Harrison Ott Mounts Late Charge To Win Tennessee Open

Winning a state championship was something Harrison Ott had experienced before, having captured a pair of Wisconsin State Opens during his years as an amateur in addition to claiming a State Amateur crown while growing up in the Badger State.

But since turning professional in 2022 after five stellar years at Vanderbilt that saw him earn PING All-Region honors in his final season, golf had become an unsettling adventure that left him wandering down a meandering path to gaining relevance.

Ott spent a couple of years competing on the PGA TOUR Canada, securing a trio of top 10 finishes. Attempts at earning status via Q-School failed to bear fruit, and yet the 26-year-old who now calls Franklin home refused to surrender his dream.

His decision to enter this week’s 76^th Tennessee State Open offered a needed opportunity to hit the reset button after competing in a mini-tour event last week.  

“I was disappointed in my mental game, my game-planning and also my attitude a little bit,” Ott said. “So, I just gave myself the goal of having a better attitude and being more accountable to my game. I felt like l did a great job of that this week.”

Did he ever.

After finding himself three shots off the lead when making the turn on Friday at Grassland Club’s Foxland Course while playing in the final grouping, Ott played mistake-free golf down the stretch to capture the Tennessee State Open while other leaders struggled. His third consecutive round of 67 enabled Ott to post a final score of 12-under 201, winning by one shot over Hixson’s Hayden Hunneke, who bogeyed the 18th hole in the group ahead.

“I was telling someone that winning the two Wisconsin State Opens both had different meanings,” Ott said. “In the first one I didn't really know I was capable of that. I just played awesome and it changed the trajectory of my golf career. The second one, I had been playing really bad and just competed so hard and learned a lot about myself.

“This one takes on a completely different meaning. I had been playing pretty well the last couple of weeks. What it shows is the small, incremental week-to-week change that I'm capable of and how much it can do for me in the long run.”

It’s not like Ott emerged out of nowhere to win his first meaningful tournament in his new home state. He earned a spot in this year’s U.S. Open at Oakmont, shooting a respectable 75-79 before missing the cut at that treacherous venue. He also qualified for the Visit Knoxville Open on the Korn Ferry Tour, posting a pair of 73s to miss the weekend.

“I didn't play very well last year, even though I felt I was hitting it better than I had in college,” Ott said. “I was between a rock and a hard place at the end of last year, so I knew I had to take steps to get better. I thought back to what Coach (Scott) Limbaugh did for me in college, and that was so powerful. I became tougher on myself in practice and just tried to keep myself accountable in everything I do. That's been the biggest thing for me these last few months. I think the momentum it created has made it more fun, more enjoyable and a more positive experience.”

Ott entered the day at 8-under, tied for second with Ryan Terry and one shot behind leader Griffin Law. Law, a Chattanooga native, remained among the leaders until giving back five shots over a four-hole stretch midway through his round to fall out of contention to finish 10^th at 6-under 207 after posting a 74.

Terry was unable to recapture the magic that led to an opening round 65, finding only one birdie as he also shot 74 to close at 5-under 208 and in a tie for 11^th.

Meanwhile, others were making a charge up the leaderboard led by 2023 champion Hunter Wolcott. Wolcott, who joined his father, Bob, by winning State Opens separated by 40 years, had a blistering front nine of 31 with fives birdies to surge into the lead.

Two more birdies to open his back nine moved Wolcott to 13-under, three shots clear of Ott and four ahead of Hunneke. But misfortune struck when Wolcott recorded a triple bogey at 14 followed by a double bogey at 15, posting a disappointing 40 over his final nine holes to sign for a 71. His total of 7-under 206 left him tied for 7^th with Sevierville’s Spencer Cross and Hixson’s Dalton Chuba.

Ott put himself back into contention with three straight birdies starting at No. 9 to move to 11-under. Hunneke eagled the 7^th hole to jump start his quest for the title and former champion Nolan Ray of Spring Hill put himself in the mix with a three-birdie string on holes 12-14 to move to 10-under.

“Going from 11 to 12, it told myself ‘I officially have a chance,’” Ott said. “I didn’t need to do anything crazy. Then the others in front of me had to back up as well, because I didn't make many birdies coming in.”

With Hendersonville’s Jacob Sherlin already in the clubhouse at 10-under after signing for a bogey-free 65, it became a race to the finish line between Ott, Hunneke and Ray. Hunneke birdied 17 to move to 12-under, and Ott had a birdie of his own at 16 to even the count. Ray was unable to go any lower, finishing at 10-under 203 to tie Sherlin for 3^rd, leaving Hunneke and Ott to battle it out.

“I knew we were tied when I stepped on the tee at 18,” Ott said. “But I refreshed the leaderboard on my phone three or four times before my second shot, because I knew that might change my approach. Once I saw Hayden made bogey, my caddie and I decided to hit the 8-iron instead of a 7. I was 165 to the front edge, and an 8-iron covers that 100 times out of 100.”

Ott’s approach left him 35 feet from the cup, and his lag putt left him a tap-in to secure the title. Hunneke’s sterling round of 66 left him alone in 2^nd with a final score of 11-under 202.

Nashville’s Toby Bishop was the low amateur after posting a 66 on Friday, finishing tied for 5^th with Knoxville’s Jake Hall at 8-under 205.

The victory provided Ott with a sense of validation that all of his extra effort is paying dividends, hopefully serving as a springboard to future success in his professional journey.

“As far as this win goes, it's definitely up there among my favorites,” Ott said. “It's different playing in Tennessee because I only know around 10 of the 144 people in the field. When I play the Wisconsin State open, I probably know 100 of them. That kind of added some motivation to me this week, sort of flying under the radar because no one knew who I was.”

But that will no longer be the case going forward, because Harrison Ott made his name known this week.

For complete results, go to Tennessee State Open.

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com