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Austin Shelley Outplays Strong Field for UGA Junior State Amateur Title
Austin Shelley played his first 13 holes Wednesday like he had somewhere important to go.
Shelley eventually became the champion of the 2nd UGA Utah Junior State Amateur at Glenmoor Golf Club in South Jordan. His victory came only after some combination of the Utah Golf Association’s format change and Jaxon Erickson’s determination made him play another 23 holes after having gone 5 up.
Shelley took the trophy with a 1-up win in 36 holes, after the UGA expanded the final match from 18 holes to model the U.S. Junior Amateur. The move certainly added to Wednesday’s level of drama, with this twist: Erickson’s comeback, including a birdie on the par-4 No. 17 to extend the match, enabled Shelley’s parents to witness the conclusion.
Brian and Solhee Shelley’s trip to Glenmoor came in between the wedding ceremony and reception of their oldest son, Tyson.
In last year’s Junior State Am script, Austin Shelley would have exited by mid-morning as a 5-and-4 winner. As it was, Shelley said playing his way through the full, five-match schedule created “definitely, a ton of mixed emotions … a crazy day, but a good day” in his family’s lore.
Taking home the trophy meant a lot to the Skyline High School senior, who’s committed to BYU. Citing his talented opponents, he said, “Just knowing I could beat all of them proves a lot about my golf game.”
That list of rivals included Erickson, a University of Utah commit who plays for Riverton High School and grew up at Glenmoor. Erickson thrived in his home-course environment until Wednesday morning, as trouble with a hook off the tee contributed to his falling 5 down after 13 holes. But then he won three of the last four holes in that round and quickly was only 1 down in the afternoon, before Shelley regained control.
Runner-up, Jaxon Erickson.
“It was a rough start,” Erickson said. “I brought it back, had a great fight, but it wasn’t enough.”
Shelley responded well to the unhappy ending of the morning round, reminding himself he was still 2 up in a championship match. “I pretty much tried to forget about the last five holes,” he said.
He succeeded in regrouping, joining his oldest brother as a UGA champion. Tyson claimed the 2024 Winterchamps title. Austin, Tyson and middle brother Jackson all are entered in next month’s State Amateur.
There was some irony about the 18th green being the site of Wednesday’s awards presentation. Shelley didn’t have to play No. 18 in any of his first four matches, including a 4-and-3 win over Ryder Huish in the semifinals. In the round of 16, Shelley eliminated qualifying medalist Mack Herzog, 2 and 1.
Erickson needed a winning par on No. 18 to force extra holes with Kanyon DeRyke in the semifinals, then birdied No. 1 to end the match. Erickson had topped his longtime Glenmoor friend, Elliot Bond, in the quarterfinals, after Bond delivered a remarkable performance in the round of 16. Bond birdied nine of the first 12 holes to take a 4-up lead over Jared McCleary, then parred the next four holes (while losing one of them) to complete a 4-and-2 victory.
Feature written by Fairways Media senior writer Kurt Kragthorpe. Photos by Fairways Media/Garrit Johnson and Randy Dodson.