Catching Up With 1990 Junior Am Champ Mathew Todd

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Who captured the only U.S. Junior Amateur Championship that Tiger Woods entered and didn’t win? Answer: Mathew Todd, in 1990 at Lake Merced Golf Club near San Francisco. Todd didn’t beat Woods, who lost his morning semifinal match to Dennis Hillman, making Hillman one of only three players to defeat Tiger in a USGA amateur event, along with Tim Herron and Paul Page, both in the U.S. Amateur.

Woods would soon become famous for his remarkable match-play comebacks, but it was Todd who staged one of the championship’s all-time rallies against Hillman, his fellow 17-year-old, fighting back from 4 down after eight holes in the 18-hole final to post a 1-up victory. (The USGA implemented a 36-hole final in 2005.)

Woods, then 14, went on to win an unprecedented six straight USGA championships in as many years, with three U.S. Junior Amateurs (1991-93) followed by three U.S. Amateurs (1994-96). He was already well known – but not to Todd, a fellow Californian from Visalia. Shy by nature, Todd admitted to not knowing most of the field, which included several future PGA Tour pros, including Joe Ogilvie, Notah Begay, Chris Riley and Jason Gore. He did know one player well: his high school teammate Joe Acosta Jr., who lost in the opening round that week to Jerry Chang (a future Stanford teammate of Woods and Begay), whom Tiger defeated in the quarterfinals.

Todd began his magical week with a 1-up win over fellow Californian  Gore. A 21-hole victory over Jason Freeman, of Guthrie, Okla., followed, after which Todd wasn’t extended beyond No. 17 until the final.

Early in that final, Hillman continued the momentum from his 3-and-2 semifinal win over Woods. Todd halved his 4-down deficit with wins on Nos. 9 and 12, but was still 2 down with three to play. Hillman, who is now a PGA professional in metropolitan New York, three-putted 16 to lose the hole; Todd tied the match on 17 with a miraculous 40-foot birdie putt.

On the par-5 18th, Todd knocked his wedge approach to 3 feet. Hillman sent his third shot long into a back bunker and left his fourth in greenside rough. He eventually conceded Todd’s birdie and the match. It was the first time Hillman had trailed the entire week.

“Very special,” said Todd of the victory. “It’s unfortunate sometimes that anyone has to lose, but Dennis was great about it. To be 17 years old and to concede a putt for victory, that’s a really kind gesture, and it said a lot about Dennis.”

The two remain close friends today even though they reside on opposite ends of the country.

Todd went on to the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, playing under legendary coach Dwaine Knight alongside the likes of Riley, Chad Campbell and 1990 NCAA individual champ Warren Schutte. After a stint on the mini-tours produced little success, Todd became a partner in an upstart apparel company with former teammate Brandon Nottingham (coincidentally, a friend of Hillman’s) and Nottingham’s father.

Now 52, Todd also dabbled in golf instruction before founding The Fundamental Golf Company in 2003, a one-man shop dedicated to increasing golfers’ performance. Always fascinated by equipment, Todd created 2D and 3D computer-aided designs specifically for putters. In 2011, he was awarded a patent to allow golfers to utilize their existing putter to self-fit. His system produces the specs for lie angle, length and other variables, which Todd can use to build a custom flatstick.

Other companies have relied on Todd’s research and development to create prototype putters that have been used by LPGA Tour stars such as Karrie Webb, Nasa Hataoka and Paula Creamer. McDonald’s, the Dean Martin Association, DC Comics and Star Trek have also used his design work; he put the Golden Arches logo on putters as an alignment aid, while the latter three organizations contracted with him to create graphics for putter grips.

As a teenager, Todd had an affinity for reading and critical thinking – his game was helped by absorbing written material by Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman and others – and he has turned that passion into a career.

“I really enjoy the R&D side of things,” Todd said. “Production is necessary but not my favorite thing, because you’ve already figured out the design and are basically babysitting the machines. R&D is a lot of work, but it’s fun to experiment to see if something is noticeably better.”

The Todd File

Family: Single (Michelle Halgren, girlfriend of 18 years); brother Mark is a PGA professional at Highlands Falls (N.C.) C.C.

Residence: Visalia, Calif.
Age: 52
Notable accomplishment: Rallied from 4 down to win 1990 U.S. Junior Amateur; competed in 3 USGA championships

Quote: “I didn’t know Tiger. I knew of him, but honestly, I couldn’t have picked him out of a crowd at the Junior Am. I was just in my own world.”