Just three days before the start of the Eastern Amateur, Kyle Moore didn’t even have a spot in the tournament in Portsmouth, Va.
The Eastern Amateur selection committee looked past the Weinberg sophomore from Dublin, Ohio, leaving him as an alternate.
The committee won’t look past him anymore.
Moore dominated the field with a convincing six-stroke victory in his first appearance at the Eastern Amateur.
“I was confused and couldn’t see why I wouldn’t be in the field,” said Moore. “My mom thought that maybe she filled out the application wrong.”
After some lobbying from Coach Pat Goss, Moore was moved to the top of the list of alternates. Two nights before the opening round, Moore received a phone call from the Eastern Amateur selection committee.
A player had withdrawn and a spot was open.
Moore and his family had to string together some last-minute travel plans to get him from Ohio to Virginia.
Fellow Northwestern golfer, sophomore Dan Doyle, was also playing at the Eastern Amateur and planned to drive from his hometown of Rochester, Mich to the tournament. Moore’s father drove him two hours north to Interstate 80 where Doyle picked up his teammate for the 10-hour drive.
Once Moore arrived in Portsmouth, he took full advantage of the opportunity.
From the moment he teed off Thursday until Sunday’s final hole, Moore had the lead at the Eastern Amateur. He not only won by six strokes, but he also broke the tournament scoring record of 268 with a 13-under 267.
“It felt great to win because I had never really won a big event like this,” Moore said.
“I have always been consistent, at the top of the leaderboard, but I had never really won.
“But I knew it was just a matter of time.”
And that time came Sunday, as Moore distanced himself from the field on the final day with a steady round of 1-under 69 as the rest of the field faltered.
North Carolina’s Jonathan Jackson, who was tied with Moore heading into the final round, struggled on Sunday with a 5-over 75 to finish in a tie for second with Chris McCartin and Joey McLister. Doyle finished in 12th place with a 2-under 278.
“They set the course up really hard on the last day, ” Moore said. “It was really tough to get to the pin. So I knew I had to be steady and in control all day.”
Moore fought through the difficult final round, recovering from early bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes with birdies on the seventh and ninth.
He capped off the round with a birdie on the par-5 18th hole to give him the Eastern Amateur title and the record.
For Moore, this was just a continuation of the successful spring he had at NU. Although he played at only four events, he had two top-15 finishes, including a third-place performance at the Big Ten championships.
“The Big Tens jumpstarted me,” Moore said. “It gave me confidence that I can compete against top competition.”
Moore hopes the winning trend continues this week at the Ohio State Amateur Championships in Zanesville, Ohio, at the Zanesville Country Club.
But Moore will face some tough competition from a familiar face. NU teammate Chris Wilson, who is also from Dublin, led the
tournament after the first round with a 6-under 66.
After Tuesday’s opening round, Moore was tied for ninth with a 1-under 71.
“I feel a lot more comfortable on the course,” Moore said. “And I feel like I have a lot more wins in me.”
Reach Scott Duncan at [email protected].
