It was supposed to be a busy day on the golf scene Monday
until some nasty summer weather arrived on the scene, forcing the postponement
of the Philadelphia Girls Junior PGA Championship at Old York Road Country Club
(hopefully to be rescheduled) and the
outright cancellation of the Philadelphia Section PGA’s William Hyndman III
Memorial Classic at Huntingdon Valley Country Club. However, on the western end
of the region at LedgeRock Golf Club in Mohnton, Berks County, where the bad weather
didn’t show up until late in the afternoon, the Golf Association of
Philadelphia nearly got in a full day of stroke-play qualifying for the 13th
Brewer Cup, one of its major championships for senior players.
While play wasn’t complete, it looked like Christopher Clauson’s
1-under-par 71 at LedgeRock was going to hold up for medalist honors in the
Senior division.
Clauson, playing out of LuLu Country Club, had an early
double bogey at the fourth hole and responded to a little adversity the way you
should as he proceeded to birdie five of the next six holes to get it to
3-under for the round.
There are so many good senior players competing in GAP
events and Clauson is definitely one of them. After the double bogey at the
fourth hole, Clauson rattled off birdies at the fifth, seventh, eighth, ninth
and 10th holes. Bogeys at the 12th and 15th
holes got him to the house at 1-under.
Jeff Frazier of Carlisle Country Club and Adam Armagost of
Medford Village Country Club completed their rounds, each coming in at even-par
72 to trail Clauson by a shot in a tie for second.
I’ve looped for the left-handed Frazier twice in Stonewall’s
Fall Scramble and the guy can really play. Not sure if Frazier just became
senior-eligible, but he’s qualified for, I believe, seven U.S. Mid-Amateur
Championships.
Frazier was steady Monday. After making bogeys at the eighth
and ninth holes to fall to 2-over, Frazier birdied the 10th hole,
rattled off seven straight pars and birdied the last to get it to even for the
round.
I’m pretty sure Armagost is the guy who is a veteran looper
at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Fla. who has been coming north to caddy at
Pine Valley Golf Club. A guy who goes by Edward Armagost in USGA qualifiers has
earned a berth in match play in the last two U.S. Senior Amateur Championships.
Pretty sure it’s the same guy. I’ve heard tales that he was a mini-tour legend
way back in the day.
Armagost bounced back from a bogey at the fourth hole to
make birdies at seven and eight before a bogey at the ninth left him at
even-par at the turn. He bogeyed the 11th hole, but got that shot
right back with a birdie at the 12th and parred out to complete an
even-par round.
Gregory Buliga of Yardley Country Club and Joe Roeder of
Little Mill Country Club were tied for fourth place, each posting a 3-over 75.
Paul Rogowicz, another Yardley entry, Ron Weaver of Bent
Creek Country Club and Randy Mitchell of Wilmington Country Club each signed
for a 4-over 76 and were tied for sixth place when play was halted.
There were six players, including defending champion Joseph
Russo of Running Deer Golf Club, in a tie for ninth place at 5-over, although
two of those players were still on the golf course.
There were four more players tied for 15th place
at 6-over, with one of them still on the course. The top 16 qualify for the
match-play bracket so there is a possibility of a playoff. Play is scheduled to
resume at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
It looks like medalist honors in the Super-Senior division
will belong to, who else, seven-time reigning GAP Super-Senior Player of the
Year Don Donatoni of White Manor Country Club.
Donatoni fired a 3-under 69 – almost positive that betters
his age and leaves me wondering how many times he has achieved that little feat
– that gave him a 3-shot advantage over Bob Billings of Rolling Green Golf
Club, who completed an even-par 72.
It was a typically methodical effort by Donatoni that
featured four birdies against one bogey. The guy is really, really amazing.
Eight players qualify for the Super-Senior match-play bracket
and there were eight players at 6-over or better when play was suspended with
Tom Humphrey of Wilmington Country Club at 5-over with one hole to play.
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