AIM Syracuse Post-Standard Am: Bard grabs a 14-shot win
Alec Bard (Donna Ditota, Syracuse.com photo)
Alec Bard shot 2-under 70 in the final round of the AIM Syracuse Post Standard Amateur, leaving his chasers in the rear view mirror and extending a 5-shot overnight lead to a 14-shot margin of victory in the 72-hole event.
The final round was played at Lakeshore Golf Club.
“I’ve never sat on a 5-stroke lead going into the last round," Bard told Donna Ditota of Syracuse.com. "I just told myself to try to beat Jack straight up today, pretend we were tied. That was the only thing that I could really do. I got off to a solid start and was able to play well on the back and bring it home.”
It was Bard's first time playing in the tournament -- and likely a direct result of the cancellation of the Monroe Invitational scheduled for June 10-14. (It's unlikely Bard would have chosen to play a 72-hole event ending on June 7 and start another 72-hole event on June 10.)
The recent Penn State graduate from New Hartford, NY had his season cut short by Coronavirus, but after an NCAA ruling has decided to forgo the job market and head back to play out his last eligible year.
"It was really tough out there," said Bard in a Central New York PGA interview (see tweet above). "The wind was whipping the entire day and the pins were really tucked ... I drove it really well and I just tried to hit the center of the greens."
The Bard family name is well known in Central New York. Alec’s older brother, Derek, was a four year golfer at University of Virginia and a standout amateur player who won the 2017 Monroe Invitational and 2015 Sunnehanna Amateur. He played last year on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Alec Bard won't go down as holding the largest margin of victory in the AIM Post-Standard Championship -- that record was set at 15 shots by Alan Foster in 1986 -- but his 7-under 279 did set the record for the lowest tournament total in history.
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ABOUT THE
AIM Championship
72-hole stroke play event played on four different
courses in the Syracuse, NY area. A cut is made after
each of the first two rounds. Non-exempt players must
prequalify.
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