O'Sullivan, Vital claim respective girls, boys titles in Pennsylvania Junior Championships

   Ava O’Sullivan had a pretty memorable final season of scholastic golf with Downingtown East in the fall of 2021.

   O’Sullivan battled eventual champion Sydney Yermish of Lower Merion and O’Sullivan’s Ches-Mont League rival Mary Grace Dunigan of Unionville right to the final hole at Turtle Creek Golf Course before finishing in a tie for second place with Dunigan in the District One Class AAA Championship.

   O’Sullivan finished in a tie for fourth place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort in York County and then led the Cougars to the state Class AAA team crown.

   After a year of seasoning at Division II Converse in Spartanburg, S.C., O’Sullivan, playing out of Applecross Country Club, was still eligible to compete in the Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ Championship and all that experience showed as she carded a solid 3-under-par 69 in Tuesday’s second round at Lebanon Country Club to complete a four-shot victory.

   Combined with her opening-round 71, O’Sullivan’s final-round 69 gave her a 4-under 140 total.

   O’Sullivan, who is moving up to Division I by transferring to Bowling Green, was solid from the start as she made eight pars and a birdie at the sixth hole to tour the outgoing nine at Lebanon in 1-under 35. After a bogey at the 10^th hole dropped her to even-par for the round, O’Sullivan pulled away down the stretch with birdies at 13, 15 and 18.

   Looks like the Junior Girls was supposed to be 54 holes, but it was shortened to 36 holes when severe weather hit Lebanon. The Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ Championship was being held at nearby Hershey Country Club and the guys were able to get in 36 holes Tuesday, barely, which just shows you how spotty Tuesday’s summer thunderstorms were.

   The Pennsylvania Junior girls and boys championships were presented by Dick's Sporting Goods.

   Bucknell Golf Club’s Hannah Rabb, winner of the PIAA Class AA Championship as a junior at Warrior Run last fall, matched par for the second day in a row with a 72 as she finished alone in second place, four shots behind O’Sullivan with an even-par 144 total. It was Rabb’s second straight runnerup finish in the Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ Championship.

   The 1912 Club’s Rhianna Gooneratne, who has earned a trip to the PIAA Class AAA Championship in each of her first two seasons at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, also matched par in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 74 as she finished alone in third place with a 2-over 146 total.

   White Manor Country Club’s Clarissa Leung, who helped Episcopal Academy capture the Inter-Ac League title as a sophomore this spring, finished a shot behind Gooneratne in fourth place with a 3-over 147 total. Leung had matched par with a 72 in the opening round before adding a 3-over 75 in Tuesday’s second round.

   Leung, teaming with Jillian Burks, led White Manor to the title in the Pennsylvania Junior Girls team competition with a 27-over 315 total.

   I’m hearing Burks will be a talented addition to the golf program at Conestoga this fall. She shaved 10 shots off her opening-round 89 with a 79 in Tuesday’s second round as White Manor finished 36 shots ahead of runnerup Moselem Springs, which had a 351 total.

   Marissa Malosh, a Pennsylvania Golf Association (PAGA) individual member, finished alone in fifth place as she was two shots behind Leung with a 5-over 149 total. Malosh added a 4-over 76 in the second round to her opening-round 73.

   Malosh, a two-time WPIAL champion during an outstanding scholastic career at South Fayette, advanced to next month’s U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship at the Air Force Academy’s Eisenhower Golf Club in Colorado Springs, Colo. out of a qualifier earlier this month at Shannopin Country Club in Pittsburgh.

   Dunigan, playing out of Kennett Square Golf & Country Club, and Overbrook Golf Club’s Kiersten Bodge finished in a tie for sixth place, each landing on 6-over 150.

   Dunigan, a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier who helped Unionville claim the state Class AAA team crown in 2020, carded a second straight 3-over 75 in Tuesday’s second round in defense of the Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ crown she won a year ago.

   Bodge, who earned a second straight runnerup finish in the Inter-Ac League individual championship at French Creek Golf Club as an eighth-grader at Notre Dame this spring, cooled off a little in the second round with a 5-over 77 after opening with a 73.

   Phoenixville sophomore Kayley Roberts, a PAGA individual member, had a share of the lead with O’Sullivan following Monday’s opening round with a 1-under 71. Roberts, the runnerup in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at Penn State last fall and who helped the Phantoms claim the state Class AAA team crown, struggled in Tuesday’s second round with an 80 as she finished in a group of four players tied for eighth place at 7-over 151.

   Joining Roberts in the group at 7-over were Ysabel Liu, representing the Philadelphia Publinks Golf Association, Blue Bell Country Club’s Caroline Gola and Butler Country Club’s Grace Windfelder.

   Liu, a sophomore at Millburn High School in North Jersey, added a solid 2-over 74 to her opening-round 77. Liu punched her ticket to next month’s U.S. Girls’ Junior at the Air Force Academy’s Eisenhower Golf Club out of a qualifier earlier this month at Copper Hill Country Club in Ringoes, N.J.

