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Zac attack: BYU golfer Zac Jones caps impressive week by winning 2022 Utah State Amateur title

By Jared Lloyd - | Jul 16, 2022
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BYU golfer Zac Jones poses for photos with the championship trophy after the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones hits a shot out of the sand during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones hits a shot during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones poses for photos with family and friends and the championship trophy after the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones watches his shot during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones hits a shot out of the sand during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones watches his putt during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones talks to reporters after the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones lines up a putt during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones hits a shot during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones hits a shot during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones poses for photos with the championship trophy after the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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Cal golfer Simon Kwon watches his shot during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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Cal golfer Simon Kwon hits a shot out of the sand during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.
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BYU golfer Zac Jones hits a shot during the final round of the 2022 Utah State Amateur at Soldier Hollow golf course in Heber on Saturday, July 16, 2022.

BYU golfer Zac Jones had quite a few big moments during the 2022 Utah State Amateur golf tournament this past week.

But the moment that stood out to him as he stood on the green on hole No. 15 on the Gold course at Soldier Hollow in Heber on Saturday, holding the championship trophy, was one from nearly a decade ago.

He recalled caddying for his dad, Clark Jones, during a match at the state amateur that year and talked about realizing how big the event was, how he wanted to be part of it.

The script was flipped on Saturday as it was Clark Jones who did the caddying and Zac Jones who was in the match — and who always found a way to win.

It wasn’t always easy in the 36-hole finals as Cal golfer Simon Kwon (a former Skyline High star) stayed just close enough to be dangerous. In the end, however, it was Zac Jones who made the key shots to secured the 4-and-3 victory to achieve his goal of winning the tournament.

“It’s pretty awesome,” Zac Jones said. “Losing is hard. It really hurts. To not feel that this week is really nice.”

The former Lone Peak star became the first stroke-play medalist to win the entire tournament in at least the last decade as Zac Jones put together one of the more impressive runs in recent history. He only had one match where he had to play Hole No. 18, a 1-up win over Heber’s Jacob Wagstaff in the round of 32.

“Being medalist was cool, but that wasn’t my goal,” Zac Jones said. “I was looking ahead at the week and just stayed focused. I feel like I was in the zone all week. The week was kind of a blur just because I was focused on every shot, one at a time. That’s what kind of helped me get through.”

Zac Jones knew Kwon would be a tough competitor in the finals but he was able to seize the momentum with a key stretch early, winning five of six holes starting on No. 7.

“I just kind of stuck my game,” Zac Jones said. “I made a couple of birdies in that stretch and then Simon gave me a couple of holes, which was generous. I birdied the par fives and and I made a really long putt on No. 8, the par three which was playing really hard today. But Simon’s a good player. I knew he’d hang around even though I won holes early on.”

The early lead for the Cougar sophomore was threatened at the same point in the second 18 holes when Kwon got wins on No. 7 and No. 8 to get some momentum.

No. 9 might have been the most critical hole of the title match as Kwon hit his ball on the green off the tee on the par-4, while Jones was just in the rough on the back side.

“I knew No. 9 was going to be a deciding hole,” Zac Jones said. “If he won and got to within two holes heading into the back-nine, it would be anyone’s game. I knew my chip was really important because his putt wasn’t easy. If I don’t hit it well, his putt gets a lot easier.”

With that in mind, Zac Jones stepped up and lofted a gorgeous shot that settled just a couple of inches from the hole for a tap-in birdie. Kwon ended up being forced to three-putt, giving Jones the victory and a bigger cushion heading down the stretch.

“I was able to switch the momentum that he had going and to get some going for me,” Zac Jones said.

Kwon made enough shots to keep the match going but couldn’t get a key putt to drop on No. 15, giving Jones the victory.

It was a special moment for Jones and his entire family, who have been consistent performers at the event over the years. In addition to the success of Zac and Clark Jones, Zac’s older brother Tyler Jones and younger brother Cooper Jones both made it to match play this year.

“(My family) helped a lot,” Jones said. “We’ve played matches against each other since we were 11 or 12-years-old. We’ve kind of gone back and forth, depending on who is playing well. There have been time where my brothers have been playing better than I am but I have to go out to try and beat them. When I was younger, if I lost I had to do their chores for the week. So I played with pressure and playing with them really helped.”

As he thought back to his early days of playing golf, he said the goal was never to get college scholarships or win state amateur tournaments. As he got experience, however, he realized that success was possible.

“My dad got us into it just to play golf,” Zac Jones said. “When I was 15-years-old, I qualified for the state amateur for the first time, made it to match play and won a match. I started thinking that I could win it while in high school. I wasn’t able to get that done but it has been on my list since then.”

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