Berkshire Country Club’s Byron Whitman was the first
alternate out of the Golf Association of Philadelphia-administered qualifier
for the U.S. Senior Amateur at Tavistock Country Club.
So Whitman waited it out at Eugene Country Club in Eugene,
Ore. last week, but never got his number called. So he was determined to make
his tee time with partner and clubmate Joe Butto for GAP’s Senior 27-Hole
Challenge Thursday at Lebanon Country Club.
“We’ve been playing against each other for years and years,
beating each other’s heads in,” Whitman told the GAP website after he and Butto
captured the title in a playoff with the duo of Bob Beck of Lehigh Country Club
and Bert Kosup of LuLu Country Club. “We decided to team it up there.
“I was out in Eugene as an alternate, trying to get in. I
was fourth in line and the first three guys got in. So I flew home (Wednesday)
night and I got into Philadelphia at 1:30 a.m. I didn’t get to sleep until 3
a.m. I got up at 5:45 a.m. to make it here and play in this tournament. It
didn’t feel like it’d be worthwhile this morning, but it does now.”
The Senior 27-Hole Challenge has a unique format in which
the teams play better-ball of partners for the first nine, select
drive-alternate shot for the second nine and aggregate of both players for the
final nine.
The 59-year-old Whitman of Reading, and the 57-year-old Butto
of Mohnton, were in the second group off. They struggled to a 37 in the
better-ball nine and a 36 in the select drive-alternate shot in the middle
nine, but came on strong with a 71 in their aggregate final nine over the
6,113-yard, par-72 Lebanon layout for an even-par 144 total.
Whitman fired a 2-under 34 and Butto added a 1-over 37 in
the team’s surge on the final nine.
Beck and Kosup, the 2016 winners of this event, started
strong with a 33 on the better-ball first nine and 35 in alternate shot. But
the aggregate nine was the great equalizer all day and Beck and Kosup carded a
76 in the final nine to end up tied with Whitman and Butto.
Whitman was about to get on the Pennsylvania Turnpike back
to Reading when he got the call to get back to Lebanon for the playoff.
Playing select drive-alternate shot on Lebanon’s par-4 17th
hole, Whitman’s approach left the pair 30 feet from the hole. Butto lagged the
birdie putt to four feet from the cup. Whitman made the putt and Beck and Kosup
three-putted for bogey to give Whitman and Butto the title.
Craig Kliewer of host Lebanon Country Club and Richard Umani
of Honeybrook Golf Club matched the fast start of Beck and Kosup with nines of
33 and 35, but also struggled on the aggregate final nine with a 78 that left
them alone in third at 2-over 146.
The Wilmington Club pair of Thomas Humphrey and Steven
Walczak looked like the winners until they let it slip away late, their
aggregate 77 dropping them into fourth place at 3-over 147.
Four teams – Marlin Detweiler of Lancaster Country Club and
Ron Weaver of Bent Creek Country Club, Jim Yenser of Raven’s Claw Golf Club and
Buck Jones of the Philadelphia Publinks Golf Association, defending champions Thomas
Alestock and Robert Walter of Running Deer Golf Club and Bryan Marvin of Old
York Road Country Club and James Muller of Manufacturers Golf & Country
Club – finished tied for fifth at 150.
Yenser and Jones made the biggest move among the four groups
at 160 in the aggregate final nine with a 2-over 74. Detweiler and Weaver got
off to a fast start with a 33 in the better-ball first nine holes, but added a
37 in the middle nine and finished up with an aggregate 80 on the final nine.
The Merion Golf Club pair of J. Kirk Luntey and Arthur Kania
Jr. finished alone in ninth at 158 after an aggregate final nine of 81.
The Meadia Heights Golf Club tandem of Ron Risser and Doug
Fulmer and the Rolling Green Golf Club duo of Richard Holstein and James Fay
rounded out the top 10 as they shared 10th place at 162.
In the Super-Senior division, the team of Steve Tagert of
Spring-Ford Country Club and Don Donatoni, the reigning five-time GAP Super-Senior
Player of the Year from White Manor Country Club, celebrated the resumption of
their partnership with another victory, this time in a playoff over Craig Scott
of Great Bear Golf Club and Robin McCool of Saucon Valley Country Club.
They had won the title in 2015 and Tagert teamed up with
Merion Golf Club’s Carl Everett to capture the title a year ago when Everett
was a late replacement for Donatoni, who was busy reaching the second round of
match play in the U.S. Senior Amateur at The Minikahda Club in Minneapolis.
“He graciously is back with me this year, so I guess it all
worked out,” the 70-year-old Donatoni of Malvern told the GAP website. “I feel
vindicated. Steve made the right choice. It’s always great to win. Craig and Robin
played terrific, as you would expect them to. It was sort of a dogfight there
for a while.”
The 68-year-old Tagert of Collegeville and Donatoni played
in the same foursome with Scott and McCool and were fighting an uphill battle
in the aggregate final nine. Each team had posted a 35 in the better-ball first
nine and a 33 in the select drive-alternate shot middle nine.
Tagert and Donatoni caught their rivals as both birdied the
par-5 seventh hole and Donatoni knocked a wedge from 60 yards away to eight
feet at the eighth hole and made the birdie putt. Each team posted a 74 in the
aggregate final nine for a 142 total over a Lebanon layout that measured 5,566
yards and played to a par of 71 for the super-seniors.
On the playoff hole, Donatoni’s 3-wood off the tee left
Tagert 64 yards to negotiate. Tagert got it on the green and a two-putt for par
gave them the title.
Bob Majczan of Lookaway Golf Club and James Prendergast of
Spring-Ford Country Club got off to a strong start with a 33 on the better-ball
opening nine before adding a 36 on the select drive-alternate shot middle nine
and an aggregate final nine of 76 to finish alone in third at 145.
Andrew Tempos of Overlook Golf Course and Daniel Burton of
Lancaster Country Club finished fourth at 148 after an aggregate final nine of
76 and the host club pair of Jeffrey True and Steve Schulte were five more
shots behind Tempos and Burton in fifth at 153 after an aggregate final nine of
77.
The Woodstone Country Club pair of Mike Tomasic and David
Brackenbury and the Kennett Square Golf & Country Club tandem of Joseph
Viscuso and Peter Torras shared sixth place at 156. Tomasic and Brackenbury
carded an aggregate final nine of 80 and Viscuso and Torras posted an aggregate
final nine of 82.
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