93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship

Lake Forest native Pierce Grieve captured the 93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship via three-hole aggregate playoff over Marcus Smith.

93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship
July 16-18 • Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois (Urbana)

Day Three: Thursday, July 18, 2024

GRIEVE ‘FINALLY’ CAPTURES LONG-AWAITED WIN, HOISTS LOUIS L. EMMERSON TROPHY AT ATKINS
URBANA, Ill. - Walking off the green following his 75th hole of the 93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship Thursday at Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois, Pierce Grieve (Lake Forest) had just one word for his parents.

“Finally!” he proclaimed.

While that single-word release may have in part been a reference to the marathon-like week the Illinois State Am always represents, it was the opportunity he gave himself to hoist the Louis L. Emmerson Trophy that was such a relief to the rising senior at West Virginia University.

Related Links: (Results) / (Photo Gallery)

“It felt great,” Grieve said. “I haven’t put myself in position to win in a pretty long time. Sleeping last night on the lead felt pretty foreign to me, but it kind of reminded me of my junior golf days and high school golf days. It was definitely nice to feel those first tee jitters again and everything that goes along with that, so it’s definitely kind of a monkey off my back after not winning in a while. It feels good to be back in the winner’s circle.”

Grieve’s journey to the proverbial winner’s circle didn’t come easy, as his rounds of 70 and 69 on Thursday earned him a spot in a three-hole aggregate playoff with Marcus Smith (Rockford) following Smith’s fourth-round 65, the lowest round of the tournament. Three pars at Nos. 7, 8 and 9 secured Grieve’s victory.

Prior to Thursday, the 6-foot-6 lefty opened the Championship with a pair of 2-under-par 70s. He carded eight birdies to just four bogeys to obtain a one-shot lead over five competitors ahead of Thursday’s double-loop day. His back-nine 37 in the second round ended up being the lone over-par side of his championship run.

Mindset unchanged, Grieve returned to the course Thursday morning ready for more.

“It really was just to try to extend [the lead],” Grieve said. “One shot isn’t really a whole lot out here, especially when you’re waking up and know you have to play 36 holes. I knew No. 1 was a par-5 and I was thrilled to take advantage of that early on my first hole. I really just tried to expand that lead as much as possible.”

Following that opening birdie, Grieve carded two more at Nos. 4 and 5, along with bogeys on each subsequent hole, to turn at 35, and -5 overall. An opening bogey on the par-4 10th briefly brought the eventual champion back to even par on the day before red figures on 14 and 15 pushed the tally back under par. Grieve headed to a brief lunch break with a familiar 2-under 70 on the card for his third round.

Grieve’s ball striking clinic continued early on in Thursday afternoon’s final round. Three birdies and a bogey on the outward nine turned him in red figures for the fourth time this week. The magnetic force his golf ball and the greens seemed to share was far from warry, as he posted two final birdies at Nos. 11 and 12 to bring his score to -10.

A gruesome finishing stretch awaiting, Grieve continued the steady form that he showed throughout the week. He walked up to the lengthy par-3 17th off the heels of four-consecutive pars. With that winner’s circle awaiting, Grieve’s golf ball decided to go for a spin of its own first, as it oscillated around the cup on his par attempt leading to his second bogey of the round. A closing two-putt par at the par-4 18th brought Grieve to the clubhouse with a final score of 9-under 279 for the Championship.

“I was hitting it pretty good all week,” Grieve said after the final round. “I never really found myself in a situation where I didn’t think I could make par and that definitely saved a lot of the stress throughout the week. I’d say [my ball striking] was definitely a big help.”

Much of the time, a three-under-par round with a four-shot lead would get the job done with ease.

Smith had plans of making the win just a bit more difficult. While Grieve was out carding his fourth under-par round of the Championship, Smith was lighting up the scoreboard two groups ahead of him. He utilized birdies at Nos. 1, 3 and 9, along with an eagle at the par-5 sixth, to go out in 31 and trim his four-shot deficit to just one at the turn.

