Massa Defends Arizona Mid-Amateur Championship

Cody Massa successfully defended his title at the Arizona Mid-Amateur Championship with a three-round total of 16-under at Ocotillo Golf Club. Outside the top 10 after the opening round, Massa sky-rocketed up the leaderboard, shooting 64-64 on the final two days.

2025 ARIZONA MID-AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

Leading Massa by four strokes heading into the final round, Chris Kamin looked well on his way to another commanding win and reclaiming the title he won three years ago. Then, Massa quickly began to chip away at Kamin’s lead, making three birdies and an eagle on the front nine. With a Kamin bogey on No. 9, they were all tied at the turn.

It was a familiar spot for both players. At last year’s Arizona Mid-Amateur Championship, Kamin entered the final day with the lead, only to watch Massa catch fire with seven birdies on the front nine and nearly break the Anthem Golf & Country Club course record en route to stealing the win.

Cody Massa hits a tee shot during the final round of the 2025 Arizona Mid-Amateur Championship.

When asked if it felt like déjà vu when he saw the leaderboard, Massa said, “That’s exactly what I was thinking when I teed off this morning. I was like, ‘Alright, I have to get off to a quick start, put pressure on him, try and repeat exactly what happened last year – and here we are.’”

Today, Kamin and Massa went back-and-forth throughout the back nine. Massa took the lead for the first time with a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 11, then Kamin answered with his own birdie on No. 13 to even the score again. Then came the shot that tipped the momentum in Massa’s favor – a chip-in on No. 14.

“I hit my tee shot left on 14. I was going to try and go over the tree (to reach the green), but if it didn’t go well, it would have been really bad. So I punched it up, left it just short and hit a great chip and it went right in the middle,” Massa said.

Kamin responded yet again with a birdie on No. 15 to tie it up once more, but Massa had the final word. On the par-3 16th, he stuck his tee shot from 170 yards inside 15 feet and knocked in the birdie putt to take the lead for good.

“It’s fun. It was a battle. You couldn’t ask for anything else,” Massa said about exchanging blows with Kamin down the stretch. “I’d much rather have (a close battle) than win by 10. That’s a lot more fun to me. You really have to stay in the moment, focus on every shot. Against him, I know he’s going to give his all and I just have to return the favor and do the same for him.”