   Gola, coming off her freshman season at Holy Cross, was a scholastic standout at Mount St. Joseph, where she was a member of the Mount’s 2019 PIAA Class AAA championship team. Gola added a 5-over 77 in the second round to her opening-round 74.

   Windfelder, a senior at Oakland Catholic, added a 3-over 75 in the second round to her opening-round 76.

   Moselem Springs’ Kayla Maletto, a senior at Wilson and winner of the Berks Girls Championship for a second time last fall at Willow Hollow Golf Course, finished alone in 12^th place with a 9-over 153 total. Maletto, who had opened with a 2-over 74, struggled a little in Tuesday’s second round with a 79.

   Northampton Country Club’s Matt Vital has always been capable of putting a bunch of birdies on his scorecard.

   The kid got a little spot on The Golf Channel when he broke Sam Snead’s 72-year-old course record at Reading Country Club with a remarkable 8-under 62 in a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop in April of 2021.

   In Tuesday’s final round of the Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ Championship at Hershey Country Club’s East Course, Vital, a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Liberty, was rock steady with a three-birdie, no-bogey 3-under 68 that gave him a three-shot victory over a talented field with a 9-under 204 total.

   Vital, who will join Brian Quinn’s Temple program later this summer (somewhere along the line I had Vital and twin brother Michael headed for Saint Joseph’s, but I fixed that in my post on the opening round and, more importantly, have it right in my head now) began the day four shots out of the lead following an opening round of 2-under 69.

   But Vital made six birdies to offset three bogeys in Tuesday morning’s second round on his way to a 4-under 67 that vaulted him to the top of the leaderboard.

   If anybody was waiting for Vital to falter in the final round, it never happened. Vital made birdies at the sixth, 12^th and 14^th holes and had 15 pars on his card in a flawless final round.

   The boys field survived several weather delays and barely had enough daylight to complete 54 holes. The leaders teed off for the final round after 4 Tuesday afternoon.

   Saucon Valley Country Club’s Evan Eichenlaub closed with a solid 1-under 70 to finish three shots behind Vital in second place with a 6-under 207 total.

   Eichenlaub, who capped an outstanding scholastic career at Moravian Academy with a fourth-place finish in the PIAA Class AA Championship last fall at Penn State, had opened with a sparkling 5-under 66 before matching par in the second round with a 71 that left him just a shot behind Vital going into the final round.

   Eichenlaub was coming off a solid showing in the BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship a couple of weeks ago at Huntingdon Valley Country Club, where he earned a spot in the match-play bracket and won a match before falling in the round of 16.

   Conewango Valley Country Club’s Braddock Damore put together solid rounds of 3-under 68 and 1-under 70 during Tuesday’s marathon double round to finish alone in third place with a 2-under 211 total that left him four shots behind Eichenlaub. Damore will be a senior at Warren Area High School in the fall.

   Caden Blanchette of Cool Creek Golf Club and Michael Lugiano of Huntsville Golf Club finished in a tie for fourth place, each ending up a shot behind Damore with a 1-under 212 total.

   Blanchette, a senior at Northeastern High, was also solid in Tuesday’s double round, posting a 2-under 69 in the morning and adding a final round of 1-under 70 in the afternoon.

   Blanchette was the qualifying medalist in a U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier earlier this month at Chambersburg Country Club, punching his ticket to the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, S.C. The U.S. Junior Amateur tees off July 24^th.

   Lugiano, who finished in third place in the PIAA Class AA Championship last fall at Penn State as a junior at Lake Lehman, was steady all week as he recorded back-to-back 1-under 70s in the first two rounds before closing with a 1-over 72.

   Lugiano teamed with his Lake Lehman teammates Eli Ropietski and Cael Ropietski and Wyoming Seminary’s Nick Werner to deliver a second straight Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ team title for Huntsville. Lugiano and the Ropietski brothers were part of a PIAA Class AA championship team for Lake Lehman last fall.

   Hannastown Golf Club’s Nick Turowski, Timothy Peters of the Penn State Golf Courses and Jack Estrella of Bensalem Country Club finished in a tie for sixth place, each landing on even-par 213.

   After opening with a 3-under 68, Turowski, a senior at Penn-Trafford, registered a pair of 2-over 73s, in Tuesday’s double round. Turowski is also headed to the Daniel Island Club for next month’s U.S. Junior Amateur after advancing out of a qualifier at the Avalon Field Club at Newcastle earlier this month.

   Peters put together rounds of 4-under 67 and 1-under 70 in Tuesday’s double round to earn his share of sixth place. Estrella moved into contention with a 3-under 68 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 4-over 75.

   Josh James, a PAGA individual member, had grabbed the lead with a sizzling opening round of 6-under 65, but backed off a little in Tuesday’s double round with a 5-over 76 in the morning and a 4-over 75 in the afternoon to finish in a tie for ninth place with Drew Clark, another PAGA individual member, each landing on 2-over 215.