Twenty-five feet between him and a second eagle of the round, Smith found the bottom of the cup once again at the par-5 11th to take the lead by one. It pushed him to -7 on the round at the time.

Smith crossed over Stone Creek Boulevard one last time to card yet another birdie at No. 14 to reach 8-under par for the final round and 10 under on the Championship. His lone bogey of the final 18 came at No. 17 to send him to the scoring table to await his fate at -9 overall.

“I kept myself pretty well informed with how he was playing,” Grieve said of Smith’s charge with a chuckle. “It’s tough to see that ahead of you and know you have to match it. Especially seeing your lead slip away as you’re still making birdies, it’s a tough pill to swallow, but I knew there was a lot of golf left … Those last few are pretty treacherous.”

With the two both in at 9-under par, the Illinois State Amateur Championship turned to a three-hole aggregate playoff for the first time since 2021.

Keeping with the script, Grieve didn’t falter watching Smith gain a one-shot lead with a lengthy birdie make at the first playoff hole, Atkins’ par-4 seventh. Two more pars at Nos. 8 and 9 bested Smith, as the latter ran out of steam and carded two double bogeys coming in.

Finally, he got it done.

With the win, Grieve earned a trip to the 2024 U.S. Amateur Championship, Aug. 12-18, at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Minnesota – a state he’s much looking forward to returning to.

“I’m thrilled,” he said of his upcoming trip to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. “Everyone on my dad’s side lives up there, he grew up there and my grandparents are from there, so this is one I wanted to make it to. I told all of my buddies, ‘This is the week where I’m going to get it done,’ and I’m just thrilled to make that happen.”

Calling his shot, he has now etched his name next to a bevy of worthy champions.

Joining Grieve and Smith in the top five and ties were T.J. Barger (Bloomington) and Jake Wiktor (River Forest), both T3 at 2 under, and Bradley Goldstein (Highland Park), Justin Schwab (Beach Park) and Parker Wisdom (Bloomington), who closed in a tie for fifth at 1-under par.

While Grieve is off competing in a national championship, the CDGA will turn to the 9th CDGA Amateur Four-Ball Championship, Aug. 12-14, at The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See Club in Rockford.

Quotes of Note:

John Ramsey (Glenview) on making his first ever cut at the State Am at the age of 44 …
“I usually don’t participate in this, but I decided I wanted to do it this year. I had a good first round, but three not-so-good rounds after that. It was a great experience on an awesome golf course and was, as always, a top-notch event by the CDGA.”

Scot Frankenreider (Peoria) on competing as a senior-division golfer and making the cut …
“It’s been a goal of mine the last few years to make the State Am and then make the cut, which is hard to do for a guy my age. I put together some good rounds and hung in there today. It’s nice having a downstate State Am and it’s motivating getting representation from Central Illinois.”

David Keenan (Champaign) on finishing T16 in his hometown at the State Am …
“It’s awesome playing in my hometown. The news station came out and it looks like I’ll be on the local news tonight. I was super thrilled when I found out it was here at Atkins and I’m glad I ended up playing well.”

Justin Schwab (Beach Park) on his final-day performance after a slow start to the season …
“I just haven’t been playing too well all year but I focused on making fairways and greens this week and got the rock rolling early. I didn’t get too aggressive and just tried to keep a stress-free round today.

Anthony Ruthey (Port Byron) on tallying eight birdies during his final-round 69 …
“I played really well today. I made a lot of birdies. The course got very firm during the end of today’s round, so if you weren’t spot-on with your shots, the difference between a birdie and a bogey was very slim. It was a lot of fun out there – I always enjoy playing in the State Am.”

T.J. Barger (Bloomington) on his second-consecutive top-three finish at the State Am …
“I hit the ball fine today, but distance control was just a little off, so I was having trouble holding greens. Just one of those days where not much went my way. I came here to win obviously, but I put myself in a hole early, so I was just focusing on battling the last few holes and I did the best I could.

