Sutherland's 59 brings back memories of a front-nine 27 by Sigel

   Watching The Golf Channel breathlessly break in to its regular coverage to show Kevin Sutherland’s bid to record the first sub-60 score in Champions Tour history Saturday, I couldn’t help but flash back to the 1998 Bell Atlantic Classic, which was being played for the first time at Hartefeld National after a pretty successful run at Chester Valley Golf Club.

   Jay Sigel, the great amateur champion and Aronimink Golf Club member, had turned pro at 50 to play what was then called the Senior PGA Tour. His third round at Hartefeld that year started with a par. Then he made eagle at the par-5 second hole and followed that with seven straight birdies for a front-nine 27.

   It has stood as a Champions Tour record for nine holes since then. Pretty sure it’s been matched and it was again Saturday when Sutherland birdied seven of the first eight holes, the exception being an eagle at the par-5 fifth, and then parred the ninth hole to stand at 9-under after nine.

   When Sigel made the turn at 9-under that day at Hartefeld National,  the flower of Philadelphia area golf scribes came clamoring out of the press room and climbed the hills of southern Chester County to see if Sigel could be the first senior player to record the magical 59. Alas, Sigel struggled to a back-nine of 1-under 35 – if that can be called struggling – for a brilliant 10-under 62.

   A big difference between Sutherland’s accomplishment and Sigel’s flirtation with a 59 16 years ago is the fact that Sigel won the tournament, although he was forced to a playoff by Jose Maria Canizares.

   It was a very popular victory among the many golf fans in this area who count Sigel as one of the greatest golfers this area has ever produced. He proved it again with the 27 strokes he used to negotiate the front nine at Hartefeld that magical Saturday in May.