Andrew Martin overcomes setbacks to win Australian Amateur
IN: News | Australian Mens Amateur | Australian Amateur Championship (2004) | Wrap | 24 Mar 2004
Displaying the outstanding talent he no doubt possesses, 19-year-old Victorian, Andrew Martin, overcame the heartbreak of career threatening wrist injury he incurred late last year, to win the final of the Australian Amateur Championship at Royal Adelaide today.
In what was a gripping final, the Bendigo native and AIS Scholarship holder, reeled off four consecutive birdies from the 14th, having fallen one hole behind at the 13th, to finish his thirty-six hole match with fellow Victorian Jarrod Lyle at the 17th, beating him 2 & 1.
It was an impressive win against the more experienced and credentialed 19-year-old Lyle, who earlier this year had won the Lake Macquarie Amateur for the second consecutive year.
It completed a fairytale week for the Martin who had survived a playoff for one of the last places in the matchplay field.
Martin, who now plays his golf at the Yarra Yarra Golf Club, returns to Pennant Golf next week, but the elevation he receives as a result of this win must surely now mean he will be on the verge of joining the 2004 AGU National squad and as a result, be playing many of the national trial events in coming weeks. After all he beat three members of that squad (Robin Hodgetts, Henry Perks and Jarrod Lyle) on his way to victory.
It was one of only a few victories by Victorian golfers in the event in recent years. Brad Lamb won in 2000 but we need to go back to 1979 to John Kelly, to find the previous winner from Victoria.
The next event on the national calendar for the potential Australian Team members is the Mandurah Easter Amateur Championship.
