Norway's Andreas Halvorsen wins United Way Classic at Hardscrabble Country Club
Andreas Halvorsen entered the All Pro Tour United Way Classic’s final hole Saturday tied for the lead at 14-under-par. His approach shot found in the front of a bunker.
With the pin in the back of the green, Halvorsen had little to work with, just like those on golf’s mini tours hoping to make it like APT graduates World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Bubba Watson.
“Winning obviously is always good,” Halvorsen said. “The extra money, that’s the biggest part because it’s just such a grind just trying to survive from check to check, so getting a bigger check is huge.”
After completing a par save at Hardscrabble Country Club’s 18th hole, the 25-year-old Halvorsen earned a $25,000 check, a trophy and a Rolex watch.
He shot a 5-under 65 for a one-stroke victory over former Oklahoma standout Blaine Hale, who won the tour’s last event in Bella Vista. It was the third time that the event was held at Hardscrabble and the second straight year it was shortened to 54 holes due to weather.
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Born in Larvik, Norway, Halvorsen picked up the game from his parents. Playing multiple sports as a child, he practiced golf about once a week until “picking it up more” around the age of 10.
With the cold weather in Norway creating a shorter season to play, the decision was made for him to move to the United States, living by himself, with his parents unable to afford to move but taking up extra jobs to afford his new living situation.
He took the opportunity to develop his game at the Tom Burnett Golf Academy, based at St. Johns Golf & Country Club just south of Jacksonville, Florida.
There, he worked with Justin Ragognetti, a teacher known to have helped numerous college and high-level players in a talent-rich area.
“He has such good knowledge about all parts of the game and so just seeing bits here and there that when it all came together got me better,” Halvorsen said.
In October 2013, he won the St. Augustine Amateur in Florida just two months after moving, reached the quarterfinals in the 2014 U.S. Junior Amateur and won the 2014 Toyota Junior Golf World Cup in Japan, with 2021 Ryder Cup participant Viktor Hovland being one of his teammates.
The two-time APT winner has also had victories at the Norwegian Junior Open and the 2021 Norwegian Open.
Rather than going the college route, Halvorsen liked where he was at and didn’t want to risk working on his game somewhere else.
In 2015, he turned pro, making one cut in seven tries on the European Challenge Tour, before joining the PGA Tour Latinoamerica Tour, which is the circuit he primarily plays on.
Halvorsen entered the final round at 9 under, tied with Hale at second and two strokes behind former Texas A&M standout Greg Yates.
Halvorsen, Hale and Yates – all in the final group — made the turn tied for the lead at 12 under. On the 10th, called “the most hated hole” by a Hardscrabble member, Halvorsen escaped the right trees with a low 7-iron shot and got up-and-down from there.
After a bogey on 12, he responded with back-to-back birdies, the one on 14 being from about 40 feet.
“I was lucky that I hit a couple good shots on the next one (13), so getting that birdie right back was huge because after 13, the next five holes are just brutal, so getting that helped a lot,” Halvorsen said.
You can follow Bryant Roche on Twitter @BRocheSports and you can email him at BRoche@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Norway's Andreas Halvorsen makes par save to win United Way Classic golf tournament
