Huntingdon Valley Country Club assistant pro Trevor Bensel
picked up his first Philadelphia Section PGA victory with a devastating
front-nine burst that enabled him to claim a 4 and 3 victory over Sunnybrook
Golf Club assistant pro Andrew Turner in the final of the Match Play
Championship Thursday at Concord Country Club.
After losing the first hole, Turner, who hit the $100 grand
jackpot with his victory in the Haverford Philadelphia PGA Classic in May on
his home course at Sunnybrook, evened the match by winning the second hole.
But Bensel then won the next five holes in a row to take a
5-up lead through seven holes, a hole that proved too deep for Turner to climb
out of.
Every time Turner cut into the lead by winning a hole,
Bensel responded by winning the next hole to restore his cushion.
Turner won the 14th hole to cut his deficit to
4-down with four holes to go, but had no margin for error. When Bensel and Turner
halved the 15th hole with pars, the match was over.
“It’s definitely exciting to get my first Philly PGA
tournament win,” Bensel told the Philadelphia Section PGA website. “I play
matches with the guys at Huntingdon Valley all the time, so it’s a format I am
comfortable with.
“I played well in my early matches which gave me a lot
confidence.”
Earlier in the day Thursday, Bensel earned his spot in the
final with a 2 and 1 victory over Greg Farrow of Deerwood Country Club in the
semifinals.
Bensel went 1-up with a win on the fifth hole, getting a
lead he would never relinquish.
Turner punched his ticket to the final with a 3 and 2
victory in his semifinal match with Brian Bergstol of Shawnee Inn & Golf
Resort.
Turner grabbed the lead by winning the fourth hole and built
his advantage to as much as 4-up before closing out Bergstol on the 16th
hole.
Bensel’s road to the semifinals included a 2 and 1 win over
John Rudolph of Fieldstone Golf Club in the opening round, a 2-up decision over
Mickey Sokalski of Philmont Country Club, a 2 and 1 victory over Tom Michaels
of Berkshire Country Club and 4 and 3 win over Jakob Gerney of Trump National
Golf Club Philadelphia in a quarterfinal match.
Turner opened up with a 5 and 4 victory over Jimmy Maack of
Kimberton Golf Club, got back-to-back 4 and 3 wins over Aronimink Golf Club
assistant pro Carson Solien and Bidermann Golf Club’s Michael Caldwell and then
edged reigning Philadelphia Senior Professional Championship winner Dave Quinn
of Philmont, 1-up, in a quarterfinal match.
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