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Georgia Tech Golf: Tyler Strafaci Wins 2020 U.S Amateur Championship

By Dylan Callaghan-Croley

BANDON, OREGON - AUGUST 16: Tyler Strafaci poses with the trophy after winning the U.S. Amateur at Bandon Dunes on August 16, 2020 in Bandon, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
BANDON, OREGON - AUGUST 16: Tyler Strafaci poses with the trophy after winning the U.S. Amateur at Bandon Dunes on August 16, 2020 in Bandon, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) /
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For the second straight year, a Georgia Tech golfer has won the U.S Amateur Championship as Tyler Strafaci took home the championship on Sunday evening.

Georgia Tech senior golfer Tyler Strafaci battled out SMU sophomore Ollie Osborne on Sunday evening in a thrilling final round of the U.S Amateur Championship at Brandon Dunes Resort in Oregon. Strafaci’s championship victory on Sunday didn’t come easy as he defeated Osborne 1-up over the course of their 36-hole matchup.

The victory for Strafaci marks the second second-straight Yellow Jacket to win the championship, following up Andy Ogletree who won last year’s tournament at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina.

Strafaci is no stranger to the limelight, earning GCAA All-American honorable mention honors in 2020 as well as All-ACC honors in both 2018 and 2020. On top of those honors, he also earned the North & South Amateur Championship as well as the Palmetto Amateur Championship this year. It’s been an incredible year for the Florida native to say the least.

The tournament for Strafaci started by finishing tied for 36th in stroke play finishing even with rounds of 71 and rounds of 72. In the round of 64, he defeated Kelly Chinn four-up before taking down Juan Perico in the round of 32 by two strokes. Strafaci’s round of 16 matchup was one you may have seen in the news this week as his opponent Segundo Oliva Pinto’s caddy cost Pinto an opportunity at winning his match against Strafaci on the 18th hole as his caddy touched the sand in a bunker. Strafaci ended up finishing the match 1-up on the Argentinian rising star.

In the quarterfinals, he would win another close matchup, this time 1-up over 29-year old amateur Stewart Hagestad. In the semifinals, he matched up against Oklahoma State’s Aman Gupta where he held off a late rally by Gupta before taking hole-18 and the victory.

That led us to the final on Sunday between Strafaci and Osburne which was an incredibly close battle throughout that was made closer thanks to back-to-back bogeys by the Tech standout on holes 16 and 17. The bogey on 17 combined with Osburne’s birdie tied the matchup heading into the 18th hole (36th overall) where Strafaci was able to earn a birdie and the championship as Osburne earned par on the hole.

Now with the U.S Amateur Championship victory, Strafaci will have the opportunity to play at the U.S Open and the Masters.