Both players missed the fairway off the tee with Stennett going right and Chery left.
With Chery slightly away and needing to navigate over and around some trees he hit what on most days would have been the shot of the day as he found the green leaving himself 30 feet for eagle.
In the rough on the opposite side of the fairway, Stennett needed to respond. With 190 yards left to the pin and a flyer lie, Stennett opted for a nine iron. The University of Rhode Island commit took a mighty lash and then watched along with everyone else as the ball landed with feathery softness coming to rest three feet from the hole.
Chery would two-putt for his fifth birdie of the match but it wouldn’t be enough as Stennett cashed in on his remarkable second shot brushing in the eagle putt that pulled him even in the match for the first time since the opening tee box.
Once tied Stennett would not be stopped. A par won the par-4 17th hole giving Stennett his first lead of the day and then on the closing par-4 he ended his 7-under 28 back nine with an exclamation point.
Stennett did find some trouble off the tee putting himself behind a tree but on this day nothing could faze the 18-year-old playing in his final Connecticut Junior Amateur.
“I had a little red tree in my way but thankfully I hit my wedges really high,” Stennett said. “So I wasn’t really thinking about the tree at all. I just told myself to get the ball on the green and set up a two-putt.”
Stennett did a little better than just finding the green landing his ball on the front edge and watching it roll out to four feet. Moments later Stennett converted his fifth birdie of the back nine and unleashed a fist pump as he capped a second nine for the ages and secured a 2-up victory.
“Winning the Connecticut Junior Amateur in my last try means everything,” said Stennett who had previously advanced as far as the semifinals. “I’ve been looking forward to this tournament so much because it’s my last Connecticut Junior Amateur. And don’t get me wrong, in the back of my mind every day, I kept saying this could be my last time playing in this amazing event. I was lucky enough to continue playing until the very end.”
Stennett also saved his best for last. His back nine 7 under 28 was the best nine-hole score he had ever recorded.
“I’ve shot two or three 29s,” Stennett said. “But shooting a 28 in these circumstances is something that I didn’t even think I could do. It gives me a great amount of confidence for the rest of the summer and for when I begin my college career at the University of Rhode Island in the fall.”
About the Connecticut State Golf Association
The Connecticut Junior Amateur 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.
