Steve Jones tells a story of his young son, Garrett, bringing his golf clubs inside their house and practicing his swing, sometimes taking chips out of the ceiling.
“They’re still there today,” laughed Steve of the damage.
On Sunday at Hunters Ridge Golf Course in the 14th annual Great Cedar Rapids Open, Garrett Jones may have taken a few big chips out of the wall en route to his eventual career choice, the PGA Tour.
The 27-year-old Rewey, Wis., native aggressively protected his second-round lead and went on to post a solid if not spectacular 7-under-par 65 for the second straight day and a tournament-record total 19-under-par 197. In turning back every opponent challenge, Jones went on to claim his biggest paycheck as a golfer – $20,000.
“It was the hardest round of golf I’ve ever played I think,” said Jones, who owned a two-shot lead going into Sunday’s final round over playing partners Andy Winings, the 2010 GCRO champ, and former PGA veteran Dave Rummells, along with two others.
“I just tried not getting ahead of myself,” he said. “A lot of self talk out here, telling myself just the next shot, the next shot and not get ahead of myself.
“I did a really good job of that, I really did,” said an emotional Jones , whose biggest win to date was a NGA/Hooters Tour Winter Series event that earned him $12,000 back in 2009. “I’m really proud of myself. Man it was hard, it was really, really hard for my mind not to go places it shouldn’t. …”
“I’ve won tournaments from behind and you always hear on TV how difficult it is,” he continued. “It’s hard to win leading going into the final round not protecting (the lead) and trying to get more birdies. It’s hard,” his voice cracking, before he deadpanned, “Am I an ugly crier?”
Jones, who has contended at the GCRO, finishing fourth and seventh, rose to every challenge, especially from the Brownsburg, Ind., duo of Seth Fair and Winings.
Fair was on fire and got to 14-under-par and was three shots down after 13, playing one group in front of Jones. But he couldn’t keep it going and went even par the rest of the way. He shot a solid 67 and finished 14-under-par, good for second.
“I played well. I was comfortable from the start,” said Fair, playing in his first GCRO and paired with two other Indiana buddies in the final round. “I think I only missed one green today and I missed one green yesterday and made some good putts. I know I would have had to play extremely well to catch the leader and I didn’t think I was going to, but it’s a solid week and I’m pretty happy with it.”
Winings, after taking a triple-bogey 7 on the relatively-easy seventh hole, never gave up. He posted four straight birdies to begin the back nine on holes 10 through 13. Wowing the modest gallery following the last group, Jones matched every one of them, hole for hole. Winings then had two bogeys on the way in while Jones added one more birdie. Winings, who got a flyer on a 132-yard 9-iron on seven, hit it over the green into a hazard and the hole got worse from there. He finished in a four-way tie for fourth at 10-under 206. “I birdied 10 through 13 but unfortunately so did Garrett. Hat’s off to him. He played awesome,” said the classy Winings. “It was kind of one of those days. I hit a lot good shots and unfortunately a couple of them didn’t turn out so good. For me it was a frustrating day. Unfortunately, golf is a cruel game.”
It wasn’t for Jones on this day.
“That was a lot of fun,” said Jones of the birdie showdown with Winings. “… He did he make a run. What, we both made four in a row. That was a big point in the round for me. For what he did I matched it and that was just a big, big, big step for me, personally.
“It’s just a different way to prove to myself that I can play this game once in a while. It was a big day for me. It was hard for me not to break down on a few of those last holes,” continued Jones. “I think why I’m so emotional is that earlier this year, playing Hooters stuff, and I was missing every cut and it was hard, on the road, people supporting you and everything and just not making a paycheck week after week.
“And then since seeing a new coach in Madison (Wis.), I almost made it to U.S. Open this year, I won a small event in Wisconsin, I played well down in St. Louis in an event and now this.
“The climb from where I was four months ago is just so incredible and I think that’s why it’s so emotional. As down as I was four months ago, this is as high up as I’ve been professional so far.
“Money aside, to win like I did I feel really, really proud of myself.”
Brent Long of Carthage, Tenn., shot a 5-under 67 and finished third at 13-under.
“I know how important the front nine is,” Long said. “The front nine is so easy compared to that back nine and if you can shoot 4-5 under on the front, I knew I had a good chance of being in contention and maybe getting a ‘W,’ but I started off real slow and had a lot pars.”
Long had only one birdie on the front side Sunday, but made straight after making the turn.
Winings, Rummells, Robby Ormand of Austin, Texas, and Carlos Sainz of Elgin, Ill., all tied for fourth at 10-under 206. Eric Steger of Noblesville, Ind., and Chase Wright of Bloomington, Ind., who had it to 12-under at one point, tied for ninth at 9-under.
Sainz fired a 6-under 66 Sunday and was second only to Jones for round of the day. Rummells was the Senior Division champ for the second time, but he never got it going Sunday in shooting an even-par 72, just like Winings.
“It’s a little frustrating because you want to compete and want to win the regular division,” said Rummells of his bittersweet Seniors win, “but the way Garrett was playing today I don’t think it would have mattered much. He played so good.”
Defending senior champ Greg Sweatt of Irmo, S.C., finished second in the seven-man division at 3-over 219, 13 shots behind Rummells.
Kevin Ault, competing for the first time here, won the Amateur Division but not without a little nail biting.
After two straight rounds of 2-under 70, Ault ballooned to an 80 Sunday and ended up in a tie with Ryan Schrimper of Marion. Both parred the first playoff hole, but Schrimper pulled his tee shot on the par-3 fourth, Ault two-putted from 50-feet and won the title.
More to come on the Seniors and Amateurs later this week. To see videos from Sunday’s final round, visit our YouTube channel.
Don Wojciechowski resides in the Hunters Ridge Golf Course community and plays the course on a regular basis. He’s a former sports editor for a suburban Chicago daily newspaper and an avid golf fan.