Hagestad wins second US Mid-Am title, headed back to Masters

SIASCONSET, Mass. (AP) — Stewart Hagestad won his second U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship on Friday, holding off Mark Costanza 2 and 1 at windy Sankaty Head for a return to the Masters.

The 30-year-old Hagestad, from Newport Beach, California, also won in 2016 at Stonewall, in Elverson, Pennsylvania, then was the low amateur in the 2017 Masters with a 36th-place tie. He also earned a spot next year in the U.S. Open.

Hagestad led 5 up Thursday after the first 18 holes in the 36-hole match.

“(Costanza) gave me nothing the whole day,” said Hagestad, a second-year MBA student at the University of Southern California. "I thought that at some point I would maybe get a break or he would give me a hole. I knew that he would come out swinging. He’s a really good player. I tried to go out and basically make him beat me, and he damn near did that.”

The 32-year-old Costanza is from Morristown, New Jersey.

“It’s tough because when you’re digging yourself out of a hole, you want to make birdies, but you know if you falter, you’re going deeper into the hole,” Costanza said. “You’ve got to keep the momentum going. I think I kept the honor the entire day. I made some clutch up-and-downs and I’m proud of myself.”