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Ogden • As his golf ball plunked into the hole on the 18th green at Ogden Golf & Country Club, and not a split-second before, Kelton Hirsch pumped his fist in delight and a few of his supporters let out a loud, but brief, cheer.

Then the place fell eerily silent, as a large crowd of Patrick Fishburn fans looked on in utter disbelief. The tournament's Goliath — literally and figuratively — was eliminated, as the long-hitting, 6-foot-4 defending champion saw his dream of repeating as the Utah State Amateur champ fall just short on the course he grew up playing.

"Holy cow, that was so much fun," said Hirsch, who redshirted this past season at BYU. "I had a lot of great looks today for birdie, and I missed a couple big ones, but it was really fun to make one right at the end when I needed it."

The semifinal victory over his BYU teammate — Hirsch believes it was only his second one ever over the Cougars' No. 1 player — propels the Viewmont High graduate and 2013 5A state high school champion into Saturday's 36-hole championship match against Braydon Swapp, a 21-year-old Utah State golfer who eliminated Weber State golfer Kyler Dearden 2 and 1 in the other semifinal.

Swapp, who edged Fishburn by a stroke for medalist honors on Tuesday, grew up in Farr West and prepped at nearby Weber High. Lightly recruited, he transferred from North Idaho College to USU last fall and was generally the Aggies' sixth-best player this past season.

A classic BYU vs. Utah State showdown?

"I am sure a lot of people do [see it that way], but I just see it as golf," Swapp said, noting that he and Hirsch might have faced off a couple times in prep golf but have never officially met.

Call Hirsch, from Centerville, the OG&CC-favorite killer. He ousted former Weber State golfer Ryan Sarlo, son of the course's general manager, Craig, 2 up in the morning to prevent a Sarlo-Fishburn party in the afternoon before handling Fishburn himself.

"Not a lot of people thought I could win today, but I knew if I played my game that I would have a shot," Hirsch said.

Swapp is known as a late-bloomer, having failed to make his high school team as a sophomore. The bearded fellow who works at The Barn G.C. talks to himself a bit late in rounds, and on the No. 17 tee on Friday, after his four-hole lead had been whittled to two, he told no one in particular, "enough is enough. I need to get it going again."

He did, finding the fairway when Dearden — who was also a semifinalist last year at Alpine — hit his tee shot into a bush and ended up conceding on the green.

"I just grinded mentally," Swapp said, having outlasted West Bountiful's Tanner Taft 2 and 1 in the morning. "I was really tired those last four holes."

Known for his accurate tee shots and wicked short game, Hirsch chipped in for birdie on No. 9 against Fishburn to take the lead. Fishburn won 14 and 15 to go up a hole, but missed the fairway and the green on No. 16 and lost the hole to square the match.

On 17, Fishburn's 30-footer for birdie missed by a hair, and then the underdog hit the better tee shot on the 172-yard 18th hole, a rare finishing par-3, and ended up sinking the match-winner after Fishburn's try for birdie was well short of the hole.

Hirsch said he aimed for the hole's left edge and got it rolling on the right line, but only knew it was pure when it trickled into the cup.

"I wasn't going to say anything until it fell in," he said. "I was ready to go [with the celebratory fist pump], but until it fell in I wasn't going to do anything."

After all, he didn't want to jinx it.

That's not how you take down Goliath — even if he is your college teammate.

Twitter: @drewjay —

119th Utah State Amateur

At Ogden Golf & Country Club

Friday's quarterfinal matches

• Braydon Swapp def. Tanner Taft, 2 and 1

• Kyler Dearden def. CJ Lee, 1 up

• Patrick Fishburn def. Nicklaus Britt, 2 and 1

• Kelton Hirsch def. Ryan Sarlo, 2 up

Friday's semifinals matches

• Swapp def. Dearden, 2 and 1

• Hirsch def. Fishburn, 1 up

Saturday's 36-hole championship match

7:30 a.m. • Kelton Hirsch vs. Braydon Swapp