Amateur Wins 101st Ohio Open

Jordan Gilkison a Sophomore at Kent State becomes only the sixth amateur to win the Ohio Open.

During the second round of the Ohio Open youth and age were pitted against one another. Dublin’s Bob Sowards was trying to make history and become only the third player to win the Ohio Open for the fourth time.

Sowards, 54, would have joined Denny Shute and Billy Burke as the only four-time winners of the Ohio Open. He would have also become the first and only player to win both the Ohio Open and the Ohio Senior Open in the same year.
The second round was played under ideal conditions at Westfield Country Club with 62 players making the cut. Amateurs were the story of the day, as 24 players made the cut into the final round. Kent State Sophomore, Jordan Gilkison fired a 7-under 63 to post 5-under for 36 holes and put himself just one shot behind four players tied for the lead. One of which was his older brother, Josh, a Kent State graduate.

Also tied for first after two rounds was first-year pro Mason Lenhart, from Cincinnati and Mikkel Mathieson, a native of Denmark and a junior at Wright State.

Final Round: Gilkison Gets It Done

Jordan Gilkison, who had jumped up the leaderboard in the second round with a 63, fired a 5-under 65 to win the Ohio Open. Gilkison was a former Ohio High School Division I Champion and won by a single stroke over another amateur Mikkel Mathiesen.

Bob Lewis was the last amateur to win the event in 1978. Only five other amateurs, including Jack Nicklaus in 1956, have won the Ohio Open, prior to Gilkison’s win this year.

Mathieson, originally from Denmark is a junior at Wright State and earlier this year won the Horizon League Championship and qualified for the Columbus Regional of the NCAA Division I Championship. Avery Schneider, from New Albany, was solo third.

Trying to win a record fourth Ohio Open, Bob Sowards entered the last day tied for the 36-hole lead, but his final round 69 was not good enough to hold off the talented amateurs and he eventually finished tied for fourth with Jake McBride, Jaysen Hansen and Jordan Gilkison’s older brother Josh.

Although this was a rare loss for Sowards, his legend in Ohio golf is secure. He will be inducted into the Ohio Golf Hall of Fame in August.