   James, a recent Union City graduate, was the PIAA Class AA individual champion as a junior in 2021.

   Clark, who had opened with a 2-under 69, matched par in Tuesday morning’s second round with a 71 before closing with a 4-over 75.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At 63, Lennon finally breaks through with first Philly Section win in Conestoga Classic

   There is so much talent among the Philadelphia Section PGA’s senior contingent, maybe Wilmington Country Club’s Bob Lennon doesn’t immediately come to mind.

   But the 63-year-old Lennon beat them all, young, old and in between, in claiming his first career Philadelphia Section victory with a sparkling 5-under-par 65 that enabled him to finish a shot ahead of a whole gang of challengers in the Conestoga Classic at Conestoga Country Club near Lancaster June 19^th.

   Lennon said he made four birdies in a row to start his round, which would seem to indicate there was some kind of modified shotgun start because he made birdies at the 16^th, 17^th, 18^th and first holes.

   Lennon added birdies at the third, fifth and 10^th holes for a total of seven that offset bogeys at nine and 13.

   “It’s about time,” Lennon told the Philadelphia Section PGA website. “My putter isn’t usually too hot, but today I putted great. I started off with four straight birdies, which really got the adrenaline going from the beginning.”

   The Conestoga Classic was a Rolex/Haverford Trust Company Player of the Year points event and the third in the series of four Silvercrest Cup qualifiers. That earned Lennon an added $2,500 out of the Silvercrest Cup bonus pool on top of his Conestoga Classic winner’s check.

   Seven players chased Lennon only to come up a shot short of catching him as they finished in a tie for second place, each landing on 4-under 66.

   Heading that group was Rolling Green Golf Club head on instruction Braden Shattuck, who in early May became just the second Philadelphia Section player to win the PGA Professional Championship with a gutty performance at Twin Warriors Golf Club in Santa Ana Pueblo, N.M.

   Shattuck is the reigning Rolex/Haverford Trust Player of the Year in the Philadelphia Section.

   Also in the group at 4-under was another of the Philadelphia Section’s senior standouts, Laurel Creek Country Club’s Dave Quinn.

   Rounding out the group at 4-under were Andrew Turner of Berkshire Country Club, David Hicks of Philadelphia Country Club, Anthony Schweppe of the Sittler Golf Center, Michael Little of Clubhouse 54 and John Lynch of Bidermann Golf Club.

   The Philadelphia Section’s top female player, Joanna Coe, the head of instruction at Merion Golf Club, tuned up for her appearance in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, a major on the LPGA Tour, at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J. with a solid 3-under 67 at Conestoga that left her in a tie for ninth place.

   Rumor has it a busload of Merion members went up to Baltusrol to support “JoCoe.” She didn’t play badly, battling to a second round of 3-over 74 after opening with a 77 for a 9-over 151 total. The Lower Course played tough with the cut falling at 5-over 147.

   Joining Coe at 3-under at Conestoga were Bent Creek Country Club’s Terry Hertzog, another of the Philadelphia Section’s senior standouts, and Dustin Wallis of the Country Club at Woodloch Springs.

   The top senior prize went to Brian Kelly of Bucknell Golf Club, whose 2-under 68 actually left him in fourth place behind Lennon, Quinn and Hertzog, but they were displaced since they cashed in the overall scoring.

   Fifth place in the senior division went to Wallis’ boss at the Country Club at Woodloch Springs, John Pillar, the director of golf there who recorded a solid 1-under 69.

   Turner prevailed in a playoff with Hicks in the simultaneous Philadelphia Assistants’ Organization (PAO) event.

   Brian Bergstol, the head of instruction at the Shawnee Inn & Golf Resort, DuPont Country Club’s Matt Finger and Cedarbrook Country Club’s Andrew Cornish finished in a tie for third place in the PAO competition, each registering a 2-under 68.

   Coe’s 67 gave her a first-place finish in the women’s division. Brit Weddell of Green Valley Country Club and Kelly Sanderson of Huntingdon Valley Country Club shared second place as each carded a 6-over 76.

   The Conestoga Classic was supported by Jani-King, KM Golf Sales, Ohana Farm LLC, Silvercrest Asset Management Group and the PGA Tour.

 

 

O'Sullivan, Roberts share the lead following opening round of Pennsylvania Junior Girls' Championship at Lebanon

   Ava O’Sullivan, who helped Downingtown East win the PIAA Class AAA team crown in 2021, and Kayley Roberts, who led Phoenixville to the state team title in Class AAA last fall, found themselves tied at the top of the leaderboard following the opening round of the Pennsylvania Golf Association’s Junior Girls’ Championship Monday at Lebanon Country Club.

   O’Sullivan, who will move up to Division I at Bowling Green this summer after a solid freshman season at Division II Converse, and Roberts, coming off a bustout freshman season with the Phantoms, each carded a 1-under 71 at Lebanon that left them one shot clear of a host of talented pursuers.

