SALT LAKE CITY — Many golfers were dismayed that for the first time in over 50 years, the Richard C. Kramer Salt Lake City Amateur golf tournament wasn’t played at Bonneville Golf Course. It had to be moved to Wingpointe Golf Course because a new water system is being installed at Bonneville and has torn up some of the fairways.
One golfer who wasn’t bothered — in fact he was quite happy about the change — was Seokwon Jeon, a 21-year-old who plays for Utah State.
Jeon hadn’t played well in three previous tries at the City Am at Bonneville, but he found Wingpointe much to his liking, shooting scores of 65 Saturday and 67 Sunday to win by three shots over 16-year-old Rhett Rasmussen, who finished second for the second straight year. Jeon’s 132 total tied for the second lowest score in City Am history.
“I haven’t played well the last three years at Bonneville,’’ Jeon said. “But my normal shot is a low draw and I feel I can work that well around here. I like the links style, where I can hit punch shots and keep it in the fairway. And the greens are really good here.’’
Jeon is a native of South Korea, but moved to Utah when he was 9. He didn’t take up golf until three years later and progressed quickly until he finished second in the 4A Tournament in 2011 at Hillcrest High and then accepted a scholarship to play for Utah State.
He won the Northern Utah Amateur last year and lost in a playoff for the Cougar Classic this spring, but he ranks the City Am win as his best yet. He has been the low scorer for the Aggie team for two years and has one more year of eligibility.
Jeon and Parkinson were tied going into Sunday’s final round and went back and forth through much of the afternoon. Parkinson went ahead early with a birdie at the first hole as Jeon came back with birdies at 3, 5, 6 and 7 to go up by a couple.
Jeon called the par-4 14th a key hole when he sank a 4-foot birdie after Parkinson sank an 8-footer. That kept him two shots up and when Parkinson found trouble, hitting in the hazard twice at No. 15 for a triple bogey, while Jeon made birdie.
Rasmussen, who will be a senior at Corner Canyon High School, was happy with his play on the weekend “except for a couple of swings” that hurt him. One was at No. 10 Sunday when he got in trouble and made a double bogey. Otherwise, he had six birdies on the day for a 68 and a 135 total that would have won the past four City Am tournaments.
Parkinson, who just completed his junior season at BYU, was trying to become the first back-to-back City Am winner since Todd Barker in 1991-92. But he was undone by the triple at 15 and he found the hazard again at 18 for a 74.
Joining Parkinson at 139 was C.J. Lee, while former City Am winner Brandon Hargett finished fifth at 140.
Dan Johnson won the B Flight with a 145 total, while Geremy Hand won the B Flight at 153.
RICHARD C. KRAMER SALT LAKE CITY AMATEUR
Sunday
Wingpointe Golf Course
Par-72
Championship Flight
132 – Seokwon Jeon (65-67)
135 – Rhett Rasmussen (67-68)
139 – C.J. Lee (67-68), Joe Parkinson (65-74)
140 – Brandon Hargett (71-69)
141 – Cameron Crawford (72-69), Tommy Forsman (72-69)
142 – Steven Vail (70-72), Mitchell Schow (70-72), Kenny You (70-72), Jeff Jolley (69-73)
143 – Dan Horner (71-72), Devon Purser (72-71)
144 – Cameron Howe (74-70), Brandon Kida (72-72), Brady Stanger (72-72)
145 – Casey Halliday (72-73), Charlie Duensing (70-75), Jordan Rodgers (72-73)
A Flight
145 -- Dan Johnson (70-75)
149 – Marcus Morrison (76-73), Tyler Jones (74-75)
150 -- Jason Bracken (71-79)
151 – Jay Patrick O’Fee (76-75)
B Flight
153 -- Geremy Hand (74-79)
155 – Nicholas Humphres (82-73)
159 – Dave Schoepp (81-78)
160 – Jeff Campbell (80-80)
161 -- Zach Perry (72-89)