Leading the 28th North and South Junior Amateur for most of three rounds, Lee Bedford almost watched the tournament slip away at the end.

Almost.

Bedford of Cary, a rising junior at Cary Christian School, made a tap-in bogey on the 18th hole at Pinehurst No. 2 Thursday to finish one stroke ahead of Samuel Chavez of Hillsborough, Calif.

Bedford posted scores of 67-68-73-208 compared with 69-68-72-209 for Chavez.

Jack Fields of Southern Pines staged a late comeback, converting birdies on the last four holes. The rising Pinecrest junior finished with a 69 that tied him for the low round of the day. He finished third overall after rounds of 71-73-69-213.

Bedford said he didn't have any special plan in place as he took a two-stroke lead into the final day.

“I just tried to play my game,” he said. “My day started par, birdie, birdie and I jumped out to an early lead. I pretty much limped in from there.”

Bedford’s lead was four as he, Chavez and Will Almand, also of Cary, went to the 17th tee. The leader’s tee shot was short of the green and he went on to make a bogey. Chavez sank his birdie putt from just off the green, creating a two stroke swing. Both faced delicate chips on 18. From behind the green, Bedford left himself an 18-foot par putt. Chavez lofted his from the right side to about six feet.

Bedford nestled his first putt close while Chavez sank the clutch par putt.

“I had a little one-footer for the win,” Bedford said. “That was nice.”

A native of Southern Pines, Fields surprisingly was playing No. 2 for only the first time.

“The course was really in great shape and it was fun to play,” he said.

Three times on the front nine, Fields hit balls onto the sloped greens that rolled right back to him. Two of those attempts were out of a bunker on the par three sixth, leading to a triple bogey.

He made three of his seven birdies on the front nine, but went through a dry spell on the first five holes of the back nine.

“I was hitting the ball close on almost every hole and then burning the edge with the putts,” he said. Almand, who attends Green Hope High, shot rounds of 72-66-77-215 to tie for fourth with Warren Straub of Apex, who attends Middle Creek High. Straub had rounds of 73-71-71-215.