Notables:

Pierce Grieve (Lake Forest) becomes the first Illinois State Amateur champion to win via playoff since Ethan Farnam emerged victorious in 2021 at Mistwood Golf Club
The scoring average rounded out at 76.07 over the three days, with the second round on Wednesday being the hardest at 76.77. The last round of the tournament was most susceptible to scoring, averaging 73.55.
The 424-yard par-4 16th hailed as the hardest hole on the golf course throughout the four rounds, with a scoring average 4.62. A mere nine birdies were recorded by the competitors over the course of four rounds.
The easiest hole on the golf course came on the par-five sixth, measuring out at 559 yards. In total, 92 birdies were tallied, along with six eagles.
Pierce Grieve was the only golfer in the field to record four rounds under par over the course of the tournament.
Marcus Smith (Rockford) and T.J. Barger (Bloomington) were the only two golfers to finish top-five in both the 2023 and 2024 State Am. Additionally, Bradley Goldstein (Highland Park) Parker Wisdom (Bloomington) and Ben Sluzas (Lockport) recorded their third-straight top-15 placings.
The low 20 and ties (23 players in total) earned exemptions into the 2025 Illinois State Amateur Championship at Stonebridge Country Club.

Day Two: Wednesday, July 17, 2024

GRIEVE ONE SHOT CLEAR OF CROWDED STATE AM LEADERBOARD
URBANA, Ill. - At various points during the second round of the 93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship at Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois on Wednesday, two players found themselves at 6-under overall, while three more reached the -5 threshold.

None of them were Pierce Grieve (Lake Forest). Nonetheless, it’s the lanky lefty who holds a one-shot lead at 4-under through 36 holes of the 72-hole championship, as a second-straight 70 put him one stroke clear of a five-deep chasing pack.

Related Links: (Scoring) / (Photo Gallery) / (Round 3 Tee Times) / (Round 4 Tee Times) / (Pierce Grieve Interview) / (Sizzle Reel)

Starting on the back nine, a birdie on the par-5 11th was immediately negated by back-to-back bogeys, leaving the West Virginia University rising senior to turn at 37. However, the brute who defines his game as “hit it as hard as I can go find it,” didn’t let the middling stretch derail his gameplan.

“It was tough out there,” Grieve admitted. “The wind kind of switches every hole, which is definitely a little tricky. You just have to stay patient and I think I did a good job of that today. I stayed out of trouble.”

Three straight birdies on Nos. 3-5 vaulted Grieve up the leaderboard. He drove the green on the 350-yard third and two-putted to kickstart the torrid stretch before “throwing a dart” to short-range on the 175-yard par-3 fourth. Another three on the brawny 450-yard fifth hole concluded the surge.

Grieve had “pretty much zero” experience with the Atkins layout before arriving for his first round on Tuesday, but he likes what he has seen and continues to fine-tune his approach.

“I think it fits my game great,” Grieve said. “It’s pretty wide open and long.

“[Tuesday] was my first day seeing [the course], so I feel like I played a lot more conservative,” he added. “After playing it, I was able to get a little more aggressive [today] at a lot of targets.”

Conversely, T.J. Barger (Bloomington), last year’s State Am runner up, considers Atkins “one of [his] home tracks.” Barger, who played one season at Illinois before transferring to Illinois State University, estimates he has played “25-40” rounds at Atkins. He utilized that familiarity - and a change in putter - to bounce back from an opening round 71 with five birdies through his first six holes on Wednesday to attain the -6 landmark.

“I think I had like two one-putts [Tuesday],” Barger lamented about his first round. “I hit a lot of greens, hit the ball really well, and just couldn’t make any putts inside 8-10 feet. The putter I put in the bag today, I’ve used in the past, so I’m comfortable with it.”

