BANGOR – A pinch of surprise, a dash of irony, and an air of mystery surrounded the final round of the 38th R.H. Foster/Mobil Paul Bunyan Amateur Golf Tournament on Sunday, so it stood to reason that the winner be determined by a playoff.

Fifteen-year-old Jesse Speirs of Bangor drained a 2-foot birdie putt on the first hole at Bangor Municipal Golf Course to edge Joe Alvarez of Veazie, whose own 15-foot putt curled away inches short of the hole. It was the first Bunyan playoff since 1982.

Speirs and Alvarez had finished at 6-over-par 218 after Speirs posted a 1-under-par 70 and Alvarez a 68.

The surprise was that they were battling for the lead at all.

Before the start of Sunday’s round, leader Corey Poulin of Jackman was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard after Saturday’s round at Bar Harbor Golf Course in Trenton.

“It’s unfortunate what happened to Corey,” said Speirs, but he wouldn’t have changed his game plan if Poulin had played. “I would have played the same way and Corey would have won by six.”

The mystery that hung over the final round was that Poulin’s disqualification actually put Division B leader Rick Sinclair of Hermon atop the Bunyan field. Sinclair had opened with rounds of 70-74-144, a stroke behind Poulin and four strokes ahead of Speirs, defending champion Ricky Jones of Rockland, and last year’s runner-up, Jay Livingston of Hermon.

While the “A” players were competing at Bangor, Sinclair was playing at Rockland Golf Club on Sunday. He ended up shooting a 6-over-par 76 for a 220 total and third place overall.

Tom Bean (70 Sunday) of Kennebunkport, Livingston (74), and Greg Hanna (71) of Augusta tied for fourth overall at 222, Scott Mosher of Northport was seventh at 69-223, and Jeff Bouchard (73) of Hampden and Jones (76) tied for eighth at 224.

George Bell of Dover-Foxcroft was runner-up to Sinclair in Division B with 76-230. Joseph C. Alexander of Winterport won Division C with 83-241. Dana Worster of Brewer earned the senior title (ages 60 and up) with 73-236.

Both Speirs and Alvarez said they weren’t nervous going into the playoff.

“The first hole is probably the easiest on the course,” said Speirs, “the easiest driving hole.”

After their tee shots, Speirs was about 80 yards from the hole, Alvarez a little closer.

When Speirs hit a lob wedge to 2 feet, Alvarez didn’t worry. He figured he still had a chance.

“I just wanted to put it on the green and knock in the putt,” said Alvarez, an NAIA All-American for Husson College this spring. “I knew it was going to be somewhere close.”

The playoff had been set up when Speirs missed a 2-foot birdie putt on 18.

“It broke just a little right,” said Speirs of the way he had lined up the putt.

“I didn’t plan on hitting it too hard,” he said. “I pushed it a little bit. It wasn’t the prettiest stroke.”

Speirs tried not to think about that when he set up to hit his 2-footer on No. 1.

“I tried to keep my head down this time,” he said with a smile.

The irony was that Poulin may have saved Speirs’ round. While he had been disqualified, Poulin was OK’d to play with Speirs and Livingston, and Speirs was thankful he played.

On the 12th hole, a long dogleg-right par 4, Speirs hit his tee shot to the right, over the hay field, but toward the trees that separate the 12th and 13th fairways.

“I was aiming over the pine trees off to the right of the tee like I always do,” said Speirs. “I was trying to draw it and came out of it [slicing to the right].”

Speirs, who could afford the little laugh afterward, said, “I was only 80 yards off where I wanted to hit it.”

The ball was found after about three minutes of searching, according to Speirs. The rules allow up to five minutes.

“Corey found it, deep in the grass,” said Speirs, who blasted the ball out of the thigh-high patch of grass, over the short pines, and into the fairway.

From there, he knocked it 8 feet from the pin and made the putt to save par – and possibly a couple of strokes if the ball hadn’t been found.

Speirs came close to making his first birdie since the first hole on 13, but his 10-foot putt ended up 6 inches short.

“I had a problem with my putting,” said Speirs. “I had them on line, but not enough speed. I wasn’t giving them a chance to go in.”

He finally broke the birdie barrier on 15, two-putting from more than 80 feet. He added another birdie on 17, sinking a downhill, sidehill 10-foot putt.

“That birdie on 17 was big,” said Speirs, who had offset his birdie on No. 1 with bogeys on 3 and 9.

Speirs, playing in only his second Bunyan, was aided by the fact he was finishing on his home course. The big benefit was the crew that turned out.

“I had the whole family out here,” said Speirs. “That was nice.”

“The [par] 5’s, that’s what hurt me,” said Alvarez, talking about the two short par 5’s on the back nine. He could only par them.

“I left a lot of putts out there,” said Alvarez, “but I think everybody can say that.”