MISSOULA — When it mattered most, Missoula’s Sean Ramsbacher delivered the best round of the Montana State Mid-Amateur golf tourney Saturday.
Trailing by a stroke heading into the third and final day, the Sentinel grad and former Montana Tech standout came through with a 7-under par score of 65 at The Ranch Club. It was the best round of the tourney by four strokes and he won by four over second-place Nicholas Balcken of Helena.
“It’s cool — I’ve never won a state event,” said Ramsbacher, who scored 73-71-65-209. “I won Whitefish (4th of July Tournament), which was up there, but I’ve never really even competed in the State Ams or a U.S. Am Qualifier.
“I’d put it up there with one of the better tournaments I’ve ever won because it’s a great field.”
A total of 94 golfers took part in the event on a sun-splashed weekend. Balcken was tied with Blake Nevell of Rock Creek atop the leaderboard heading into the final day, with four golfers just one stroke behind. Ramsbacher blew the field away Saturday with seven birdies, an eagle on No. 17 and just two bogeys.
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“The course is really polarizing, so you can get some high numbers and definitely a few birdies,” said Ramsbacher, the 2022 Frontier Conference Player of the Year. “I just tried to keep those high numbers out today.
“It just kind of worked out. I had a couple drives where it counted and played well coming in, too. I birdied the first and then on the second, I went 8 and 7 on the first two days, so I was happy with a par today. Then from there it was playing as good as you can and not having to dig yourself out of a hole.”
Sean credited his father, Ron Ramsbacher, with giving him a nice boost as his caddie. Ron plays a lot of state events, so they don’t get the opportunity to work together very often.
“It’s a lot of mental stuff. He will keep me from going astray too far,” Sean said. “It’s just good to bounce something off someone on the greens, especially a good golfer like him.
“We always came to a read we liked and I either hit it or I didn’t. But it’s great. He’s someone to loosen me up.”
Sean has had a knack for coming up big in clutch situations this year. Back in May, he carded a final round score of 63 in the Barnett Memorial tourney at the Missoula Country Club. That round nearly gave him an unlikely comeback win, but defending champion Jack Holmgren of Utah managed to birdie the final hole to win by one.
If Sean keeps playing the way he has in final rounds, he might earn himself a nickname: Captain Clutch. His final-round 63 at the Country Club and final-round 65 at the The Ranch Club were both personal bests.
“This was the first time I saw this course in like six years,” he said with a smile. “I wanted to play a practice round, but I couldn’t get out in time because I had the Montana Cup in Anaconda.
“This course is in beautiful shape. I love it.”
Balcken was the only other golfer to finish under par (-3) with his score of 73-70-70-213. Nevell and Adam Escobar of Missoula tied for third at 216. Bill Dunn of Missoula finished fifth with a score of 217.
The Mid-Am is a category for amateur golfers who are at least 25 years old. The United States Golf Association (USGA) created the U.S. Mid-Am tournament in 1981 to give post-college amateurs a chance to compete against each other.
Bill Speltz is Missoulian sports editor. Contact him at bill.speltz@406mtsports.com or on Twitter @billspeltz
