WHO INVITED THIS GUY?
Tour Rookie Freitas Wins First Major In 5th Start
RANCHO PARK – The MGM Tour was officially put on notice Sunday. Its future arrived in the form of newcomer Nik Freitas who won this year’s Match Play Invitational. Over the course of 4 rounds the 36 year old’s golf game, composure, and resolve were on full display, impressing his opponents and those in his playing group. Freitas followed up a dominating 1st round victory over P-Jay Fidler by ousting defending champion Travois Gordón. He then defeated former 2-time champion Doug Vargas in the semi-Finals, and capped off his debut in match play with a 2-up win over Chris Moawad in the Finals. “Playing 4 rounds, each putt crucial, this was so hard,” said the 2015 champion. Asked what message his win sends to the Tour, Freitas playfully exclaimed, “Watch out!”
‘Crazy zen mode’
Freitas’s win wasn’t without its perils. He had built a 3-up lead through 4 and looked unstoppable until an OB on 5 opened the door for Moawad who responded by winning the next 3 holes. “I thought it was over, I did,” said Freitas of Moawad squaring the match on 7. But with momentum seemingly swung,Freitas regained the lead after landing the green on 8 (Moawad faltered on his tee shot) and added the 9th to secure the victory. “I just feel really relieved right now,” sighed Freitas before describing his emotions on the final hole. “It’s like you have to go into like some crazy zen mode. I didn’t know it was going to be this nerve-wracking.”
First hand experience
There was a bit of irony in Nik Freitas’s defeat of Chris Moawad. After all, who better to know the impact of such an early and significant win in one’s Tour career than Moawad. In 2006 the then Tour rookie won the Masters in only his 4th start on Tour, and ended the season with a win in the Tour Championship for his second major of the year. “Congratulations to him,” said Moawad. “He’s a good player and he’s going to have more wins to come. He’s going to be the guy to beat.”
1st Round
The “Battle of Tulare” proved anticlimactic as #8 P-Jay Fidler failed to win a single hole, losing to #9 Nik Freitas on the 6th hole 5and3. #5 Doug Vargas took the first 4 holes against #12 Tim Joe cruising into the quarterfinals with a 4and3 victory. #7 Clint Crump overcame a 2-down deficit thru 5 to #10 Patrick Bird before winning the match on the final hole 1-up. Previously unbeaten in the first round, #6 Gerry Vaughan fell to #11 John Frost 3and1. Said Vaughan: “I lost to Frost. It sucks.”
Quarterfinals
After winning the first 2 holes, defending champion Travois Gordon looked to be picking up where he left off, but he would drop 5 straight holes and the match to Nik Freitas 3and1. It would mark the 3rd year in a row the #9 seed defeated the defending champion before eventually winning the tournament. Reigning Tour Champion Martin Witt (first round bye), took the first 2 holes against Doug Vargas and held a 1-up lead thru 6. Their match would go the distance with Vargas prevailing 2-up. All square after 8, the match was up for grabs between Clint Crump and Chris Moawad. Faced with a difficult lie Moawad’s clutch up and down stopped 4 feet from the cup. That shot ultimately earned him the win and his first trip to the Final Four in 4 years. John Frost’s opponent, 5-time champion Armen Grigorian, withdrew, missing the tournament for the first time in his career. Frost was unfazed by his free pass to his first Final Four: “Every dog has his day, right? I was the beneficiary and I don’t discount myself at all. I showed up and that counts.”
Final Four: Missed Opportunities
John Frost’s missed putts – by mere inches – on holes 4, 5, and 7 might have changed the outcome of his match against Chris Moawad. Instead, he finished a 3and2 loser to his Hooters Champion partner. “I gave it my best shot. It was a tall order to beat Mr. Moawad.” The win would send Moawad to the Finals for the first time since 2010. Doug Vargas would indeed second-guess his decision to putt from off the 4th green instead of chip (he would lose the hole), but it was a putt on 6 that narrowly missed the cup that he anguished over. “I felt that was a momentum shift opportunity,” said Vargas who played in his 8th Final Four. He would win the 8th, cutting Freitas’s lead to 1, but watched his opponent stick his tee shot on 9. “He hit a brilliant shot to close the deal. He’s playing to win, not playing to keep a lead. He deserved it, for sure.” Said Freitas of his match-sealing final tee shot, “I hadn’t hit a good shot all day. Every hole was a struggle. That was the first time I felt the nerves go away all day.”
