There was a lot of heat at Chartiers Country Club on Tuesday.
It was over 90 degrees as the 124th West Penn Amateur played out. The second round, postponed from Monday because a heat-induced storm, had to be finished and then the third round could be played.
And that’s when the heat really got cranked up, this time not on the thermometer but in the minds of the dozen or so players who believed they had they had a shot at winning the Fownes Trophy.
Somebody forgot to tell Nathan Piatt.
A recent graduate of Radford University, Piatt has been playing well and did so again Tuesday. He made three birdies and a bogey in the first 15 holes on the final round before the siren sounded to halt play because of inclement weather.
Piatt had a four-shot lead over Rocco Salvitti, who put together a masterful round of 63 with 8 birdies. That margin allowed Piatt to play conservatively coming in, hitting irons off the tees to record the victory.
“Make it as easy as possible,” he said. “Those white stakes down the right side are a little bit bigger when you have the lead in the tournament.”
Piatt wasn’t surprised by what Salvitti shot in the final round.
“Rocco always has a low number in the tank,” Piatt said. “It’s really nice to get one of these under my belt. “After 9 holes I looked around and saw I was in a good spot. I just didn’t want to make any dumb mistakes.”
He didn’t and the victory enabled his name to join some of the great names in the game. Guys like Arnold Palmer and Sean Knapp, for example.
“It’s really special, it really is,” Piatt said. “This is really a tournament you want to win. It’s awesome.”
While Piatt heard plenty of comments about how well he played (three straight rounds under 70), he was quick to praise Chartiers Country Club’s golf course.
“The course was phenomenal, the best I’ve ever seen it. It’s nice to see how good this place has become over the last couple years. It’s really good for tournament play,” Piatt said.