Evan Jozwiak marked his ball on the 18th green Wednesday at Blackwood Golf Course, knowing the BCIAA boys golf championship was within his grasp.
Jared Foltz, his friend and Wilson teammate, needed to make a 20-foot bogey putt to force a playoff, which seemed unlikely.
“I really wanted him to make it because I know how much it means to him and how much it means to our whole team for him to do this,” Jozwiak said. “When he hit it, I thought it was going to be just a bit wide. It hit the back of the cup and my jaw dropped.”
Jozwiak tapped in his putt for par, headed to the 10th hole for the playoff and regained his composure. Several minutes later, he made another short par putt to win the Berks title.
“It really means a lot because I’ve worked my butt off all these summers and played in all these tournaments,” he said. “It’s really starting to pay off. Being in a competitive environment (often) set me up for success. I knew I could handle the pressure.”
Jozwiak, a junior, became Wilson’s first boys champion since Brian Weaver in 2014. He and Foltz finished with a 27-hole total of 6-over 111.
“If there was anyone out there who was going to beat me, I wanted it to be him,” Foltz said. “I knew we were going to be up there. I knew we were going to be neck and neck.”
Jozwiak held a one-stroke lead over Foltz, a senior, after 18 holes and trailed him by two entering the final two holes of regulation. Foltz missed the fairway with his drives on 17, 18 and then the playoff hole and bogeyed all three while Jozwiak parred.
“Towards the end of the day my driver started to get away from me,” Foltz said. “My last three tee shots were horrendous. The rest of the day my drives were awesome.”
Jozwiak missed the fairway on No. 18 to the left, but he crushed it past several trees. That gave him a clear look at the green.
“I had been struggling with my driver on that extra nine,” he said. “I really wanted to get into that one and send a message. It actually went a little too left. I was happy with that because I knew it opened up and gave me a really good opportunity to attack 18.”
After Foltz drove left on the playoff hole, Jozwiak split the fairway to give himself a 90-yard approach with a sand wedge. He left it about 25 feet away and two-putted for the win.
Foltz won the Lancaster County Junior Tour season title, and Jozwiak finished second.
“I’ve known Jared for a really long time,” Jozwiak said. “I know he’s always going to be a really good competitor. Coming out today, we were butting heads going after this one spot because I know we’ve both been dreaming of it. For one of us, it became a reality.”
Both golfers will remember the putt that Foltz drained to force the playoff.
“Honestly, I was hoping that my dad could be with me on that putt,” said Foltz, whose father, Russell, died in the summer. “I was hoping that we could force a playoff. I really didn’t think it was going in.”
Exeter senior Owen Wisner finished third at 115, followed by Daniel Boone senior Kole Washleski (117), Gov. Mifflin junior Nate Glovenski (119) and Exeter senior Luke Weller (121), who won a playoff for sixth place.
Nine golfers qualified for the District 3 Class 3A Tournament Oct. 8-9 at Honey Run Golf Club in York: Jozwiak, Foltz, Wisner, Washleski, Glovenski, Weller, Twin Valley senior Jeremy Wenger, Wilson junior Nate Neiswender and Exeter junior Andrew Bauer.
Nine golfers qualified for the District 3 Class 2A Tournament Oct. 8-9 at Briarwood East Golf Club in York: Wyomissing sophomore Chase Maggs, Berks Catholic sophomore JT Krynock, Berks Catholic junior David Birmingham, Hamburg sophomore Austin Zweizig, Kutztown senior Alex Rau, Berks Catholic junior Ryan Koch, Schuylkill Valley senior Tucker Jozwiak, Schuylkill Valley junior Daymond Hiester and Wyomissing junior Matt Latourelle.
Source: Berkshire mont
Be First to Comment