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The North & South Amateur runs in the family.
Tyler Strafaci can say that now.
With five birdies on a sweltering Fourth of July at Pinehurst No. 2, Strafaci etched his name into Pinehurst lore alongside that of his grandfather Frank Strafaci, defeating William Holcomb V, 3 and 1, to capture the North & South Amateur Championship.
Strafaci’s victory makes for the first grandfather and grandson to each win the North & South, which has been played every year since 1901 and is the longest consecutively running national tournament in the country. Frank Strafaci won the North & South twice, in 1938 and ’39.
“I first came to Pinehurst when I was a little kid, and mom and dad would always tell me what my grandfather thought of Pinehurst,” Strafaci said as he held the Putter Boy trophy on the 18th green. “The first thing we would do, my dad would walk me into the locker room and we’d find Grandpa’s locker. We’d sit in there and look at all of the names.
“I never thought that this day would ever come.”
He, too, will have a locker in the Pinehurst clubhouse now, and his name will appear with his grandfather’s on the Perpetual Wall in the clubhouse’s History Hall. Strafaci never met his grandfather, who passed away in 1988.
The Georgia Tech senior finished the match in the same manner he took control of it – with inspired and stunning iron play. Having taken a 2-up lead to the par-3 17th hole, Strafaci hit a towering draw into the green, with the ball settling 3½ feet from the flag. When he rolled the putt in for his fifth birdie of the day, his father Frank Jr., who had been on the bag all week, raised his arms in triumph before embracing his son.
“This place has such an unbelievable special history and feeling for me and my family,” the elder Strafaci said, choking back tears. “And my dad … this is just so special.”
“It was a great match, and hats off to Tyler,” said Holcomb, who reached the semifinals of the 2019 U.S. Amateur at Pinehurst. “I’m pretty frustrated because I feel like I gave away a few shots. But heck, what did Tyler have – five, six, seven birdies on No. 2, one of the hardest golf courses in the world? He played great.”
Holcomb still plans to keep Pinehurst close to him.
“The ultimate goal is to get back here for the 2024 U.S. Open,” he said. “This feels like a second home to me, and hopefully I can come back sometime – or maybe even move here because I always play so good here.”
Ultimately, though, the day belonged to the Strafacis.
Frank Strafaci Jr., a decorated amateur golfer himself, competed in the North & South for decades, playing into the 2000s. He had hoped to join the Father and Son Club at the North & South – one that features only Jack and Jackie Nicklaus (1959 and 1985, respectively).
Skipping a generation, however, will do just fine.
With Saturday's victory complete on the 17th green, father and son chose to walk the 18th hole alone into the bright afternoon sun – with Frank still carrying the bag. A large gallery that followed the match awaited them at the clubhouse.
“You did it, bud,” Frank said to Tyler.
Pinehurst Resort