A double on the par-4 eighth derailed Barger’s momentum. However, a birdie at the last cemented his 2-under 70 and a spot in the final pairing for Thursday’s last two rounds, during which he hopes to rely on his familiarity to one-up last year’s second-place finish.

“I think I still have the advantage even though all of these guys have seen it already,” Barger said. “[Thursday], I have to come in with the gameplan I had today - just fire at pins.”

Tied with Barger at -3 entering Thursday’s finale are Ben Sluzas (Lockport), Quinn Clifford (Chicago), Marcus Smith (Rockford) and Mason Lewis (Edwardsville). One shot further back is Carter Stevenson (Marquette Heights), who followed up his opening-round 67 with a 3-over 75 on Wednesday. First-round leader Jason Gordon (Northbrook) sits at even-par after a 6-over 78 negated his 66 from Tuesday.

In total, 36 players made the cut, which came at +4.

The final pairing of Grieve and Barger will tee off at 8:21 a.m., with their second round set to commence at 12:51 p.m.

QUOTES OF NOTE:

Pierce Grieve (Lake Forest) on how the course played differently Tuesday to Wednesday…
“We’re definitely getting a little bit more roll out in the fairways and the greens were a bit quicker, especially downhill. I think it made it a little bit shorter, but definitely trickier on the surfaces.”

TJ Barger (Bloomington) on his 18th-hole birdie…
“Coming off 17, making a bogey, I hit a pretty unfortunate shot into the left bunker and gave myself a hard bunker shot. Going into 18, I hit a great shot off the tee that led me to a nice, easy wedge. I’m always comfortable having a wedge in my hand, and I hit one inside almost gimme range. That felt great.”

Ben Sluzas (Lockport) on combining with playing partner Barger to card nine birdies on the front nine…
“We were definitely feeding off each other. I’ve known him for a long time. It’s fun to be playing good golf with him and keep the energy going.”

Mason Lewis (Edwardsville) on how the back nine played differently than the front…
“With the wind today, you had some holes on the front nine, like No. 1, which is still a short par 5 even though it was into the wind, and then six is gettable. Three is gettable. There are just a lot of birdie holes on the front. It seemed like the way the wind was, there weren’t as many on the back. It seemed like on the back, you have to think your way through it a little better, not just driver on every hole.”

Mike Milligan (Bloomington) on playing in the State Am 50 years following his 1974 triumph…
“This will be my last State Amateur. Fifty years since I’ve won it, so they said, ‘Well why don’t you play in your 50th anniversary?’ So, I’m here. It’s tough…these kids hit 100-125 yards past me, or more. I just love the game. It’s just a great game and I enjoy playing.”

NOTABLES

The scoring average for the second round Wednesday at Atkins was 76.77, in comparison to 76.64 for Tuesday's first round.
The field carded five eagles on the day. Three of them came on the 559-yard par-5 sixth, which played as the easiest hole of the day with a scoring average of 4.88.
Tuesday’s easiest hole, the 565-yard par-5 first, played to an average at over par (5.18). After seeing three eagles in round one, no threes were notched Wednesday.
The most difficult hole of the day was the 424-yard par-4 16th, on which the field averaged 4.73 strokes. Only one birdie was made on No. 16, in comparison to 75 over-par scores.
Two of the four players who call the Champaign-Urbana twin cities home made the 36-hole cut. David Keenan (Champaign) notched a 1-under 71 and sits T15 at +1 overall, while Lyle Burns (Champaign) is T18 at +2.
Pledges from event competitors, supporters and CDGA corporate partners have raised $1,740 for the CDGA Foundation through the Better Through Birdies program. Michael Horvatic (Palos Heights) and Jake Guse (Rockford) are the top fundraisers.

