Recap/Results
For the final AMA scoring event of 2023, 20 players played 4 rounds on the Putt18 mat and streamed their performances live in the AMA Events Facebook group. Last year’s winner David Gomm set the standard on the first day of play on November 5th with a -13. 2 Days later, Tom Loftus tied David Gomm and those held as the top scores until Friday. On November 10th, one of the top AMA competitors, Justin Seymour, scored an eagle and two pars on his last 3 holes to take first place by one stroke with a -14. With only a few players left, it was looking like Justin was going to walk home with the top spot.
Then Gary Shiff stepped up to the mat on Saturday, November 11th at 9 am central. Gary started his day off right with a Babe Ruth-esque breakfast of two hotdogs and a root beer before playing his rounds. Through 2 rounds, Gary had a strong -9 but after a 3rd round +3, he was put in a position of needing his best single round to finish first. Then it happened. Here is the text exchange between AMA founders, Tom, Aaron & Pat
That’s right! Gary needed a -9 and shot a -18 in the final round to win the event and tie the Putt18 world record that has only been made by New Zealand’s Matt Ansley. Gary finished with a -24 to win the event by 10 strokes. Congrats to Gary on one of the most impressive putting performances of 2024! Enjoy the video!
The champ, Gary Shiff
Winning scorecard. Wild that he had two bogeys in the final round.
Event Details
The 2nd 2023 AMA Putt18 Mat tournament will be played Sunday, November 5 (12:01am) through Saturday, November 11th (11:59pm central US time).
All competitors will stream their play live in the AMA Events Facebook Group so if you are an AMA member be sure to join that group to see some of the videos of people playing on the mat. We’ll be sharing videos on the rules in advance for those who aren’t familiar with playing on the mat.
Each competitor will play 4 rounds (72 holes) in succession at a time they announced in advance in the Facebook group. We’ll be utilizing the most current rules from World Pro League from Series 12 with a few differences. The unique variations are that players will be allowed to play rounds with a set of 3 USGA conforming golf balls if they opt not to use the Putt18 branded balls that come with the mat. The 3 balls must be identical in brand, year and model. Players will need to clearly show that the balls are all identical and conform to the camera before they stream their rounds if they opt to use balls other than the Putt18 branded balls. Additionally, there will be no time limit for players completing their 4 rounds.
If you are interested in learning more about the World League that happens throughout the year, check out the Putt18 World Pro League Facebook Group.