CHAMPIONSHIPS
Jeffrey Evanier Wins 83rd Connecticut Open Title
J
effrey Evanier held the lead at the 83rd
Connecticut Open after both the first and
second rounds. He continued his solid play
throughout his final round, making two birdies and
just one bogey to hold steady atop the leaderboard
through much of the day. But with Jason Thresher
making a move and the closing stretch playing
difficult, he knew he would need something special
to have a chance to win.
“I found out on the 14th hole that Thresher
was at 12 [under par], and I had just three putted
for par on #13, so that was a little frustrating,”
said Evanier. “I had good looks on #15 #16 and
just missed. I was hitting the ball well and couldn’t
get the putts to drop, but when I heard that Jason
bogied #18, I just tried to hold on the last few holes.
I made a couple of great saves on #17 and 18, which
were playing really tough, so I was fortunate enough
to make a couple of par’s to get into the playoff.”
12 | CSGA Links // September, 2017
Thresher matched the low round of the day
to post the clubhouse lead at eleven under-par nearly
forty-five minutes before the leaders. The two-time
defending Massachusetts Open Champion made just
one bogey on his final round, an unfortunate 3-putt
that dropped him back to -11. After an opening
round of 70, Evanier made just three bogies in his
final 36-holes.
Joining Evanier and Thresher at eleven
under-par was Max Theodorakis, who was looking
to become the first amateur since 2009 to win the
Connecticut Open. Trailing the leaders by one
stroke on the final hole, he missed the green long
and to the left. Facing one of the most difficult
pitch shots on the course and knowing he needed
to make birdie to get into the playoff, Theodorakis
hit the perfect flop shot that gently trickled down
the slope and into the cup.
“It was a really tough chip and I knew it was
www.csgalinks.org