Day One: Tuesday, July 16, 2024

GORDON’S SCINTILLATING 66 SETS FIRST-ROUND PACE IN 93RD ILLINOIS STATE AM
URBANA, Ill. - Amongst the robust library of hits from the Rolling Stones, one of the English band’s top songs may be “Paint It, Black.” Released in 1966, the song begins with Mick Jagger echoing two simple lines that return time and time throughout:

“I see a red door and I want it painted black.”

Following the first round of the 93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship at Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois, Jason Gordon (Northbrook) may be humming a slightly different variation.

"I see an Illini orange door and I want it painted Maize."

The rising sophomore at the University of Michigan certainly walked to the beat of his own drum Tuesday amidst windy and moist course conditions, carding a bogey-free 6-under 66 to hold the lead. He sits a stroke ahead of Carter Stevenson (Marquette Heights), two in front of Marcus Smith (Rockford) and three clear of John Ramsey (Glenview).

Related Links: (Scoring) / (Photo Gallery) / (Round 2 Tee Times) / (Gordon Interview) / (Stevenson Interview)

The 19-year-old began his round as part of the afternoon wave with a quality tee shot on Atkins’ opener. He then ripped a 270-yard 3-wood pin high and two-putted for birdie. More red figures followed on the par-4 third and par-3 fourth holes. And like he did on the opener, Gordon birdied the par-5 sixth. With a four-under-through-six-hole start, he had put the field on notice in his State Amateur debut. Internally, however, he maintained a calm and centered mindset.

“It was weird,” remarked Gordon. “It was so windy to start the round, that I was just trying to take it one shot at a time and I was so focused on the next shot, that I didn’t really think about it [the start] until the wind kind of died down on No. 14, 15. At that point, I was trying to keep my foot down.”

Those aforementioned windy conditions, with steady 20-mile-an-hour-plus gusts throughout the morning and early afternoon, made the lengthy layout play even more challenging. Pair that with a drenching of rain overnight, and Gordon’s start seemed all the more impressive.
Prior to the wind dying down, Gordon pierced a 4-iron through the breeze on the par-3 ninth to 20 feet and sank the putt. He again took advantage of a par 5, with yet another four on No. 11. While the start was all anyone could have asked for, Gordon was more focused on the finish, as he has recently struggled to culminate rounds.

“Recently, I’ve kind of had trouble finishing off rounds,” admitted Gordon. “[I’m] proud of myself that I was able to stick with it and continue to make birdies and keep my foot down.”

Nos. 17 and 18 really tested that mental fortitude, as he found what he called “terrible positions” on his approaches. Recalling hours of practice on the chipping and putting green at his home course, The Glen Club, Gordon was able to save par on both to finish off the bogey-free 6-under round.

“That was definitely in the back of my mind,” said Gordon of a potential rocky finish. “The lies are so tight out here, and it’s a little wet, which makes it more difficult. Like I said, keep going through my routine and sticking to my process and letting the result happen instead of forcing it. The bad swings are going to come.”

As Gordon sits atop the leaderboard, a host of players lurk, looking to find some of that good play during Wednesday’s second round. Stevenson, a rising sophomore at Bradley University, etched four birdies in a five-hole stretch around the turn to catapult himself into the clubhouse lead following the morning wave at 5 under. Following his T-4 finish last year at Bloomington Country Club, Smith, a rising senior at Howard University, utilized five birdies to finish at 4 under. Representing the mid-amateurs, Ramsey carded a 3-under 69 with four birdies to just one bogey.

Following Tuesday’s action, 14 players sit in red figures, including 2023 event runner-up T.J. Barger (Bloomington), who fired a 2-under 70. The entire field will return to Atkins on Wednesday for the second round before a cut is made to the low 35 and ties. The remaining players will compete in Thursday’s 36-hole finale. Tee times commence at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning.

QUOTES OF NOTE:

Jason Gordon (Northbrook) on how junior and college golf prepared him for a tournament like the State Am … “I played some pretty tough golf in junior golf and that’s prepared me, along with college events that I’ve played in. The last college event I played in, I played really well. That was at a course kind of like this.”

