Caden Fioroni beat Torey Edwards 3 & 2 to win the 113th California Amateur Championship at Sherwood CC in Thousand Oaks. With a closeout par putt on the 34th hole of their 36-hole final match, Fioroni put an exclamation point on a truly remarkable event.
The Cal Am is a series of sprint races rolled up into a non-stop marathon. After an opening two days of stroke play, only the top 32 players of the 156-player field advance into the match play format. That means nearly 80% of the field is cut without so much as a third round. Those top-32 players then play head-to-head, do-or-die matches, with the quarterfinals and semifinals contested on the same day. The final two competitors play a sixth straight day of golf with a 36-hole final standing between them and the Edward B. Tufts trophy.
No player has time to get comfortable and no player advancing through the bracket is afforded any time to rest.
When all was said and done, Fioroni played 133 holes of championship golf in six consecutive days. To win this event, he needed to outplay 124 players in two days of stroke play and then win five straight matches.
What makes Fioroni’s win so incredible is that he might have saved his best golf for the final match against Edwards, where he hit his first 23 greens in regulation including making birdies on the first four holes while taking only three total putts. By the 24th hole, Fioroni was 6-UP with 13 to play.
Edwards would rally and cut Fioroni’s lead to 3-UP, winning three holes on the front-nine of the second half of their match. But despite the fact that Fioroni never once got the tee box back after the 24th hole, he also never let Edwards get any closer. After seven straight halves, Fioroni won his marathon on the 16th green with an up-and-down par that closed the door on a very gutty performance by Edwards.
For amateur golf in California, it’s hard to imagine a more star-studded final two days of the Cal Am. Fioroni is the 2022 SCGA Amateur champion, Edwards is a two-time SCGA Mid-Am champion and 2020 Player of the Year, and the 14-year-old phenom, Jaden Soong, took his semifinal match to the final hole in front of a sizable gallery who wanted to see golf’s next big thing.
Ultimately it was Fioroni who emerged on top, besting 155 other competitors and becoming just the 13th player ever to win both the SCGA Amateur Championship and the California Amateur Championship. Fioroni’s name will forever be on the same trophies as Tiger Woods and Xander Schauffele, but, of the three, he’s the only one with a claim to both.
CADEN FIORONI CHAMPIONSHIP INTERVIEW
SCGA: After six days, 133 holes and outlasting 155 other players, you are now the California Amateur champion. How does that feel?
FIORONI: It feels good. I’ve always wanted to become a California Amateur champion and it’s pretty sweet to call myself that now. This tournament has been great. It helped me find my confidence again. It was lost for a little bit.
SCGA: In 2022, you won the SCGA Amateur at San Diego CC to get your name on the same trophy as Tiger Woods. Today you won the Cal Am to get your name on the same trophy as Xander Schauffele. Both these championships are steeped in history and now you’re a part of each of them. What does that mean to you?
FIORONI: It means a lot as a California kid. Everyone wants to win the Cal Am and the SCGA Am. And to be one of 12 players who’s won them both is pretty cool. I wanted to win this event so badly. There’s not an event I wanted to win more. I’ve been working really hard, so this feels really good.
SCGA: In total you played 133 holes of golf in six days. How did you stay mentally focused throughout?
FIORONI: I gave it my all. There was a point where I couldn’t feel my legs. The blisters on my feet didn’t feel good. It’s a long week, especially out here. This is not a standard golf course to walk. It’s like a hiking trail out in 90 degrees. You can feel it but I tried not to think about it. I just tried to swing as committed as possible.
SCGA: Today you hit the first 23 greens in regulation and you hit 29 of 34 in total. What was working for you?
FIORONI: My swing has been really close, but it hasn’t felt quite right. I decided to start swinging confidently and with swagger. It’s amazing what that can do when you believe in yourself. I was believing in myself and that’s probably why I hit so many greens.