Greenwood's Alan Ellis has always felt intense pressure to win on his home course.
After many years of top-10 finishes, Ellis finally found a way to overcome the pressure and claim the Greenwood Country Club Invitational championship. He fired a 5-under-par 67 Sunday for a one-shot victory over defending champion Billy Brozovich of Greenville and Scott Rhodes of Ridgeland.
"I knew I had the game to do this, but there has always been so much pressure that I never played my best for three straight days. The biggest thing this time around was that I had already won a couple of tournaments this year, and I was much more relaxed," said Ellis, 27.
It was the first time a Greenwood golfer had won the tournament since Ed Craig did it in 1990 — a fact not lost on Ellis.
"I am proud to end that drought. This has been a long time coming. I have a lot of history in this tournament. I've been playing in it since I was about 16. It's a pretty emotional win," said Ellis as he shared hugs with friends and family.
One of those hugs came from Greenwood golf pro Randy Bensley, who was proud to award the trophy to a local champion for a change.
"Alan is such a talented young man. We knew it would only be time before Alan would win this tournament," Bensley said.
Ellis started the final round five shots back of second-round leader Chase Smith of Vicksburg, who was 7-under after Saturday's 69. Smith, a Delta State golfer, shot a 5-over-par 77 Sunday to finish 10th at 2-under. Mississippi State signee Chad Ramey of Fulton was one back of Smith to start the day but also shot a 77 and wound up tied for 11th at 1-under.
The struggles of Smith and Ramey opened the door for Ellis' dramatic comeback. Ellis made birdie on the par-5 18th to pull ahead of Brozovich, who shot 67 playing in the group ahead of Ellis.
Ellis' victory wasn't secure, though, until Rhodes, playing in the group behind Ellis, left an eagle putt on 18 just short. Rhodes finished with a 70.
"Starting five back, I thought I had an outside shot but figured I had to shoot 65 to do it," Ellis said. "But luckily the leaders struggled a good bit, and I was able to outrun Billy and Scott.
"It's a sweet win, and what makes it even sweeter is that I got it by beating guys like Billy Brozovich, Scott Rhodes and Clay Homan. And we also had the state amateur champion (Fletcher Johnson) in the field."
This marks Ellis' third victory this season and gives him momentum heading into this weekend's Trustmark Invitational, where he will be the defending champion.
Ellis played the final round without a bogey.
He only had one bogey Saturday after making three bogeys and a double on his way to an opening-round 1-over 73.
Ellis, known for his length off the tee, made 13 birdies in three days, seven of which came on the par-5s.
Homan, the MSU golf coach and the 2005 Invitational champ, finished fourth at 5-under after shooting 70 Sunday.
Schlater's Hugh Muse, a former Ole Miss golfer, finished tied for fifth at 4-under with a final-round 72.
