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FLINT -- Courtesy:  Golf Association of Michigan

Mike Nagy (Manistique) defeated Otto Black (Pinckney) 3 & 1 to win the 34^th Michigan Junior State Amateur at Flint Golf Club on Thursday.

Nagy trailed by two at the turn, but by the 12^th hole he and Black were even and by the 14^th, Nagy was in the lead. Nagy was the 5^th seed in the tournament; Black was the 18^th.

In the morning’s semifinal matches, Nagy defeated top-seed Sam Weatherhead (Grand Rapids) 2&1 and Black defeated Bobby Thomas (Tecumseh) 2&1.

“I was down by three at one point and then on 10, I made a 30-foot birdie putt,” said Nagy. “Having your opponent be 2-up is a lot different than him being 3-up so I think that putt gave me more confidence and made me feel like I had a chance to come back.”

With the match all-square, Nagy made the best of a tough chip shot on 13 and made par. He then birdied the next two holes and was in control 2-up.

“The back nine at Flint has three par 5 holes and I think that helped me because I hit it pretty long,” said Nagy. “Someone told me I was six-under par on the last eight holes on the back so that is pretty good.”

This is the third time Nagy has played in the Michigan Junior State Amateur and the third time he has made the cut for match play. However, this marks the first time he has made it out of the first round of match play.

“I think this time I tried to focus more on playing the golf course than worrying about my opponent,” said Nagy. “Personally, I still like stroke play better, but I’ve learned that you can be more aggressive in match play and I did that today.”

Nagy graduated from Manistique High School in June and will attend the University of Tennessee and play golf for the Volunteers this fall.