   O’Sullivan, playing out of Applecross Country Club, had an efficient round that included three birdies and two bogeys. She made a birdie at the first hole, fell back to even-par with a bogey at four, made a birdie at seven and again fell back to even-par with a bogey at 14 before getting it into red figures for the round with a birdie at 16.

   Roberts, a Pennsylvania Golf Association (PAGA) individual member, started fast with an eagle at the par-5 second hole and birdies at four and seven that quickly got her to 4-under for the round. After a bogey at the ninth hole and a birdie at 13, she was still at 4-under before closing with three straight bogeys at 16, 17 and 18.

   Roberts was the runnerup to Lower Merion senior Sydney Yermish in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at Penn State’s White Course last fall and teamed with older sister Kate to help hang District One and PIAA championship banners in the gymnasium at Phoenixville.

   The Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ Championship will wrap up with another 18 holes Tuesday at Lebanon.

   White Manor Country Club’s Clarissa Leung, who led Episcopal Academy to an Inter-Ac League championship as a sophomore this spring, and Bucknell Golf Club’s Hannah Rabb, the PIAA Class AA champion as a junior at Warrior Run last fall, were a shot behind the co-leaders in a tie for third place as each matched par with a 71.

   Leung was coming off a solid third-place finish in the overall scoring in last week’s Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour Junior Golf Scoreboard two-day event at Turtle Creek Golf Course. I’ll get around to wrapping up that Philly Junior Tour stop at some point this week.

   Got a chance to watch Overbrook Golf Club’s Kiersten Bodge earn her second straight runnerup finish in the Inter-Ac’s individual championship as an eighth-grader at Notre Dame last month at French Creek Golf Club. The kid can play.

   Bodge opened with a 1-over 73 Monday which got her a share of fifth place with Marissa Malosh, a PAGA individual member. Malosh was a two-time WPIAL champion at South Fayette and finished in a tie for fourth place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship as a senior last fall.

   The 1912 Club’s Rhianna Gooneratne, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier in each of her first two seasons at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, headed a talented trio tied for seventh place at 2-over 74.

   Gooneratne was joined at that figure by Moselem Springs Golf Club’s Kayla Maletto, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Wilson, and Blue Bell Country Club’s Carolina Gola, a member of Mount St. Joseph’s 2019 PIAA Class AAA championship team who is coming off her freshman season at Holy Cross.

   Rounding out the top 10 following Monday’s opening round was Kennett Square Golf & Country Club’s Mary Grace Dunigan as she was alone in 10^th place with a 3-over 75. Dunigan wrapped up an outstanding scholastic career at Unionville with a third-place finish in the PIAA Class AAA Championship last fall.

   The Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ Championship opened Monday at Hershey Country Club’s East Course  with a talented group of guys lighting it up.

   Josh James, the PIAA Class AA champion as a junior in 2021 at Union City, led the way with a sizzling 6-under 65.

   After opening his round with birdies at the first, fourth and seventh holes, James stumbled briefly with back-to-back bogeys at eight and nine. But James got it going again on the incoming nine at Hershey East with five birdies in a stunning six-hole stretch. James made birdies at the 10^th, 11^th, 12^th, 14^th and 15^th holes.

   Saucon Valley Country Club’s Evan Eichenlaub, who capped his scholastic career at Moravian Academy with a fourth-place finish in the PIAA Class AA Championship last fall, was just a shot behind James in second place with a 5-under 66.

   Eichenlaub earned a spot in the match-play bracket in the BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship a  couple of weeks ago at Huntingdon Valley Country Club and won a match before falling in the round of 16.

   Hannastown Golf Club’s Nick Turowski, a runnerup in this championship a year ago, and Thomas Young, another Saucon Valley entry, were tied for fifth place, two shots behind Eichenlaub, as each posted a solid 3-under 68.

   Turowski, who has committed to West Virginia, is a senior at Penn-Trafford and a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier. Turowski will represent the Pittsburgh area in next month’s U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, S.C. after advancing out of a qualifier earlier this month at Avalon Field Club at New Castle in New Castle, Pa.

   Young was a Moravian Academy teammate of Eichenlaub’s and has another year of scholastic golf remaining.

   Northampton Country Club’s Matt Vital, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Liberty who will join the program at Temple later this summer, headed a group of five players tied for fifth place at 2-under 69. Vital was joined at 2-under by Drew Clark, a PAGA individual member, and Trevor Todd of Indiana Country Club.

   A couple of players who earned spots in the match-play bracket in the championship flight of last week’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Junior Boys’ Championship at LuLu Country Club, Llanerch Country Club’s Aidan Farkas and Huntsville Golf Club’s Michael Lugiano, headed a group of five players tied for eighth place at 1-undere 70.

   Farkas is a senior at St. Joseph’s Prep who finished in a tie for sixth place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at Penn State last fall. Lugiano finished in third place in the PIAA Class AA Championship and led Lake Lehman to the state Class AA team title at Penn State last fall. He will be a senior this fall.

