Oakley edges Bensel in seven-hole playoff to capture GALV Lehigh Valley Open at Northampton

   It took seven extra holes, but Zac Oakley, a teaching pro at Bidermann Golf Club, outlasted Overbrook Golf Club assistant pro Trevor Bensel to capture the title in the Golf Association of the Lehigh Valley (GALV) Lehigh Valley Open, which concluded Tuesday at Northampton Country Club.

   Oakley and Bensel are two of the more talented young players in the Philadelphia Section and both flashed their ability during the two-day event.

   Oakley grabbed the lead after Monday’s opening round with a sparkling 4-under-par 68, the best round of the day. Oakley was brutally efficient with five birdies, all coming in a stretch of 10 holes between the seventh and 16^th holes, against a lone bogey.

   Bensel, who had opened with a solid 1-under 71, then got hot at the end of Tuesday’s second round, making birdies at the 14^th, 15^th, and 17^th holes to card a 4-under 68 of his own and catch Oakley at 5-under 139 at the end of the regulation 36 holes. Oakley posted a solid 1-under 71 in Tuesday’s second round.

   It was match play after that as the pair embarked on an epic seven-hole playoff, playing the 18^th hole at Northampton over and over again before Oakley finally ended it with a par. Caught a brief video that the Philadelphia Section PGA posted on Twitter of Oakley making the winning putt and it looked like daylight was getting scarce when the playoff finally ended.

   Bensel will defend his Philadelphia Assistant PGA Professional Championship in a couple of weeks at Trump National Golf Club Philadelphia.

   Bensel’s second-round 68 was not the low round of the day Tuesday, thanks to the 5-under 67 put up by Bensel’s colleague in the Overbrook pro shop, Ashley Grier, the Philadelphia Section’s top female player.

   It was a seven-shot improvement from the opening-round 74 Grier turned in Monday and gave her a share of third place with the Lehigh Valley Open’s low amateur, Chad Hess, who starred scholastically at Parkland and collegiately at Old Dominion, at 3-under 141.

   The 24-year-old Hess teaches Math at his alma mater, Parkland, and was the Lehigh Valley Player of the Year in 2018.

   Spring-Ford Country Club head pro Rich Steinmetz was typically consistent, carding a pair of 1-under 71s as he shared fifth place with Joseph Kogelman of GolfTec Moorestown (N.J.) and another amateur standout, Kevin Scherr, the 2016 PIAA Class AAA champion as a senior at Nazareth Area, at 2-under 142.

   Kogelman trailed Oakley by just a shot after opening with a 3-under 69 before cooling off a little with a 1-over 73.

   Scherr added an even-par 72 to his opening-round 70. Scherr saw his career at Youngstown State come to a premature end due to the coronavirus pandemic this spring. In wrapping up Scherr’s career, the Youngstown State website indicated that Scherr played every round of every tournament the program played in during his time as a Penguin. College coaches love that kind of consistency and dependability.

   A couple of the Philadelphia Section’s most talented senior players, Applebrook Golf Club head pro Dave McNabb and John Pillar, the director of golf at the Country Club at Woodloch Springs, were among the four players tied for eighth place at 1-under 143.

   McNabb, the runnerup in the 2017 PGA Professional Championship, added a 2-under 70 to his opening-round 73. Pillar, who will be the defending champion in next month’s Philadelphia Senior PGA Professional Championship at Concord Country Club, opened with a 2-under 70 before finishing up with a 1-over 73.

   Rounding out the quartet that finished at 1-under 143 were Michael Furey, an assistant pro at Saucon Valley Country Club, and Dave Padgett, the head pro at Whitemarsh Valley Country Club. Furey added a 73 to his opening round of 2-under 70. Padgett was in contention after opening with a solid 3-under 69 before finishing up with a 2-over 74.

   Two players who shared top honors in the Super-Senior division (that’s 60 and over, folks), Radnor Valley Country Club head pro George Forster and Bucknell Golf Club’s Brian Kelly, were among four players who finished in a tie for 12^th place at even-par 144.

   Forster, who will be the defending champion in the Haverford Philadelphia PGA Championship the day after Labor Day, added a 1-under 71 to his opening-round 73, while Kelly carded a pair of even-par 72s.

   Forster survived a seven-hole playoff himself to win the Haverford Philadelphia PGA Championship’s first-place jackpot of $100,000 at Sunnybrook Golf Club a year ago. It is the largest top prize offered in any PGA Section event in the country.

   Rounding out the quartet tied for 12^th place at even-par 144 were Jeff Fick, an instructor at Chapel Hill Golf Course, and Lookaway Golf Club head pro Mike Little. Fick shaved four shots off an opening-round 74 with a 2-under 70 in Tuesday’s second round. Little added a 73 to his opening round of 1-under 71.

   McNabb and Pillar shared top honors in the Senior division with their 1-under 143 totals with Forster and Kelly tied for second place, both at even-par 144.

   Taking third place in the Super-Senior division behind Forster and Kelly was Don DeAngelis of Spring-Ford Country Club as he added a 1-over 73 to his opening-round 74 for a 3-over 147 total.

   Finishing in a tie for third place in the amateur division behind Hess and Scherr at 1-over 145 were Nick Vecellio of Fogelsville and Steve Kluemper of Bethlehem. Vecellio added a 73 to his opening round of even-par 72 while Kluemper matched Scherr's opening-round 70 before backing off with a 75 in Tuesday's final round.

   The Lehigh Valley Open was supported by the Golf Association of the Lehigh Valley, Jani-King and the PGA Tour.