Brown Captures GAP Open

Mike Brown added another notch to his already impressive resume by besting a field of 71 professionals and amateurs to win the 106th GAP Open Championship. Brown defeated 59 year old professional Greg Farrow in a sudden-death playoff after the two finished the 4-hole aggregate score playoff deadlocked. This is Brown's second major victory in ten days after capturing the Philadelphia Open Amateur at Cobbs Creek GC, July 9-11. With the back-to-back wins Brown is making a case for himself as the best player in Philadelphia right now.

Both Brown and Farrow finished the 36-hole tournament at Philmont (North) at 2-over par. Each made three pars and a bogey in the 4-hole playoff before sudden death was needed. On the first sudden-death hole Brown two-putted from 20 feet while Farrow raced his birdie putt past the hole and missed the comebacker in near darkness giving Brown his second career GAP major. Last year Brown defeated Sean Leonard on his home course at Tavistock CC in another 4-hole aggregate score playoff to win the GAP Mid-Am and becoming the first PPGA player to win a GAP major.

"I approach each tournament the same way in terms of preparation and I know I can play well. It's just a matter if that's good enough," said Brown. "I drove it erratically on the last nine but the greens were pure and I was putting well so I felt like I could make anything. I felt just as fresh at the end as I did at the beginning."

Brown started playing PPGA events in 2008 after years on the mini-tours trying to make it to the PGA Tour. Brown won his first PPGA event in 2009 when he teamed with Everett Farr to win the Inaugural PPGA Fall Classic at Kimberton GC in 2009.

"This is the biggest tournament I have won and the strength of the field was really good so I felt great about winning. I took a lot from the Open Am being in the same situation. I knew I could do it physically and mentally and even though I started poorly [at the Open Am] I was able to come back and finish it off." That confidence clearly carried through into the GAP Open as Brown was close to the lead with 9-holes to go. "Only one player was under par and I was two behind with nine to go and the wind was up so I thought the winning score would be over par."

This was Brown's third GAP Open appearance posting a 9th at Lookaway in 2008 and a 7th last year at Bent Creek CC. Next up on Brown's schedule is the State Am July 26-28 at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, the PPGA Mid-Am, August 6 at Kimberton GC and the Canadian Mid-Amateur August 16-20 at the Royal Ottawa Club with the winner getting a spot in the PGA Tour's Canadian Open.

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