   Rounding out the group at 1-under were Oakmont Country Club’s Frank Fuhrer, the latest in a long line of golfing Fuhrers in the Pittsburgh area, Owen Blum, a USGA/Western Pennsylvania entry, and Jack Estrella of Bensalem Country Club.

 

 

 

 

 

Johnson's steady round earns him a Philly Junior Tour victory at Indian Valley

   Jake Johnson of Wayne was the picture of consistency as he claimed the top spot in the 16-to-18 division in a well-attended Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop Tuesday at Indian Valley Country Club in Telford.

   Johnson only made one birdie, at the fourth hole, but had 13 pars on his scorecard, including a run of nine straight pars from seven to 15, as he carded a 3-over-par 75 over the par-72 Indian Valley layout.

   Alex Topping of Philadelphia made a birdie on the final hole of his round, the ninth, to earn sole possession of second place with a 6-over 78. Topping had 11 pars on his card.

   A couple of guys playing close to their Telford homes, Jacob Dommel and Tyler Derstein, were part of a group of four players tied for third place, each landing on 79, a shot behind Topping.

   Dommel made birdies at the third and 12^th holes and had nine pars on his card. Derstein also made a birdie at the 12^th hole, added another at 17 and had nine pars on his card.

   Jack Brennan, a recent Pope John Paul II graduate and a looper at Stonewall, and Luke Tappeiner of Northfield, N.J. rounded out the foursome tied for third place.

   Brennan made back-to-back birdies at the third and fourth holes and had seven pars on his card. Tappeiner made birdies at the 12^th and 14^th holes and had nine pars on his card.

   Ehren Weyman of New Hope took seventh place with an 80, Andrew Elliott of Souderton was eighth with an 83 and Michael Furey of Warrington was ninth with an 84.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division were three players -- Landon Fox of Wilmington, Del., Shane Callahan of Schwenksville and Owen Grimes of Malvern -- who finished in a tie for 10^th place, each recording an 87.

   Andrew Brendlinger of Collegeville made birdies on the fourth and 11^th holes and had nine pars on his scorecard as he earned a victory in the 13-to-15 division with a 5-over 77.

   Jack Luterman of Ardmore and Jackson Lane of Cinnaminson, N.J. finished a shot behind Brendlinger in a tie for second place, each carding a 78.

   Luterman made a birdie at the seventh hole and had 11 pars on his card while Lane made a birdie at 14 and had 12 pars on his card.

   Cole Henning of Harleysville took fourth place with an 81 and Luke Fediukov of Downingtown and Alexander Hall of Schwenksville finished a shot behind Henning in a tie for fifth, each recording an 82.

   Judd Fletcher of Moorestown, N.J. and Gage Fadely of Havertown shared seventh place each posting an 83 and Wyatt Underwood of Telford finished ninth with an 84.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division was a trio of players, including Tristan Smith of Philadelphia, Harry Traynor of Malvern and Carter Hippauf of Quakertown, who finished in a tie for 19^th place, each ending up with an 86.

   Cierra Griffith of Pottstown had the best score among the girls as she carded an 83 to finish atop the leaderboard in the 16-to-18 division. Griffith made a birdie on the eighth hole and had nine pars on her scorecard.

   Emma Xu of Center Valley rounded out a short field in the 16-to-18 division as she had four pars on her card, two on each side, on her way to a 94 that gave her runnerup honors.

   Freja Jensen of Solebury and Anna Rufo of Gladwyne were the only two entries in the 13-to-15 division and they finished in a tie for first place, each signing for a 98.

   Jensen had four pars on her scorecard, two on each side while Rufo had two pars on her card.

   Henry Sokol of Villanova had five pars on his scorecard, including four straight from the 12^th through the 15^th holes, as he posted a 4-over 40 to best the field of nine-holers.

   William Thorkelson of Bryn Mawr and Rayan Shah of Newtown each registered a 42 to finish two shots behind Henry Sokol in a tie for second place.

   Thorkelson made a birdie on the 12^th hole and had three pars on his card while Shah, who has been solid all spring, matched Thorkelson’s birdie on 12 and had four pars on his card, closing his round with three straight pars.

   Henry Mysliwiec of Doylestown and Logan Turner of Berwyn finished a shot behind Thorkelson and Shah in a tie for fourth place, each landing on 43.

   Eric Cunningham of Wayne and Jack Sokol, another member of Villanova’s Team Sokol, shared sixth place, each carding a 46, Grayson McCann of Downingtown took eighth with a 47 and John (Jack) Shea of Harleysville was ninth with a 49.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the coed 12-and-under division were two players – Joseph Aronson of Souderton and Jack Gilbert of Bryn Mawr – who finished in a tie for 10^th place, each recording a 50.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keiser's birdie barrage gives him a Philly Junior Tour victory at Glen Brook

   Only three players teed it up in the 16-to-18 division of a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop at Glen Brook Golf Club in Stroudsburg Monday, but they engaged in a spirited battle.

