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By Stan Olenik
For Hometown News
Josh Gallman led wire to wire to claim the Palmetto Amateur Championship at the Palmetto Golf Club in Aiken. The victory gives the rising senior at USC Upstate a victory in one of the most prestigious amateur events in the country.
“This was very exciting and I really enjoyed it, I had a great time,” said Gallman. “This is a pretty big deal and it was good to win, wire to wire,” he said.
Gallman carried a three shot lead into the final round but a bad start on the last day allowed two other golfers to share the lead with the Spartan golfer during the last 18 holes.
“Five bogeys on the first nine holes kind of stunned me,” said Gallman. “It wasn’t the golf I played all week and I knew I had to settle down. I knew they were getting closer and it was going to be a new day in the last nine holes if I was going to come out with a victory and I did,” said the champion.
Gallman birdied number 14 to take the lead away from University of Alabama golfer Scott Strohmeyer and Scott Rodebush of Austin Texas, but his bogey on number sixteen put the tournament up for grabs again with the last two holes to play.
“I knew how I stood most of the tournament and the birdie on seventeen put a lot of pressure on him (Strohmeyer) on the final hole,” said Gallman.
The Alabama golfer had a chance to tie Gallman with a birdie on the final hole but his six-foot putt slipped by the hole. Gallman made his par for his first major amateur championship.
“This is a really prestigious event on the second oldest course and the original layout, winning the Palmetto is a pretty good accolade for me especially when you look at all the top players in the field,” he said.
The victory was the second for Gallman on the course. He won the 2006 Southern Cross championship as a high school senior at Gaffney. He has played in the championship each of the last four years.
“Winning here in high school let me know I had confidence playing the course. I played the same strategy that helped me win before and it helped me win again,” he said.
After an opening round three-under par 67, Gallman shot an even par 70 in the second round a two-under par 68 in the third and a final round three-over par 73 for a tournament best 278 and the one shot victory.
Strohmeyer finished alone in second place a shot behind the winner. Rodebush, Zach Sucher of Mobile, Alabama, Logan Blondell of Lakeland, Florida and Jeff Knox of Augusta all tied for third place with a 280 total. Knox won the Mid-Am division title in the tournament.
The Spartan’s golfer will next try to qualify for the Southern Amateur and has a full schedule of tournament golf set for the rest of the summer. “I hope this win opens a couple of more doors for me. “I’m looking forward to each event I’ve got coming up,” concluded Gallman.
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