Palmer Jackson wins state match play championship

A pair of college players dueled for the 18th R. Jay Sigel Match Play title Thursday.

While only one could raise the trophy, one thing was clear: The game’s future is in good hands.

Notre Dame rising junior Palmer Jackson, the former PIAA champion from Franklin Regional, held off Patrick Sheehan, a junior-to-be at Penn State, 2 and 1, to take the state championship match at Sewickley Heights Golf Club.

Jackson, who plays out of Hannastown Golf Club, nearly got to face one of his fellow members in the finals.

Greensburg’s Mark Goetz, who just finished his senior season at West Virginia, was defeated by Sheehan in the semifinals, 3 and 1.

Jackson outlasted six-time Sigel champion Nathan Smith of Brookville, 2 and 1, in the other semifinal. Sheehan, a Doylestown native who calls Talamore Country Club his home course, impressed Jackson, who won the state Class AAA title in 2018 while Sheehan finished third.

“Patrick’s a great player,” Jackson told the Pennsylvania Golf Association. “I played with him in the state championships in high school, and I knew he was going to be a great player. I’m fortunate to have had enough to win today.”

Palmer Jackson @HannastownGC wins the 18th R. Jay Sigel Match Play Championship presented by @DICKS at Sewickley Heights Golf Club 2 & 1 over Patrick Sheehan Talamore Country Club.

Final Results: https://t.co/n9USuZ6opK pic.twitter.com/UDdw9WRybU

— Pennsylvania Golf Association (@PA_Golf) June 10, 2021

Jackson knows plenty about Smith, too, one of the more accomplished amateurs in the state.

“I played against Nathan in the U.S. Four Ball two weeks ago and my team beat his, so I knew he would come out firing,” Jackson said. “But I found a way to get the ball in the hole and to take him out was really cool.”

Sheehan, the stroke-play medalist (11-under) had to play with borrowed irons because his regular set was stolen, according to the association. He broke his driver in the match against Goetz and had to borrow one from the pro shop.

The driver wasn’t all that foreign, though, as Sheehan drove the 328-yard fifth hole.

With the match all square through seven, Jackson won three straight holes, at 9, 10 and 11.

The Pennsylvania Junior champion in 2017, Jackson gave one back but won the 15th and the match was dormie.

Sheehan didn’t go quietly. He drained a 25-footer on the par-3 16th for birdie to go 2-down and also made a birdie on 17, a 603-yard par-5.

“I figured I kind of had to make it,” Sheehan said. “It was a pretty tough putt, and I just tried to force it to the next hole.”

But Jackson also made his birdie putt on 17 to seal the win.

“I’ve got to give him a ton of credit for how he fought on the last two holes,” Jackson said. “And he forced me to make mine to win at the end. As a competitor, that’s how you want the match to end.”