Shannon Folsom and Justin Broussard win again at Cherry Blossom Tournament

Despite shooting a 63 in the first round of the Cherry Blossom Tournament and trailing by only one shot, Shannon Folsom and Justin Broussard were not happy with the way they putted in the first round, especially Broussard.

So they were at Bowden Golf Course in plenty of time Sunday to rectify the issue. After about an hour of putting on the practice greens, Broussard started the final round with three birdies, including two from longer than 20 feet.

That proved to be the difference as Folsom and Broussard turned their one-stroke deficit into a two-stroke lead and earned a three-shot win by shooting another 63, beating first-round leaders Lee Gerdes and Coleman Tidwell, who overcame a slow start to post a 67.

The win was Folsom and Broussard's third straight win in the event.

"I know I was frustrated with the way I putted in the first round, but we were still in a position to win," Broussard said. "We got some early momentum, and we were able to post a strong first nine, and then we just stayed together the rest of the way. Winning this tournament is really important to us because we want to be recognized as one of the better teams around here. We knew even with a lead we could not relax against Lee and Coleman, but we played good golf all the way through."

Folsom and Broussard were strong on the front nine. After Broussard's three birdies early, Folsom birdied Nos. 5 and 6, and Broussard birdied No. 7 to stretch their lead to five strokes. But Gerdes and Tidwell did not quit and they cut the Folsom-Broussard lead to three with birdies on No. 8 nd 11. But Broussard birdied No. 13 to get his team's lead back to four strokes.

The drama was not quite over as Folsom and Broussard bogeyed No. 16, while Gerdes chipped in for birdie to get back to within two. Broussard came up big again with a clutch par on No. 17 to hold on to the two-stroke lead heading into the final hole, a lead that was added to on a chip in birdie by Broussard.

"We know that one of the things that we need to work on is keeping our composure when things aren't going so good," Folsom said. "Playing with those (Gerdes and Tidwell), two of the better golfers in Middle Georgia, was great for us because they never ever quit. I mean we had a five-stroke lead, and all of a sudden they fought back and cut it to two with two to play. Justin's par on No. 17 was huge, and after that, we finally felt like we could hold them off."

Gerdes knew exactly where the tournament was won and lost.

"We can't expect to hold on to a lead when we started off with seven straight pars," Gerdes said. "Shannon and Justin are way too good for that to stand up. Give them the credit; they put together two great rounds of golf."

Travis Steed and Ryan Emory finished third, two strokes behind Gerdes and Tidwell.

This story was originally published March 20, 2016 at 9:27 PM with the headline "Shannon Folsom and Justin Broussard win again at Cherry Blossom Tournament ."