The last time I watched Braden Shattuck play was in the 2015 Pennsylvania Open at Rolling Green Golf Club and I was impressed with the progress of his game from the days when he was a high school standout at Sun Valley.
Shattuck turned 21 that week and was dreaming of taking a run at making it to the major leagues of professional golf, the PGA Tour.
Shattuck never quite realized that dream, but still a young guy – he should turn 27 at some point this summer – he has established himself as a teaching pro at Bidermann Golf Club near Wilmington, Del.
His two-shot victory over fellow Bidermann instructor Zac Oakley and veteran Terry Hertzog, an instructor at Merion Golf Club, in the 35th Burlington Classic, presented by WSFS Bank, which wrapped up Monday at Burlington Country Club in Westampton, N.J., might be an indication that Shattuck is ready to became a force on the Philadelphia Section PGA circuit. The Burlington Classic is a Rolex Player of the Year points event.
Shattuck’s explosiveness was on display in Sunday’s opening round as he fired a 6-under-par 64 that left him a shot behind Hugo Mazzalupi, the head pro at Patriots Glen National Golf Club who opened with a sizzling 7-under 63.
Shattuck eagled the par-5 fourth hole after making a birdie on the third. He stumbled briefly with a bogey at the fifth hole, but then he went off, making birdies at six, eight, 11,, 13 and 14 to get it to 7-under before slowing his roll a little with a bogey at 16.
With Burlington playing tougher in Monday’s final round, Shattuck was steady. He made bogeys at the eighth and 10th holes, but got it back to 1-over for the round with a birdie at the 11th. Shattuck then grinded out seven straight pars to complete a 1-over 71 that gave him a 36-hole total of 5-under 135.
“Burlington Country Club’s golf course was perfect,” Shattuck told the Philadelphia Section PGA website. “It was firm and fast. I hit a lot of good shots on the back nine, but didn’t make anything until No. 17, where I made a 25-footer for par and a 10-foot comebacker for par on 18.”
Shattuck also credited his swing coach, Nick Iacono, who works out of the Chester Valley Golf Club pro shop, with helping him out, particularly with getting his driver straightened out.
Shattuck became the first Burlington Classic winner to hoist the Mike Mack Cup, named for the club’s longtime head pro who entered the Philadelphia Section PGA Hall of Fame over the winter. Mack was part of the group that put together the Burlington Classic, which has become one of the most popular stops on the Philadelphia Section schedule, in 1986.
Oakley, one of the top players in the Philadelphia Section for several years now, had opened with a 3-under 67 and matched par in Monday’s second round to get a share of second place with a 3-under 137 total. Oakley had a strong showing in the PGA Professional Championship earlier this spring, finishing in a tie for 40th place at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Hertzog, one of the many senior standouts in the Philadelphia Section, trailed Shattuck by one shot and Mazzalupi by two after opening with a 5-under 65. Hertzog added a 2-over 72 in Monday’s second round to get a share of second place with Oakley at 3-under.
Mazzalupi, another of the Philadelphia Section’s talented senior players, couldn’t maintain his momentum from that sizzling start as he added a 75 to his opening-round 63 and joined seven other players tied for fourth place at 2-under 138. Like Oakley, Mazzalupi represented the Philadelphia Section in the PGA Professional Championship at the PGA Golf Club, where he survived two cuts and played all four rounds.
Mazzalupi’s opening-round surge was highlighted by six birdies and an eagle at the par-5 fourth hole against a lone bogey.
Joining Mazzalupi at 2-under were Alex Knoll, the two-time reigning winner of the Philadelphia PGA Professional Championship who is an instructor at Glen Brook Golf Club, Mike Furey of Saucon Valley Country Club, Parks Price of the Country Club of York, Chris Krueger of Kings Creek Country Club and three more of the Section’s senior standouts, Brian Kelly of the Bucknell Golf Club, Eddie Perrino of the Eagle Rock Resort and veteran Deerwood Country Club head pro Greg Farrow.
Knoll, Kelly and Farrow all had the same splits, each getting into contention with a 4-under 66 in the opening round before adding a 2-over 72 in Monday’s final round. Perrino matched Shattuck’s sparkling 6-under 64 in the opening round before cooling off with a 74 in the second round.
Price opened with a solid 3-under 67 before finishing up with a 71, Krueger opened with a 2-under 68 before matching par in the second round with a 70 and Furey shaved two shots off his opening-round 70 with a 2-under 68 in the final round.
Hertzog’s 3-under 137 total earned him the top spot in the always competitive senior division by a shot over Farrow, Kelly, Perrino and Mazzalupi.
Mike Moses, the head pro at Concord Country Club, finished sixth among the seniors as he opened with a 4-under 66 before adding a 73 for a 1-under 139 total and Radnor Valley Country Club head pro George Forster was a shot behind Moses in seventh place at even-par 140 as he carded a sparkling 5-under 65 in the opening round before backing off with a 75 in the second round.
Displacing the super senior players who cashed for their showings in the overall pro scoring and in the senior division, the top prize in the super senior (60 and older) division went to Spring-Ford Country Club’s Don DeAngelis, who added a 74 to his opening round of 1-over 71 for a 5-over 145 total.
The guy for whom the winner’s trophy is named, Mack, showed he still has some game as he posted a pair of 76s on his home course for a 152 total. Mack got in a round at Stonewall’s Old Course earlier this spring and I can confirm the guy can still play a little.
Bob Reilly, a Burlington Country Club member, earned the Marotto Medal that goes to the low amateur as he opened with a solid 1-over 71 before closing with an 82 that gave him a 153 total.
In addition to presenting sponsor WSFS Bank, the Burlington Classic was supported by Burlington Country Club, the Lincoln Motor Company, Jani-King and adidas.
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