Zach May made the choice to stay in Iowa this summer instead of returning to his home country of New Zealand.

For the soon-to-be Iowa State University sophomore golfer, that decision paid off in a big way here Sunday, as May was crowned the open division winner of the 75th annual Fort Dodge Amateur.

Thanks to a 33 on the front-nine at the Fort Dodge Country Club, May finished at 2-under to hold off a handful of the top amateurs in the state — including Zac Jenkins and Nate Juffer, who tied for second at even par.

Sean Davis repeated as the senior division winner with a 1-over 72, while Bob Brooks was crowned the super senior winner with a 1-under 70 round.

Golfers battled windy conditions throughout the day with rain mixed in, as the opening round on Saturday was canceled due to the weather.

May — who won a handful of tournaments in New Zealand, including the U19 Boys Championship — is spending his summer playing events in the midwest.

“It’s winter back home now, so it made sense to stay and get more golf in,” May said. “The biggest adjustments from playing (in New Zealand) to playing (in the U.S.) is the length of courses and just adjusting to the college game. I’ve had to work more on putting over the last year.

“I thought I played very well (Sunday). I had some nice par saves and just stayed the course. This was a good opportunity to work on playing tournament golf.”

May finished in a tie for 36th at the Big 12 Championships back in April for the Cyclones, who placed 10th in the league’s team standings.

Davis, who lives in Council Bluffs, completed a successful defense of his senior title at the FD Am after repeating as the Carroll Amateur champion as well earlier this month.

“I guess it’s turned into a nice little mid-Iowa double for me,” Davis said. “I’d just like to say that the staff out here does an incredible job with this event. It’s a long weekend and a lot of hours, and they go above and beyond for the golfers.

“I brought a couple guys up from Council Bluffs last year and I’m planning on bringing up even more next year.”

Davis shot 35-37 to finish with a 72 that included four birdies and 11 pars. His round wasn’t without a hiccup, though, as he carded a triple-bogey at the par-5 15th.

“I really wasn’t sure where I was sitting after that, but I felt like if I could get a birdie or two I’d have a chance,” he said. “This is a really tough field with a lot of good golfers, so it feels great to get the win.”

Frank Chiodo and former Humboldt standout Jeff Panek tied for second at 2-over for the day in the senior division, while Humboldt’s Tony Malizia and Eagle Grove’s Darron Baker finished in a tie for eighth at 5-over.

Brooks, a native of West Des Moines, went 35-35 for a 70 with five birdies and eight pars. He won the Southeast Iowa Amateur at The Preserve earlier this month, and also captured the Lake Creek Amateur held in Storm Lake, in May while advancing to the Iowa Golf Association Senior Match Play semifinals.

Dave Gaer was just a shot back of Brooks with Fort Dodge’s Terry Miller (third), Dave Sergeant (sixth) and David Hanson (tied for eighth) in the Top-10. Tom Schill from Gowrie tied for eighth.

Iowa Central’s Nico Booyens tied for sixth in the open division at 2-over.

The event featured a full field of over 150 golfers for the first time in nearly a decade this year.

FORT DODGE AMATEUR

Sunday’s Final Round Leaderboard

OPEN DIVISION

1. Zach May, Ames 69 (-2)

2. Zac Jenkins, Des Moines 71 (even)

(tie) Nate Juffer, West Des Moines 71 (even)

4. Easton Korell, Adel 72 (+1)

(tie) Will Simpson, Pella 72 (+1)

6. Levi Slings, Ankeny 73 (+2)

(tie) Samuel Storey, Sioux City 73 (+2)

(tie) Nick Pittman, Urbandale 73 (+2)

(tie) Nico Booyens, Fort Dodge 73 (+2)

SENIOR DIVISION

1. Sean Davis, Council Bluffs 72 (+1)

2. Frank Chiodo, West Des Moines 73 (+2)

(tie) Jeff Panek, Johnston 73 (+2)

4. Jeff Collett, Ottumwa 74 (+3)

(tie) Bruce Westemeier, Cedar Falls 74 (+3)

(tie) Jay Slings, Ankeny 74 (+3)

SUPER SENIOR DIVISION

1. Bob Brooks, West Des Moines 70 (-1)

2. Dave Gaer, Des Moines 71 (even)

3. Terry Miller, Fort Dodge 73 (+2)