DEERFIELD, Ill. – Illinois State's David Perkins prevailed against Redbird teammate Trent Wallace at the 99th Chicago District Golf Association (CDGA) Amateur Championship at Briarwood Country Club to earn the victory on Thursday.
Perkins claimed the title with a birdie putt on the fifth playoff hole in a weather-shortened championship that was shortened from 36 to 18 holes and also featured a rain delay that lasted four hours and 15 minutes.
"I'm just truly honored to win the tournament at a course like Briarwood Country Club," said Perkins, a soon-to-be junior at Illinois State. "It was a great venue all week. To add my name to the list of some of the better golfers in the Chicago area that have come through and won this event, I'm really honored."
It was a back-and-forth battle between the Redbird duo on Thursday, as the pair of teammates never built more than a two-hole advantage. Perkins' birdie on No. 17 evened the match, which is how it stood until the fifth sudden-death hole, a 535-yard par-5 fifth. After his drive escaped to the right, he was able to recover and curl in the championship-winning putt over his college teammate.
"I was ready to make it, so I just stepped up, trusted what I was doing, and just rolled it like any other putt," Perkins said.
Wallace is a two-time individual Missouri Valley Conference champion for the Redbirds and is entering his senior season in the 2018-19 academic school year, while Perkins will be a junior and earned a MVC Scholar-Athlete team selection in 2018.
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