   Colin Keiser of West Chester emerged with the victory as a birdie barrage on Glen Brook’s outgoing nine help him put together a solid 2-under-par 70.

   Keiser erupted for four birdies in a five-hole stretch, three straight on the third, fourth and fifth holes, and another at seven as he toured the front nine in 3-under 33. Keiser finished with 12 pars on his scorecard.

   Archbishop Carroll senior Matthew Hurchalla, who has had a solid spring on the Philly Junior Tour, made birdies on the ninth, 11^th and 17^th holes and also had 12 pars on his card as he matched par with a 72 to finish just two shots behind Keiser in second place.

   Rounding out the field in the 16-to-18 division was Jake Johnson of Wayne as he made birdies on the sixth and 14^th holes and had 13 pars on his card as he finished a shot behind Hurchalla in third place with a 1-over 73.

   It was also a pretty strong showing by Christopher Mark Parrish of Woolwich Township, N.J. in winning the 13-to-15 division as he made birdies at the sixth, seventh, ninth and 17^th holes and had seven pars on his scorecard on his way to a solid 4-over 76.

   Eddie Gephardt of Swarthmore finished with a birdie on the 18^th hole and had six pars on his card as he earned runnerup honors among the younger guys with an 86. Vyom Shukla of Berwyn had six pars on his card as he finished two shots behind Gephardt in third place with an 88.

   Quinn Gallagher of Bryn Mawr took fourth place with a 92, Kyan DeLong of Allentown was fifth with a 93 and Michael Doyle of Haddonfield, N.J. finished sixth with a 95.

   Rounding out the field in the 13-to-15 division was Nathaniel Mette of Nazareth as he finished in seventh place with a 106.

   Only two players teed it up in the girls divisions and the best score of the day emerged from the 13-to-15 division as Keira Conner of Ridley Park made back-to-back pars on the 10^th and 11^th holes on her way to a 103.

   Shayla Ames had two pars on her scorecard, both on the front nine at Glen Brook, as she claimed a Philly Junior Tour win in the 16-to-18 division with a 110.

   Zachary Proud, playing close to his Stroudsburg home, bested the field of nine-holers as he had five pars on his scorecard on his way to a 7-over 43.

   Landon Romanczuk of Bangor opened his round with a par on the first hole as he carded a 50 to finish in second place with a 50.

   Rounding out the field in the coed 12-and-under division was Connor Mujulis of Pottstown as he made a par on the fifth hole to end up in third place with a 55.

 

 

Steinmetz repeats as winner of Philadelphia Senior PGA Professional Championship at LedgeRock

   Rich Steinmetz, the head pro at Spring Ford Country Club, continues to thrive in his second life as a senior player.

   The reigning Philadelphia Section PGA Robert “Skee” Riegel Senior Player of the Year, Steinmetz repeated as the winner of the Philadelphia Senior PGA Professional Championship, presented by Cadillac, which was shortened by rain last week at LedgeRock Golf Club in Mohnton, Berks County.

   Steinmetz was a senior “rookie” a year ago when he captured the Philadelphia Senior PGA Championship. He finished in a tie for 24^th place in the Senior PGA Professional Championship last fall at Santa Ana Golf Club and Twin Warriors Golf Club in Santa Ana Pueblo, N.M., which earned him a spot in last month’s KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, a major on the PGA Tour Champions, at Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco at the PGA of America’s new headquarters in Frisco, Texas.

   Steinmetz failed to make the cut at Field Ranch East with a pair of 79s for a 158 total, but his victory last week at LedgeRock will put him on the same path toward another trip to the Senior PGA Championship.

   Steinmetz shared the lead with Rob Shuey of the Colonial Golf & Tennis Club following the opening round of the Philadelphia Senior PGA Professional Championship June 13^th as each carded a solid 2-under 70 over the challenging LedgeRock layout.

   Steinmetz got it under par early in the opening round with birdies at the third and sixth holes. He dropped back to even-par with back-to-back bogeys at the 10^th and 11^th holes, but recovered with birdies at 12 and 14 to get it in at 2-under.

   Shuey finished strong with four birdies in his last five holes to join Steinmetz at the top of the leaderboard at 2-under.

   A couple of rounds of heavy rain with some lightning and thunder around shortened the second round June 14^th to nine holes. Steinmetz matched par on the outgoing nine at LedgeRock with a 36 to finish a shot clear of Shuey and Hugo Mazzalupi of Linfield National Golf Club with a 2-under 106 total.

   After making back-to-back birdies at the third and fourth holes, Steinmetz stumbled with consecutive bogeys at five, six and seven. A birdie at the eighth, though, got him back to even for the round and, ultimately, accounted for his one-shot edge over Shuey.

   Shuey added a 1-over 37 to his opening-round 70 to settle for a share of runnerup honors with Mazzalupi, each landing on 1-over 107. Mazzalupi had opened with a 1-under 71 before matching par in the rain-shortened second round with a 36.

