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GREENSBORO -- Zack Sucher was looking for some summer tournaments that would fit into his schedule in 2007. He found the Cardinal Amateur in Greensboro and won the tournament.

This year he made sure it was on his schedule and came from two strokes back at the beginning of the final round to shoot a 2-under 68 and win the 2008 tournament. He is the first player to win back-to-back Cardinal championships since Chris Kite in 1985 and 1986.

"I like this course," Sucher said. "I had to make sure I got back here this year."

Sucher, a rising senior at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, was even when he started the final round, two-strokes behind leader Reed Darsie. But Sucher posted a 3-under on the front nine with birdies on Nos. 5, 8 and 9 to get a quick start on the field.

"If you going to make some birdies on this course, it is going to be on the front nine," Sucher said. "I just wanted to get out fast and make some shots and give myself a chance."

While Sucher was scorching the Pete Dye-designed Cardinal Golf and Country Club course, Darsie, who just graduated from UNC, was struggling. He bogeyed the first hole, bogeyed No. 4, and double-bogeyed No. 8 to shoot a 4-over 39 on the front nine.

"I wasn't feeling pressure," Darsie said. "But I bogeyed the first hole and that just got me off to a bad start."

Darsie tried to make up ground on the back nine, with back-to-back birdies on No. 14 and No. 15, but he narrowly missed a birdie putt on 17 that would have made things a little tighter and given him second place all to himself. That putt told the tale of most of Darsie's day with the flat stick.

"I missed two short birdie putts on No. 5 and No. 6, and then just missed another putt on No. 7," Darsie said. "A lot of my putts were just over the edge. By the time it was crunch time (on the back nine), I had dug myself too much of a hole."

Not only was Darsie in a hole, but he was trying to catch Sucher, whose familiarity with the course showed. He made one bogey all day and had a couple of up-and-downs on the back nine to save par and keep Darsie fighting an uphill battle.

"I knew even par on the back nine would be great," Sucher said. "You can make a few bad shots on the front nine and get away with it, but not on the back nine."

On No. 14, Sucher's drive was well beyond his competitor, but he pulled it a little left and under a tree. He made an excellent approach shot and sank an easy par putt. On the par-3 No. 16, Sucher knew it was much better to be off the green on the left than on the right. He pitched on and made an uphill 5-footer to save par on the hole.

"Anywhere on the left is good on that hole," Sucher said. "Brent (Witcher) was over there on the right, and you saw all the troubles he had."

Sucher made par on the final two holes to close it out. He said it was the last tournament he would play this summer. Darsie said he will play in the U.S. Amateur at Pinehurst No. 2 in a couple of weeks.

Although he was in the final group, Witcher was not a factor, finishing the tournament at 6 over. George Gandranata had the low round of the day with a 66, but he was 8-over going in.