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STERLING, Sanpete County — Some things happen in the world of sports that seem unbelievable. This is one of those times. Even the guy who did it is finding it hard to believe.
His name is Jeff Evans. At only 23 years old, he has experienced more than most of us do in our entire golf life. Jeff is from Cedar City and is a former member of the Southern Utah University golf team.
He won the Utah State Amateur in 2011 and made it to the championship match in this year's State Am, losing to Cole Ogden. However, what he did on Monday, August 5th on the back 9 at Palisade Golf Course in Sterling, Utah during the pro-am event, is hard to even comprehend.
His scorecard read like this: Birdie, par, eagle, eagle, birdie, birdie, birdie, birdie, birdie. That adds up to a total of 26.
10 under par. That's right, 10 under par on the back nine during competition.
"I shot even on the front and my dad said we just need you to shoot 30 on the back (nine) and I knew it had a few short holes on the back and a couple of par fives that I could get a good chance at for eagle if I hit a good drive and it all kind of just happened," Evans explained after his round.
His dad, John Evans, the head pro at Cedar Ridge golf course in Cedar City, was his playing partner — a nervous playing partner at that. "It was fun but it was nervous to watch, though. It's hard when a father is watching a son play golf and he's playing that good and you know that a record (round) has possibilities," 'Papa John' said.
According to Joe Watts, one of Utah's foremost golf historians, he doesn't think this has ever been done on a Utah course, at least during a competitive round.
"It doesn't feel real to shoot 26," Jeff said. "The whole car ride (back home to Cedar City) I was like, 'How did I even shoot that?' I had two-and-a-half hours coming home and I don't know how I did it other than I just started playing good and it just happened." Evans said.
Jeff's 62 for his 18-hole round is his lowest score he's ever shot.
If you're wondering if anyone in the world has ever shot that low for nine holes, we did find one man in Canada. In May of 2010 during his opening round at the RBC Alberta Open, Jamie Kureluk actually shot an 11-under 25 on his back nine in what is one of lowest scores ever recorded in professional competition.
Hole-by-hole, the round went like this: (Compiled by Joe Watts)
| Hole | Par, Distance, Description | Club, Strokes |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Par 4, 399 yards, uphill. | Driver, sand wedge to 8-feet, made birdie putt. |
| 11 | Par 4, 373 yards, downhill. | Driver, sand wedge, and two-putt par (which was the low score of the day on that hole, as nobody made birdie the entire day). |
| 12 | Par 5, 463 yards, uphill. | Driver, gap wedge to 8-feet, made eagle putt. |
| 13 | Par 5, 460 yards, uphill. | Driver, gap wedge to ten-feet, made eagle putt. |
| 14 | Par 3, 90 yards, uphill. | Sand wedge to 7 feet, made birdie putt. |
| 15 | Par 4, 291 yards, downhill. | Rescue club into green-side bunker, sand wedge to 3 feet, made birdie putt. |
| 16 | Par 4, 376 yards, downhill. | Driver over the green, chipped to 5 feet, made birdie putt. |
| 17 | Par 3, 128 yards, downhill. | Gap wedge on short par three, hit ten feet behind pin and sucked to within 3 feet, made birdie putt. |
| 18 | Par 4, 460 yards, downhill. | Driver and pitching wedge to 3 feet, made birdie putt. |
