Zahkai Brown wasn’t bothered by a four-putt on his opening hole of the Navajo Trail Open, and a quadruple bogey on the front-nine of his final round wasn’t enough to shake him off line, either.
Brown claimed a four-stroke victory in the 53rd Navajo Trail Open at Hillcrest Golf Club with a final round score of 2-over-par 73.
“You just gotta have faith. I four-putted the first hole of the tournament, then I make an 8 out there (Sunday); I guess it was all patience to get through it,” said Brown, who earned $5,500 for his victory. “Nobody played that well (Sunday), but it led to a victory for me, and I’ll take it.”
Entering Sunday with a two-stoke lead at 8 under, Brown quickly got out to 10 under with birdies on No. 3 and No. 4. Holding a five-stroke lead entering the 325-yard, par-4 sixth, Brown’s group had some time to wait on the tee box as players aimed to hit the green with their tee shots. After some downtime in the tee box, Brown stepped up to his ball and hit a big cut with his driver that left the grounds and bounced off the pavement out of bounds on Rim Drive. Playing his third shot out of the tee box, Brown repeated his same mistake, forcing him to hit his fifth shot from the tee.
Brown then pulled his driver way left of the green, and his pitch shot trickled across the putting surface and onto the fringe. After taking a quadruple-bogey 8, Brown went on to record bogey on both No. 7 and No. 8. His five-stroke lead evaporated into a one-shot deficit behind Klinton Kreiger, who overtook the lead without making a birdie on the front-nine.
“To be honest, I actually felt like those were the two best drives I hit the whole tournament,” Brown said of his two tee shots out of bounds. “I totally lost focus chatting on the tee. I didn’t even look to see which way the wind was going. As soon as I hit it, I was like ‘Oh no.’”
Brown hit a near-perfect chip onto the No. 9 green, taking a par into the turn, and he was able to regroup for the second half of his round.
Brown made a birdie on No. 10, then hit the best putt of his tournament on the 327-yard, par-4 11th. Kreiger went on to make bogey, and Brown had reclaimed a two-shot lead at 6 under. He wouldn’t relinquish the lead the rest of the day, making par on his final seven holes.
“I tried to get momentum by making birdie on 10, and then the best putt I hit all week was on 11. That was a double breaker going right and then left,” said Brown, who gave a big fist pump after making birdie on No. 11. “It was a perfect putt at the perfect time. I didn’t want to throw it away the way I was, so it was fun to hit that putt.”
Brown was playing alongside 2010 champion Keenan Holt, Kreiger and Steve Schneiter. The players in his group marveled at the way Brown recovered from the quadruple bogey and a 6-over stretch across three holes.
“It takes a lot of guts to dig down and get it done. At the end of the day, he got it accomplished,” Holt said. “Zahkai has the whole package: the mindset, the game, the short game, absolutely everything he needs to get it done.”
Kreiger found himself in second place after a tough day with the putter, the club that had carried him to 6 under entering Sunday. He finished Sunday with a 4-over 75 to finish 2 under for the tournament.
“From the first hole, I three-putted for bogey. I wasn’t too worried because I knew I was hitting it good, but I didn’t make any 5- to 10-footers all day,” he said.
With a two-stroke deficit at No. 14, Kreiger drove his ball to the back of the green on the 376-yard, downhill par-4. Brown hit a solid putt that nearly went in for eagle, but he missed 4-foot putt coming back uphill for birdie and went on to make par.
“Right there, I knew I was done,” Kreiger said. “I couldn’t have asked for an easier putt and I just dead pulled it. If you can’t make a 4-footer, it isn’t going to happen.”
Holt finished in a tie for third place with Jim Knous, who shot an even-par 71 on Sunday.
Holt’s Navajo Trail Open win in 2010 came as an amateur, and he admitted playing golf is a lot different as a professional.
“When I was out there as an amateur, it was more about making free swings and having a good time,” he said. “Now, when you are throwing down a lot of money out of your own pocket to play in these things, it is a bit different of a test. You have to concentrate a lot more, get it done and stay positive.”
Gavin Lyons finished as the low amateur for the fourth consecutive year. He shot a 1-over 72 on Sunday, and finished 1 over for the tournament.
“Four years in a row feels pretty nice,” said Lyons, who earned $750 as the low amateur. “I had been thinking about this tournament for a couple of months wanting to defend my title, and I was able to do it by being consistent all day.”
Lyons said he still is aiming to try and win the Navajo Trail Open as an amateur.
“That’s the ultimate goal, right? Of course I will be out here to defend my amateur title next year, but to take down the big thing would be even sweeter,” he said.
As for Brown, he hopes to follow in the footsteps of 2013 champion Jimmy Gunn and pass the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament at the end of the year to make it to the Web.com tour. With three wins already this summer, Brown is well on his way.
“I just gotta keep working on being patient in my process,” Brown said. “When I can do that and cut down on the big numbers and doing dumb stuff, I’m gonna be alright.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