Carter Stevenson (Marquette Heights) on his somewhat mundane start to the day … “This round was a little weird. I got here and was like “whatever.” I didn’t feel great, I’ve been battling hip injuries for a while and I was just trying to control that. I was just trying to get through the round as best as I could. Minimize the strokes so I could save myself a little bit of damage. Other than that, I just tried to play golf – didn’t pay attention to the score and just kept going.”

Marcus Smith (Rockford) on playing alongside 71-year-old Mike Milligan, who captured the 1974 State Am title … “I thought it was cool. I felt like I was playing with my grandfather. I used to play with him because he’s the one who got me started. It was cool vibes all day. He was always in a good mood.”

John Ramsey (Glenview) on Atkins’ layout … “It sets up really well for my ball flight and distance. There’s fairway bunkers that I can carry it over, or if they’re out there, these college kids are driving it into them and I’m short of them.”

NOTABLES:

The scoring average for the first round Tuesday at Atkins was 76.64. By comparison, the first-round scoring average in 2023 at Bloomington Country Club was 74.96.
In total, 20 competitors carded rounds of even-par or better.
The field carded five eagles on the day. Three of them came on the 565-yard par-5 opener, which played as the easiest hole of the day with a scoring average of 4.78.
The most difficult hole of the day was the 423-yard par-4 second, on which the field averaged 4.63 strokes. Only four birdies were tallied on the 212-yard par-3 17th, which played into a stiff wind for the majority of the day.
Three of the four players who call the Champaign-Urbana twin cities home sit in the top 28 following first-round action. Lyle Burns (Champaign) leads the trio at T7 following a 1-under 71. Eric Gilpin (Urbana) carded an even-par 72 and sits T15, while David Keenan (Champaign) shot 74 and is T-28.
Four mid-amateur (age 25 and up) players sit in the top-seven after the first round - John Ramsey (Glenview), Lyle Burns (Champaign), Brien Davis (Peoria), Jake Erickson (Chatham) and Justin Schwab (Beach Park). The State Am has not been won by a mid-amateur since Bloomington native Todd Mitchell achieved the feat as a 25-year-old in 2003.

Preview

The 111th season of amateur golf championships conducted by the CDGA slate heads back downstate for the 93rd Illinois State Amateur Championship, July 16-18, at Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois in Urbana. The week is set to consist of 72 holes of stroke play, 36 of which will be played on Thursday, July 18 after the field is cut to the low 35 and ties. New for 2024, the champion of the Illinois State Amateur will automatically qualify for this year's U.S. Amateur Championship, slated for Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota, Aug. 12-18.

Schedule

Tuesday, July 16
The entire field will play 18 holes of stroke play.

Wednesday, July 17
The entire field will play 18 holes of stroke play, with a cut to the low 35 and ties occurring after Round 2 is complete.

Thursday, July 18
The low 35 and ties will play 36 holes of stroke play to determine the winner of the Louis L. Emmerson Trophy.

CLICK HERE or the image for a full preview and notes package.

Related Links: (Full Preview) / (Round 1 Tee Times) / (Round 2 Tee Times) / (Field) / (Chicago District Golfer Preview) / (2023 Recap) / (Event History)

Championship Information

The Illinois State Amateur Championship, conducted annually by the Chicago District Golf Association, was first played in 1931 at Quincy Country Club. Initially conducted as match play until 1963, the event is now a 72-hole stroke play competition contested over three days. It is widely considered the premier amateur golf event in the state. Since the Championship was first conducted at stroke play, 46 different golfers have hoisted the Louis L. Emmerson trophy, several of which are current or former members of the PGA Tour. Hinsdale native and University of Iowa golfer Mac McClear captured his second-consecutive State Am crown in 2023 at Bloomington Country Club.

New in 2024, the Illinois State Amateur champion will automatically qualify for this year's U.S. Amateur Championship.