UTAH GOLF'S YEAR IN REVIEW

Brigham Gibbs

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Utah senior state amateur

by Mike Sorensen

Brigham Gibbs, who won his first Utah State Senior Amateur at Glenwild Golf Club in early June, isn’t well-known in local golf circles, even though he was born and raised in the Beehive State.

In the Senior State Amateur, Gibbs qualified for match play as the No. 8 seed and dispatched of Oakridge club champion Curtis Cook in the first round 2 and 1. Then he went up against 2015 Senior State Amateur champion Craig Wilson in the second round and also took a 2 and 1 victory.

For the quarterfinal round, Gibbs was matched up against No. 1 seed Randy Hicken of Talons Cove GC and Gibbs said later it was his best match of the week as they went to the final hole before Gibbs escaped with a 2 up victory. Then in the semifinals that afternoon, he outlasted Rich Stuart 1 up.

By the final match, whether it was exhaustion from three-straight days of playing or what, neither Gibbs nor Sampson was at his best.

Gibbs started off with a pair of bogeys to quickly fall two down, but got back to even at No. 6 when Sampson made one of three 6s on the front nine. By hole 11, Gibbs was 3 up before he “threw away” three holes and the match went back to even after 15 when Sampson birdied.

Then the match turned at the par-5 16th when Sampson’s drive found the water hazard on the left and Gibbs was able to win the hole with a par. Both players parred No. 17 and when Gibbs lagged a 40-foot putt at 18 to within inches, the match was over.