Columbus native Michael VanDeventer turned in a solid round and moved his way up the leaderboard in Wednesday’s final round of the Indiana Open Championship at Otter Creek.
VanDeventer, a 2014 Columbus North and 2018 Ball State graduate, fired a 4-under-par 68 to finish at 3-under 213. He tied for 15th place after being tied for 28th going into the final round.
"I got off to a good start. I birdied my first two holes right out of the gate, so it’s obviously nice to get under par for the tournament," VanDeventer said. "I stayed in control with the driver, especially on the front nine. I drove the ball really well. I made two really good birdies on 7 and 9, which are both pretty tough par-4s. To get both of those gave me some momentum going into the back nine."
VanDeventer carded five birdies and a bogey on his round Wednesday. He went 4-under through 11 holes, but his momentum evaporated over the final seven holes.
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"I was looking to make a charge on those last seven holes being pretty scoreable," VanDeventer said. "Things just stalled out. I wasn’t hitting it very close. I had a couple close putts. I’m not going to complain about a 68, though. It was a solid day for me — a lot better than the first two."
VanDeventer earned an exemption into next year’s Indiana Open by placing in the top 20. VanDeventer, who currently resides in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, turned pro last summer and won two tournaments on the West Florida Tour during this year’s winter season.
"It’s always nice to come back home and be in a hometown event," VanDeventer said. "We had a lot of familiar faces out here, so it was good to see people and catch up. I definitely would have liked to play better the first two days, but at least I played one good round for them."
Jake Coffey, a 2013 North and 2017 Indiana Wesleyan grad, had trouble bouncing back from his round of 80 on Tuesday and had an 11-over 83 Wednesday to finish 74th with an 18-over 234.
"I wasn’t planning on playing the state open, but I saw it was at Otter Creek, so I made sure to get in the qualifier," Coffey said. "I love playing at Otter Creek, so it was a good three days."
The championship belonged to Zionsville’s Michael Davan. He turned in another big round with a 7-under 65 to claim the title and finish with a 17-under 199 for the tournament.
Davan bested his fellow PGA Tour Latinoamerica competitor Seth Fair of Whitestown by three shots.
Davan, who was VanDeventer’s playing partner for the first two rounds, said he had played Otter Creek only once prior to this week’s Indiana Open.
"I liked the course after I played it and was able to play well this week," Davan said. "It feels great. I played well today. Seth played really well, too. We had a battle, and he kept me grinding the whole time, and he didn’t give up. I knew I had to throw punches when he threw punches at me. Hats off to him for pushing along the way that he did. It was a lot of fun."
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Final results from the Indiana Open Championship at Otter Creek:
Michael Davan;Zionsville;71-63-65—199;-17
Seth Fair;Brownsburg;70-66-66—202;-14
Keegan Bronnenberg;Muncie;70-67-68—205;-11
Tyler Gray;Huntingburg;68-69-70—207;-9
Johnny Watts;Fishers;73-68-67—208;-8
Joe Weiler;Bloomington;67-72-69—208;-8
Other local golfers:
Michael VanDeventer;Columbus;72-73-68—213;-3
Jake Coffey;Columbus;71-80-83—234;+18
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