Aided by a 90-foot pitch shot for birdie, Isaiah Logue wins Pennsylvania Open by three strokes

Things were looking very unlucky Wednesday at Waynesborough Country Club’s 13th hole for Isaiah Logue in the final round of the 103rd Pennsylvania Open.

Already down by one stroke to pacesetter Brian Bergstol, he had hit his approach shot over the green and down a short embankment about 90 feet from the hole.

However, instead of losing a shot or two more, Logue actually picked up a stroke, hitting a high flop right on line, down the slope, and in for birdie. That tied him for the lead, and when Bergstol hit his tee shot on the par-3 14th into the water and made double bogey, Logue was in control.

The 23-year-old left-hander from Fairfield, Pa., played error-free golf the rest of the way and finished with a 4-under-par 67 and a three-stroke victory, making him the seventh player in Pennsylvania Golf Association history to win both the state amateur and the state open.

“It feels incredible,” said Logue, whose $8,000 first-place check was the largest of his pro career. “Honestly I’m a little too tired to let it fully soak in at this point, but today was a good day. It was hard-fought all the way through. Brian played very well throughout the entirety of the day, so props to him.”

Logue completed three rounds at 8-under 205. Bergstol, teaching pro at Shawnee Inn and Golf Resort in the Poconos, carded a 70 for second place at 208. Malvern’s Cole Willcox also had a 70 and tied for third at 209 with former Penn State star J.D. Dornes of Lancaster, who came in with a 67.

Brian Isztwan, a Harvard sophomore from Huntingdon Valley, won low amateur honors, finishing in a five-way deadlock for fifth at 212.

Bergstol carded three birdies to Logue’s two on the front nine and made the turn with a 1-stroke lead. Logue drained a big-breaking 15-footer for birdie at No. 1 but was matched by Bergstol’s 3-footer.

Then on 13, Bergstol’s approach was safely on, 25 feet away, while Logue’s 9-iron from 170 yards bounced over the green. When he looked at what he faced, Logue figured a shot to within 15 feet would be good. Holing out was better.

“I saw the ball hit the green and then it disappeared over the ridge from where I was,” he said. “I tried to jump and catch an eye to where it was, but I lost it. Then everybody started to celebrate, so I assumed it must have been good or in the hole.

“That was certainly the highlight of the day and probably the turning point in the round.”

Bergstol, who two-putted for par, said, "When I saw where he hit his, I was expecting to pick up one, maybe two [shots]. Then for him to pick up one … it was definitely a little shock to the system.”

With Logue safely on the par-3 14th, Bergstol hit what he called “a very uncommitted shot” that splashed in the water guarding the front of the green. Logue left that green with a par to lead by two, and parred his last four holes.

Bergstol missed a 5-foot birdie chance at No. 15 and almost spun his approach at the par-4 16th back into the hole, but he watched his 15-foot birdie try veer to the right.

“He played great,” Bergstol said of Logue. “He did everything he needed to do. He hit a lot of really good shots and he made some really good putts.”