USGA 4-Ball has surreal finish; young phenom Blades Brown, partner come up short

Seventeen-year-old Blaze Brown and his partner, Jackson Herrington, were trailing by one hole on the 18th hole at the Philadelphia Cricket Club on Tuesday to Brian Blanchard and Sam Engel.

Brown and Herrington, both from Tennessee, needed to win the final hole to extend the match against Blanchard and Engel, a software engineer and an account executive for a software company, both from Scottsdale, Arizona.

Of those four, it’s Brown whose name is more etched into golf’s lexicon than any other, having recently made headlines by qualifying at the Myrtle Beach Classic and making history last year by becoming the youngest U.S. Amateur medalist in history, breaking Bobby Jones’ 103-year-old record.

So it should come as no surprise to anyone when Brown stepped onto the 18th tee and rocketed a 350-yard drive down the middle of the fairway, then hit a sand wedge onto the green, but it spun so much after landing that it stopped 16 feet short of the cup.

Meanwhile, Herrington missed the chance for a birdie as he was unable to reach the putting surface, leaving it all to his playing partner.

Meanwhile, Engel hit his approach shot on the 18th hole to within 10 feet of Brown, giving Team Software the advantage and setting the stage for a dramatic finish.

As Brown left, he stepped up and hit a confident stroke that indicated the birdie try would fall into the hole. Unfortunately, it came to rest on the rim of the cup, and Brown and Herrington Terribly short The match may be extended.

“I knew this was my four-ball partner for life,” Brown told the USGA.

“Golf is mental. Going into the final stretch, Jackson and I felt mentally ready to compete. Unfortunately we didn’t win this time, but we plan to come back again.”

Brown’s error gave Blanchard and Engel two gold medals and a trophy. With their win, they’ve qualified for this year’s U.S. Amateur Championship at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Minnesota and this year’s U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at Kinloch Golf Club in Virginia. They’ll also qualify for each of the next 10 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball tournaments if the team remains in the tournament.

Jonathan Ernst/USGA

Perhaps best of all, their names will be inscribed in the Hall of Champions at the USGA Museum in Liberty Corner, New Jersey.

“That’s why we make the effort,” Blanchard said.

“That’s why we practice all day after work until dark. I think he’s a little more confident than I am, but here we are. I’m grateful that Sam has a really strong sense of confidence this week and has led the team to victory.”

Registration Entries are underway for the 2025 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship, scheduled to be held at Plainfield Country Club in Edison, New Jersey. To compete, each teammate must have a Handicap Index of 2.4 or lower. Entries close on August 7 at 5 p.m. EDT.

Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow For more golf articles, follow us on Twitter Jack Mirko In the same way.