AMORY – The margins were razor thin in the 16-18 boys division of Monday’s Coca-Cola Junior Golf Tour stop at River Birch Golf Course, so it was a great day for Booneville’s Barnes Nelson to get hot on the putting green.
Nelson knocked down a couple of 20-foot putts and birdied the 18th hole to win by a stroke. He finished the day at a 2-over 74, right in front of Landon Masterson at 75 and four players at 76.
“I feel good, it’s hot, and I felt even better when I saw two 20-footers for par go in, honestly,” Nelson said. “And then the birdie to seal it on 18 was very good.”
Nelson’s birdie on 18 was his only one of the day, but he made up for it with a mostly clean round otherwise, carding just three bogeys. The 20-foot putts came on the ninth and 12th holes to save par, and it turned out he needed both to hold on for the win.
“I haven’t been really confident with my putting, but whenever I was on the putting green, I was making everything,” Nelson said. “The greens are the same speed as my home course, so I knew that it wasn’t going to take a lot of break, play it to the hole and it would go in after I saw some putts fall.”
Nelson previously finished third in an earlier tour stop at Mississippi State, but topping the leaderboard on Monday was a shot in the arm for him.
“I feel relieved and accomplished,” Nelson said. “I definitely think my practice is paying off right now. I think everything’s clicking in my golf game right now, better than a few months ago. I was saying that I couldn’t do it and now I can, saying I can win first place now with a 74.”
Other winners
Katelyn Stringfellow took home first place in the 13-18 girls division at 12-over, while Ben Haynes won the 14-15 boys division at 6-over. Cameron Knight’s even-par 72 topped the 12-13 boys division, and Addison Graham won the 10-12 girls division at 23-over. Bode Mayhew was the winner of the 10-11 boys division at 5-over.
Jeremy Bumpus won the Body Armor six-hole competition, and Wyatt Williamson won the Powerade nine-hole division.
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