   “Winning any event two times in a row is really special,” Steinmetz told the Philadelphia Section PGA website. “There is a little more added pressure on you as defending champion and you feel like all the eyes are on you. It’s nice to be able to perform and get the job done.”

   Steinmetz, Shuey and Mazzalupi will head a contingent of at least seven players who will represent the Philadelphia Section in the Senior PGA Professional Championship, also presented by Cadillac, which will tee off Oct. 24^th at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.

   The top 35 finishers at the PGA Golf Club in October will punch their ticket in next spring’s Senior PGA Championship, which will return to one of its familiar haunts, the Harbor Shores Golf Club in Benton Harbor, Mich.

   John Allen of Squires Golf Club earned a trip to the PGA Golf Club in October with a solid fourth-place finish as he ended up two shots behind Shuey and Mazzalupi with a 1-over 109 total. After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Allen registered a 1-over 37 in the second round.

   Dave McNabb, the head pro at Applebrook Golf Club, had already secured a trip to the Senior PGA Professional Championship by making the cut and playing four rounds in last month’s Senior PGA Championship at Fields Ranch East. McNabb finished in a tie for 63^rd place with an 8-over 296 total at Fields Ranch East.

   McNabb was one of six players who finished in a tie for fifth place at 2-over 110 at LedgeRock as he bounced back from an opening round of 3-over 75 with a 1-under 35 in the second round.

   Two more players, Stu Ingraham, an instructor at the MGolf Range & Learning Center in Newtown Square, and Terry Hertzog of Bent Creek Country Club, were in the group at 2-over and punched their tickets to the Senior PGA Professional Championship. Three other players tied at 110 headed the list of alternates.

   Good to see Ingraham playing well again. The last time Ingraham played in the Senior PGA Professional Championship at the Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa in Austin, Texas in the fall of 2019, it was, by my unofficial count, the 38^th time he had teed it up in PGA of America national event, including six appearances in the PGA Championship.

   Ingraham matched McNabb’s splits at LedgeRock, adding a solid 1-under 35 in the second round to his opening round of 3-over 75. Pretty sure this will be Ingraham’s 10^th trip to the Senior PGA Professional Championship.

   Hertzog joined the gang of six at 2-over with a 2-under 34 in the second round after he had opened with a 4-over 76.

   John Cooper of Green Valley Country Club matched par in the second round with a 36 after opening with a 2-over 74 and is the first alternate from the Philadelphia Section. Seems like most years at least a couple of the alternates from the Philadelphia Section make the field for the national Senior Club Pro.

   The second alternate is Radnor Valley Country Club’s George Forster, who has made at least a dozen appearances in the Senior PGA Professional Championship. Forster matched Cooper’s splits, matching par in the second round with a 36 after opening with a 2-over 74.

   Rounding out the group at 2-over was Terry Hatch of Royal Oaks Golf Course and he is the third alternate. Hatch matched par with a solid 72 in the opening round before finishing up with a 2-over 38.

   Chris Krueger of Kings Creek Country Club and Overbrook Golf Club head pro Eric Kennedy finished in a tie for 11^th place, each landing on 3-over 111.

   Krueger, who is the fourth alternate to the Senior PGA Professional Championship, matched par in the opening round with a 72 before adding a 3-over 38. Kennedy, who is the fifth alternate, added a 1-over 37 to his opening round of 2-over 74.

   The Philadelphia Senior PGA Professional Championship was supported by The Golf Channel and the PGA Tour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stevenson right at home at LuLu as he captures title in GAP Junior Boys' Championship

   John Stevenson used his home-course advantage to the fullest Thursday as he cruised to the title in the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s 109^th Junior Boys’ Championship at the Donald Ross gem that is LuLu Country Club.

   The 17-year-old Stevenson, who will be a senior on the golf team for perennial Catholic League power La Salle, grabbed an early lead and rolled to a 4 and 3 decision in the final match Thursday afternoon over Saucon Valley Country Club’s Winston Kelenc-Blank to put his name on the Peg Burnett Trophy.

   Earlier in the day, Stevenson was equally impressive in a 7 and 6 victory over Jericho National Golf Club’s Michael Deussing in the semifinals.

   “It feels great,” Stevenson, an Ambler resident, told the GAP website. “Even just to make it through to match play and to make it to the final is just amazing. Last year, I didn’t even make it to match play. It’s a different story this year.”

   Stevenson jumped out to a 3-up lead with wins at the first, fourth and fifth holes, although he pointed to a par save at the third hole when he was forced to lay up after his drive found a fairway bunker as an early turning point in the title match.

   The 18-year-old Kelenc-Blank, a Rumson, N.J. resident who will join the program at Lafayette later this summer, cut his deficit to 2-down by winning the sixth hole, but Stevenson spurted away again with wins at seven, eight and nine to expand his lead to 5-up.

   Kelenc-Blank bounced back with back-to-backs wins at the 10^th and 11^th holes that cut the deficit to 3-down.

