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The final round of the 59th LGA Junior Amateur Championship was exciting and full of drama . Nick Daniel of Covington fired an eight-under par 64 at Links on the Bayou to win by one stroke over Brady Bennett of Zachary . Daniel posted rounds of 72-73-64 to finish with a total of 7-under par 209 .

He started the day eight shots off the lead , and his epic final round included 9 birdies and one bogey . Sixty-four was the lowest round of this year ’ s Championship , and it is the lowest final round score ever shot by a Louisiana Junior Amateur Champion since the LGA began to utilize online scoring in 2004 .

Daniel started his round with a par on his opening hole , a par 5 playing 559 yards on Friday . He jump started his round on the par 4 2nd hole , making the first of three consecutive birdies .

He made back-to-back pars on the par 4 5th hole and the par 3 6th . He added

another birdie at the par 5 7th but then made his lone mistake at the par 3 8th and carded a bogey . He bounced back with a par on the par 4 9th hole , making the turn at three-under par 33 .

Daniel said following his round , “ I didn ’ t change my game plan . I tried to stay aggressive the whole time .” That mindset was apparent on his last nine holes . Daniel made a birdie on the par 4 10th hole and a par at the par 4 11th . He then added four consecutive birdies on holes 12 through 15 . He would make par on his last three holes , bringing his back nine total to 31 . Daniel was four starting times ahead of the final group so when he posted the 64 , he was not sure if seven-under par would be enough to win .

Brady Bennett of Zachary had a valiant effort , grinding out a one-over par 73 in his final round after shooting a 69 in the first round and a 68 in the second round . Bennett was even par for the final round and tied with

Daniel at seven-under par for the Championship when he stepped on the 18th tee box . Hole # 18 is a par 3 over water , and it was playing 177 yards on Friday .

Bennett missed the green and had a tough up and down to save par and force a playoff . His chip shot rolled 6 feet past the hole , and he barely missed the par putt coming back . He tapped in for bogey and finished runner-up . The experience of being in the final pairing in the final round should serve Bennett well in the future , and it will be no surprise if he contends for a LGA Amateur Championship in the near future .

Daniel comes from a great golfing family . His mother Kay has won 11 Louisiana Women ’ s Golf Association titles ( two Junior Amateurs , one Amateur , and eight Mid- Amateurs ), and she is exempt from qualifying for the 2016 U . S . Mid-Amateur after advancing to the quarterfinals at Squire Creek last year . She was on hand at Links on the Bayou , making this victory even sweeter .

His sister Abbey is the reigning LWGA Junior Amateur Champion among many other accolades .

Daniel added that this championship “ means the world ” to him . He will be 18 years old at the time of next year ’ s championship and thus ineligible to compete , so winning the LGA Junior Amateur in his final attempt was exceptional .