David Ford won the Jones Cup Invitational late Sunday afternoon with a dramatic birdie putt on 18th hole at Ocean Forest Golf Club, Sea Island, Georgia. This brought the inaugural tournament in amateur golf for 2023 to a thrilling close.
Ford’s 18-foot downhill shot at the par-4 final hole, which is along the coast, won him a one-shot win against Caleb Surratt. It also earned the Peachtree Corners native, Georgia, his second major amateur championship in less than six months.
Ford, a sophomore from North Carolina, won last July’s Southern Amateur at Sea Island Golf Club’s Plantation Course. He tied the tournament scoring record at 20-under par.
After all three rounds at Ocean Forest, Ford was leading and finished at 12 under for championship. He had a round of 69 on Sunday, which saw him finish second. Ford shot 67 on Friday, and 68 on Saturday. He played the challenging par-72 layout by Rees Jones which was 7,308 yards.
Ford stated that he was very grateful for both the Southern Am and the 19th Jones Cup victories. “The Southern Am was an amazing experience. Both events were incredible.”
The field for the Jones Cup was as deep this week as any other amateur golf tournaments. The tournament attracted 40 out of the 100 top players in the Golfweek/Amateur.com rankings, as well as nine of those top 25 players.
Ford came into 2023 ranked No. 21 in these world rankings.
Caleb Surratt was the No. 1 player in the field. This week, there were 24.
He was two strokes ahead of the University of Tennessee freshman going into the final round. They battled until the end for victory along the Georgia coast.
Ford stated, “It feels really great to beat some of the really high-ranked players,” and Caleb Surratt was one of them. His ranking has risen since then, even though he was still at the Southern Am. He is one of my favorite players. I believe a lot people love to call him the best because of his skill. He never leaves. He is mentally and physically one of the most gifted people I know.
To read the entire story , click here. We also have more information from AmateurGolf.com who were there all weekend for the Jones Cup.
