HIGH ACHIEVERS: Isaiah Ibit rockets into playoff with triple-birdie finish, falls just short of Canadian men’s amateur golf title

By Martin Cleary

To use a hockey analogy, Isaiah Ibit came close to scoring the golden goal, but instead finished with the primary assist.

That’s how Australian Declan O’Donovan saw it as the Sydney resident gave full credit to the Ottawa golfer for pushing him to victory at the 120th Canadian men’s amateur golf championship in a two-hole playoff Thursday at the Royal Ottawa Golf Club.

“Isaiah, he really got the momentum going for me,” O’Donovan, 22, said about his playing partner for the final round of the 72-hole national championship.

“He was forcing me to play well. (Holes) 16, 17 and 18 for him, three birdies were absolutely incredible. He’ll definitely win this event. I’m not sure how many people have won the junior Canadian amateur and the men’s Canadian amateur, but if he’s the first, I could definitely see that happening.”

Ibit was unable to return a phone call for an interview with High Achievers Thursday.

Ibit, the 2024 national men’s junior champion, started his fourth and final round three strokes behind O’Donovan, surged into the lead after the front nine and rallied to make a spectacular birdie run over the last three holes to force the playoff.

A member of the Golf Canada NextGen team and the Camelot Golf and Country Club, Ibit struggled over his first four holes before marking eagle, birdie, birdie, par and par for a four-under 31 on his front nine. O’Donovan tumbled from the top of the leaderboard with three bogeys and six pars for a front-nine 37.

The back nine was filled with drama as O’Donovan quickly charged back and Ibit stumbled before counter punching at the end to tie the championship after 72 holes.

In their first three holes of the back nine, O’Donovan went eagle, birdie and par, while Ibit marked par, bogey and bogey. This left Ibit two strokes behind O’Donovan with six holes remaining.

Ibit cut his deficit to one with a birdie on No. 13 and they finished their rounds with daytime fireworks. O’Donovan was the first to birdie No. 16 and No. 17, but Ibit, who will be a sophomore at Kent State University in 2025-26, responded with nerves of steel and matching birdies.

On No. 18, Ibit marked birdie, while O’Donovan notched a par. They finished regulation play deadlocked at 13-under-par 267.

O’Donovan had rounds of 69 (Rivermead Golf Club), 67 (Royal Ottawa), 64 and 67, while Ibit’s card showed 68 (Rivermead), 68 (Royal Ottawa), 67 and 64. The final two rounds were played at the Royal Ottawa, which was staging its record 10th Canadian men’s amateur championship.

In the first playoff hole on No. 18, both golfers had identical par fives. Returning to No. 18, Ibit hit a wayward second shot, couldn’t find his ball in the rough and took a back-on-the-line penalty relief from the fringe of the 16th green.

By the time Ibit reached the green, he faced a bogey putt. O’Donovan won the national championship by draining a birdie putt from beyond the 30-foot range.

Ibit came into the national event fresh off making the cut at the Commissionaires Ottawa Open last week at Eagle Creek as the only amateur in the PGA Tour Americas tournament.

If Ibit had managed to win his first Canadian men’s amateur title, he would have had an opportunity to meet Greg Olson, the last Ottawa player to win the Earl Grey Cup in 1980.

Olsen, who accidentally discovered the Canadian amateur championship was being held at the Royal Ottawa this week during his six-week visit to the region, followed Ibit, O’Donovan and Andre Zhu of Richmond Hill, ON, for the final 18 holes.

A former Chaudiere Golf Club member who lives in Bainbridge Island, Washington, Olson was extremely impressed to see Ibit shoot six-under-par 64 on the final day at the Royal Ottawa with three birdies on the final three holes.

“I was super impressed. For his first four holes, he struggled and didn’t look his best. He was three back,” Olson said in a phone interview. “He had a bit of a mountain to climb.”

Ibit climbed that mountain with confidence, going four-under on the front nine and two-under on the back nine.

“He’s fearless, totally loose. He seemed to be having a good time,” Olson added. “He just played free. He was letting it happen. He was playing with a loose abandon.

“64 at the Royal Ottawa in the last round and birdies on the last three holes; he’s a bit of a warrior. He was just pushing right to the end. It was very impressive to watch. I think he has a bright future.”