Richard Riva was available when three players needed a
fourth to tee it up in the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Four-Man Team
Championship a year ago at LedgeRock Golf Club.
And the quartet of Carlos Fullerton, Adam Sutovich, Max
Harrington and Riva won the title. The question was whether they could get the
old gang back together again for one more go. And they did. And they won the
title again, this time Tuesday at Whitford Country Club.
Riva was coming off a solid junior season with the Saint
Joseph’s golf team this year. Harrington, Riva’s fellow St. Joe’s student and
roommate in Manayunk, had recruited Riva a year ago to fill out a foursome
along with Harrington’s fellow Brookside Country Club of Allentown pals
Fullerton and Sutovich.
And just like a year ago, when it all clicked, they could
tell it was meant to be again when Riva’s gap wedge from 123 yards away found
the hole for an eagle at the 401-yard, par-4 third hole at the 6,391-yard,
par-72 Whitford layout.
Riva’s hole-out eagle set the stage for an 11-under 133
total in the two-best-balls-of-foursome format and a two-shot victory. Riva and
Harrington had to do some schedule shuffling with their summer internships, but
they made it to the first tee and the team remained undefeated in this
championship.
“It was one of those shots where right when you hit it, you
know it’s going to be good,” Riva, who starred scholastically at Lancaster
Catholic and plays out of Bent Creek Country Club, told the GAP website of his
approach to the third hole. “It landed 20 feet short and rolled in. It was fun
to see that. There were a lot of high-fives. I hurt my hip jumping into Adam. I
was fine.”
The 21-year-old Riva dropped a 15-footer for birdie on the
next hole, the 553-yard, par-5 fourth hole. But, much like last year, it wasn’t
all Riva. It was a team effort.
The 20-year-old Harrington walked in a 40-foot birdie putt
at the 111-yard, par-3 sixth hole while the 23-year-old Sutovich of
Breiningsville converted his birdie try from 15 feet after hitting the green
with a sand wedge. Sutovich hit a pitching wedge to 10 feet at the seventh and
converted the birdie try.
Riva capped a sterling outgoing nine with a two-putt birdie
at the 487-yard, par-5 ninth hole that he reached in two by bombing an 8-iron
from 175 yards.
Fullerton, a 23-year-old Emmaus resident who also plays out
of Moselem Springs Golf Club, reached the par-5 12th in two with a
hybrid from 232 yards away and two-putted for birdie. Fullerton, Sutovich and
Riva all were in the neighborhood of the par-5 16th in two and each
made birdie. It was that kind of day – for the second year in a row.
The foursome of Robert Amen and Mike Quinn of the
Philadelphia Publinks Golf Association, David Kimbley of Coatesville Country
Club and David Shields of Flourtown Country Club earned runnerup honors with a
9-under 135 total, two shots behind the repeat winners.
The Running Dear Golf Club trio of Thomas Alestock, Stephen
Barry and Joey Russo was joined by Joseph Russo of Laurel Creek Country Club
and finished third at 8-under 136.
Four teams shared fourth place at 7-under 137, including Rob
Johnson and Matthew Scriff of the Steel Club, Joe Corcoran of Five Ponds Golf
Club and Kyle Pritchard of Olde Homestead Golf Club; the Concord Country Club
foursome of Jim Allen, Larry Benedetto, Doug Fedoryshyn and Cabot Williams; Bob
Arthur of Tavistock Country Club, Thomas Hyland of Little Mill Country Club, Bryan
Marvin of Old York Road Country Club and James Muller of Manufacturers Golf &
Country Club; and the Whitemarsh Valley Country Club duo of Richard Atcavage
and Will Davenport, who captured the GAP Middle-Amateur title this spring at Rolling Green Golf Club, Ronald
Battaglia of The 1912 Club and Dan Farragut of Cedarbrook Country Club.
Atcavage, Davenport, Battaglia and Farragut captured low-net
honors with a 17-under 127 total.
Alone in eighth place at 3-under 141 in the gross scoring
was the Riverton Country Club foursome of Matthew Ade, R.J. Cummings, David
Gall and Ben Litt.
Another quartet that had previously won this championship –
Jason Barkley of Moselem Springs, Mark Coassolo of Brookside Allentown, Shawn
Levin of Rolling Green and Peter Moran of host Whitford – headed a group of
three teams tied for ninth at 2-under 142.
The Honeybrook Golf Club trio of Greg Bender, Jason Castaldi
and Richard Umani and Stephen Murta of Radley Run Country Club and the
Schuylkill Country Club foursome of Nick Hand, Luke Morgan, Stephen Rice and
Ian Schollenberger also landed on 142 and were tied for ninth.
Bruce Cowgill, Matt Dietrich, Nicky Marrollo and William
Penney Jr. of host Whitford used their local knowledge to finish alone in 12th
place at 1-under 143.
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