Former Lobo Alex Zannes wins City Golf Championship
“I was 164 yards out and had to go over one tree and under another and over the trap in front of the green. But there was a little window, so I just tried to hit something close to the green.”
Before he could snatch the trophy he had long dreamed of, former University of New Mexico golfer Alex Zannes had to avoid a near nightmarish ending in the final round of the 85th-annual Greater Albuquerque Men's City Amateur Golf Championship.
Zannes entered Sunday's final round at Los Altos of the 54-hole event with a four-shot lead over Shaun Payne.
He never surrendered the top spot throughout the day, but the final two holes got dicey.
"I guess I just had to make it exciting," Zannes said with a smile and sigh of relief after walking off the 18th green at 11-under-par and two shots clear of Payne. "I definitely did that."
Former UNM baseball standout Josh Walker posted the day’s low round at 7-under-65 to assume the clubhouse lead at 7 under. Zannes and Payne had their sights set higher and on each other.
Zannes, a Lobo from 2006-2010, headed to the short par-4 17th hole at 13 under while Payne was 10 under.
Then came a case of the jitters.
Zannes chipped over the 17th green twice -- once needing relief from a concrete gutter -- and took a double bogey 6 to fall to 11 under. But Payne didn't take full advantage and lipped a short putt for par to make bogey.
"Shaun is a grinder and I kind of expected him to make putts down the stretch, and he just barely missed on 16 and 17," Zannes said. "I didn't want to let the lead get down to two shots, because that gets uncomfortable."
But it was down to two and got even more uncomfortable when Zannes tried to play safe with a 2-iron off the tee on the par-4 18th.
He pushed his shot into the right rough in the middle of a group of trees while Payne was picture perfect off the tee.
"I was nervous," said the 38-year-old Zannes, whose previous best finish in the event was sixth. "I had never been in a position to win this tournament before.
"I was 164 yards out and had to go over one tree and under another and over the trap in front of the green. But there was a little window, so I just tried to hit something close to the green."
Then came one of the shots of his life.
"Maybe the best of my life," he said.
The 2006 Valley High graduate stroked a perfect 8-iron through the mess and stuck the approach 4 feet from the pin.
Both he and Payne two-putted short birdie attempts for the final margin.
"That's Alex," said Walker, who was watching from the green. "He gets in trouble all the time and just makes crazy birdies and pars like that. We always joke about it when we play together."
Payne, who also plays golf often with Zannes, said, "I know Alex pretty well and he had some nerves going on 17 and had a loose tee shot on 18. But I've seen him get up-and-down for par and birdie from all kinds of places. I never think he's out of it.
"I knew I had to birdie the last hole to have a chance and I hit two good shots, but I didn't make the putt anyway.
"If I didn't win it, I'm glad it was Alex."
Payne, the first-round leader after shooting a 5-under 67 on Friday at Arroyo del Oso, added "I knew how badly Alex wanted to win. He was in jail, but it didn't surprise me that he got out of it. He grinds pretty hard."
Zannes wrestled the tournament lead away from Payne after shooting an 8-under-64 on Saturday at Ladera -- which included a 6-under-30 on the front side.
Payne, 45, cut the deficit to two shots halfway through Sunday's round as Zannes made five birdies but four bogeys on a wild front nine.
But Payne, a Manzano High and UNM graduate, got no closer.
Walker, a Cibola High and UNM graduate (2008), didn't take up golf until 2020 after playing in the Baltimore Orioles minor league system for two years.
He made an immediate impact on the local links, winning the tournament's President's Flight in his first time trying the event.
On Sunday, he blazed to a 7-under start through 13 holes but then missed a number of putts by inches.
"I had it going, but stumbled coming in," he said. "I missed a 3-footer for par on 15 and missed an eagle putt by an inch on 16 and missed a birdie by an inch on 17.”
