MONTEREY, Calif. -- USF senior Cory McElyea won the 102nd California State Amateur today at Monterey Peninsula Country Club, defeating Bryson Dechambeau, 3&2 in the 36-hole final.
McElyea got out to a fast start but had to hold off Dechambeau down the stetch to capture won of the most prestigious titles in amateur golf.
McElyea built a 7-up lead over the SMU sophomore after 12 holes, but Dechambeau won three of the last five holes to cut the lead to 4-up at the break.
Dechambeau carried the momentum over to the afternoon round, winning holes 20 and 21 to whittle McElyea's lead to just 2-up..
McElyea built the lead back to 4-up by winning holes 24 and 25 with pars and was still 3-up after 29 holes. The match went dormy after McElyea won holes 30 and 31 with pars to build a 5-up lead with five holes remaining.
Dechambeau won holes 32 and 33 with birdies before MCElyea closed out the match on the 34th hole, which both players halved with pars.
