Playing with Cullan Brown's bag, UK golfer Alex Goff survives crazy finish to win

It was a wild finish in the Blessings Collegiate Invitational, where UK golfer Alex Goff entered Wednesday’s final round with a comfortable lead over the competition in the individual championship.

Playing in the first event of the season, Goff carried the bag of his former teammate, the late Cullan Brown, and was in great standing through 52 holes of the 54-hole tournament. The sophomore’s second round score of 65 (-7) set a record for tournament competition, and gave him a four-stroke lead heading into the third and final round.

https://kentuckysportsradio.com/main/remembering-cullan-brown/

With only a few holes to play, Goff had extended his lead to six strokes and it appeared he would coast to win his first collegiate event, in memory of Brown.

Then the chaos happened.

Goff doubled bogeyed the par-3 17th hole, followed by a triple bogey on the 18th due to a penalty for playing the wrong ball out of a fairway bunker. The costly mistake occurred because all five golfers in the group hit into the same fairway bunker, and since teammates are grouped together as a COVID precaution, all five balls had UK logos on them. Goff unintentionally played the wrong ball, took a penalty for the mistake, and finished with an 8 on the par-5 closing hole.

In the meantime, Tennessee’s Hunter Wolcott, oblivious to what was going on in the Kentucky group in front of him, birdied the 17th hole to tie Goff after Goff’s collapse. Up six only two holes ago, Goff found himself tied with Wolcott, and Wolcott still had the par-5 18th to play.

The Golf Channel was loving this shot:

To make matters worse for Goff, Wolcott only needed a par on 18 to win the tournament because the tournament’s tie-breaker format used the 18th hole score to decide a tie.

Wolcott had this for par and the win:

Crazy finish on Golf Channel… Kentucky’s Alex Goff (playing with Cullan Brown’s bag) lost a huge lead after a double on 17 and triple on 18 with a penalty for playing the wrong ball.

Tennessee then had this putt to win it. pic.twitter.com/zOkyj2TFSv

— Drew Franklin (@DrewFranklinKSR) October 7, 2020

You hate to see it, folks.

Vols lose.

Alex Goff wins it for Kentucky and for Cullan Brown with Cullan Brown’s bag.

Watch him explain it all:

With his teammate Cullan Brown watching him from above, Alex Goff emerged victorious at the #BlessingsCollegiate Invitational 🏆

If you only do one thing today, watch this interview.@UKmensgolf pic.twitter.com/v3upSJSoWv

— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) October 8, 2020