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Skaneateles, N.Y. – Yaroslav Merkulov defended his Junior title in record-breaking fashion by firing a 10-under-par 61 at Skaneateles C.C. on Wednesday. The Penfield teenager entered the day one-stroke behind leaders Andrew Lane and Ben Kircher but tallied eight birdies and an eagle en route to a double-digit victory.
The 17-year-old Merkulov etched his name into the Skaneateles record book with his round of 61 which shattered the old mark of 67 in a competitive round from the back tees. According to the Director of Golf at Skaneateles Mike Doctor, the best recreational round was set by Tom Scherrer (62) but that no longer stands after today’s top Junior mastered the 6,474-yard par-71 course.
“I was just in the zone today,” says Merkulov. “I felt like every shot I hit today, even if it was a tee shot, I was going to hole it. It was an unusual sense of confidence.” His previous personal best in a competitive round came at a high-school match from Penfield C.C. where he notched a 64.
Merkulov, who recently won the Men’s Amateur for his second NYSGA win in three weeks, entered today’s final round one stroke behind Andrew Lane and Ben Kircher following his 2-over-par 73 on Tuesday. He was disappointed with his putting stroke yesterday and said that it was his mother, of all people, who gave him advice before his final round today that proved to be the clincher. “My mom hasn’t given me a golf lesson in my life, but she had me close the face of my putter a little more and I stopped missing putts to the right,” says Merkulov.
The advice was taken with a grain of salt since Merkulov remained somewhat skeptical of his mom’s expertise on swing instruction. However, the advice paid off as Merkulov buried ten straight five-foot practice putts before teeing off. “I was coming off the practice green really confident,” says Merkulov.
The two-time Junior champion turned in a 32 on the front nine as he jumped out to a similar start to the day before with a birdie on the par-5 2nd hole. By the time he made the turn, Andrew Lane was still in contention as he picked up two quick birdies on the par-3 8th and par-4 9th. However, Merkulov’s birdie and Lane’s bogey at the par-4 11th set off a two-shot swing and gave Merkulov a momentum boost heading into the final seven holes.
From there, Merkulov was in complete control as he emotionally let out fist pumps as his signature birdie putt signal. “I wanted to win this so badly,” says Merkulov. “I had a lot of determination and grit out there today and I was focused from the first shot to the last shot.”
“When I got to 6-under, I knew that if I could just par out than I would have a 65, like Gavin, but I just told myself that these are some of the most get-able holes on the course with a short par-4, short par-3 and two par-5’s,” says Merkulov. “I told myself don’t let up. Go out there and make as many birdies as you can.”
The four-time NYSGA winner did just that. He stuck his tee shot on the left-side of the 13th green about 18 feet away from the pin which he made to move down to 7-under on the day. Merkulov then found the rough at the drive-able par-4 14th and chunked his wedge into the bunker that lay five feet ahead of him. However, Merkulov hit his bunker shot to within two feet and saved par.
On the short par-3 15th, Merkulov again stuck his tee shot in the middle of the green and just barely missed his birdie putt. He hit a driver and then a 7-iron to reach the 16th green in two and then made about an eight foot putt for eagle. At that point, Merkulov was 9-under for the day with a ten-shot lead over Andrew Lane and murmurs from the crowd began revolving around ‘course record’ talk.
The lead group and its followers in attendance watched Merkulov nearly sink a 20-foot uphill birdie putt that just missed in front of the pin by a foot. Merkulov landed his approach on the 18th from 105 yards to about 12 feet on the left fringe. He lined it up and knocked it in square as he let out a roar and shared an embrace with his mother, who watched all 36 holes between the two days, to celebrate the feat.
The family celebrations weren’t over just yet as a very important phone call with Merkulov’s father, Steven, occurred before the award ceremony. The two shared a laugh as Merkulov made his dad play a higher or lower guessing game as to what he shot. His father hoped for the best and started with a 65. Merkulov said lower until he got to 62 when his dad was incredulous at the fact that his son could shoot lower than a 62. “I love to have my parents come watch me play,” says Merkuov. “Sometimes it just makes me a little emotional to play well in front of them and make them proud of me.”
Over the past month, Merkulov won two state titles in the Men’s Amateur and Junior Amateur Championships. He also competed in the U.S. Junior’s and fell to the eventual winner in the quarterfinal round. Finally, Merkulov played in the Canon Cup which took place in Flagstaff, Arizona with good friends Gavin Hall and Dominic Bozzelli.
Submitted by Kevin Solan
NYSGA Media Intern
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