   But Stevenson maintained his advantage by grinding out halves on the next three holes. When Kelenc-Blank was bunkered with little green to work with at the par-3 15^th hole, Stevenson’s two-putt par was good enough for the win that sealed his 4 and 3 victory.

   Stevenson was the low man for La Salle as the Explorers finished in fourth place in the PIAA Class AAA team competition last fall at Penn State.

   Stevenson’s semifinal opponent, the 17-year-old Deussing, is a Solebury resident who will be a senior The Hun School of Princeton in the fall.

   Kelenc-Blank cruised into the final with a 6 and 5 victory in the semifinals over Spring Ford Country Club’s Jaden Minter. Minter, a recent Spring-Ford High graduate, was the Pioneer Athletic Conference’s individual champion last fall while helping the Rams claim the PAC team crown for the second straight season.

   The Central League’s individual champion, recent Conestoga graduate Kyle Mauro, playing out of Waynesborough Country Club, edged Wilmington Country Club’s Matt Homer in 19 holes to claim the title in the first flight.

   Homer, a recent Tatnall School graduate who had been to the semifinals of the GAP Junior Boys the last two summers, sent the match to extra holes by winning the 18^th hole to even the match. But the 18-year-old Mauro bounced back to take the 19^th hole and win the match.

   Mauro had reached the first-flight final with a 3 and 2 victory over Philadelphia Country Club’s Harrison Brown, a junior on the golf team at Inter-Ac League power Haverford School. Homer claimed a 4 and 3 victory over Penn Oaks Golf Club’s Eli Shah, a recent Penncrest graduate who was a PIAA Class AAA qualifier in each of the last two falls, in the other first-flight semifinal.

Spring Ford's Minter storms into semifinals of GAP Junior Boys' Championship with a pair of wins at LuLu

   Working on your game, particularly for a junior player, can take you pretty far, pretty fast.

   Came across a profile of Spring-Ford’s Jaden Minter authored by Dennis Weller, who’s been covering high school sports for The Mercury in Pottstown for at least 20 years. Minter was The Mercury All-Area Boys Golf Player of the Year last fall after winning the Pioneer Athletic Conference individual crown at Turtle Creek Golf Course.

   Minter was on Spring-Ford’s developmental team as a freshman and was still on the JV team as a junior. But by last fall, by sheer determination and hard work, Minter was the PAC individual champion and a key player in a PAC championship season for the Rams.

   Thursday morning, Minter, playing out of Spring Ford Country Club, will be in the semifinals of the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s 109^th Junior Boys’ Championship at LuLu Country Club, the Donald Ross design in Glenside.

   Minter took out a tough customer in Wednesday’s quarterfinals, Huntsville Golf Club’s Michael Lugiano, who finished in third place in the PIAA Class AA Championship at Penn State last fall and helped Lake Lehman roll to the Class AA state team crown.

   When Lugiano won the 12^th hole, he had Minter 1-down with six holes to play. But Minter promptly ripped off wins at the 14^th, 17^th and 18^th holes to claim a 2-up victory.

   Minter, who began his Wednesday by cruising to a 6 and 4 victory over J.P. Hoban of The 1912 Club in a round-of-16 match, will take on Winston Kelenc-Blank of Saucon Valley Country Club in Thursday morning’s semifinals.

   Kelenc-Blank, who will play college golf at Lafayette, earned his spot in the semifinals with a 3 and 2 victory over Wilmington Country Club’s Jack Homer, the youngest of the talented group of Homer brothers.

   Kelenc-Blank, a Rumson, N.J. resident, was a scholastic standout at Peddie School in Hightstown, N.J. and took a post-grad year at Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford, Conn.

   The other semifinal will pit John Stevenson of host LuLu against Michael Deussing of Jericho National Golf Club.

   Stevenson was the low man for La Salle as a junior as the Explorers finished in fourth place in the PIAA Class AAA team competition at Penn State last fall. He knocked off another Homer, Jeffrey, a recent Tatnall School graduate, 2 and 1, in their quarterfinal match.

   Deussing, a scholastic standout at The Hun School of Princeton, earned a 3 and 1 decision over Stevenson’s La Salle teammate, Ian Natale of Sunnybrook Golf Club.

   The match of the day might very well have been the very first match, which pitted qualifying medalist Davis Conaway of Fieldstone Golf Club against Jack Homer in a round-of-16 showdown.

   Conaway captured the Bert Linton Inter-Ac League individual championship as a freshman at Malvern Prep last fall after leading the Friars to the Inter-Ac team crown. Jack Homer was a sophomore on a Tatnall School team that lost in a playoff to Tower Hill School for the Delaware scholastic team crown at Baywood Greens in Long Neck, Del. last month.

   Conaway got the jump in the match when he took the first hole, but Jack Homer took control with wins at four, six, seven, eight and nine that gave him a 4-up lead after nine holes.

   Conaway got one back with a win at the 10^th hole, but Jack Homer came right back with a win at 11. Conaway got one back by taking the 12^th hole, but Jack Homer again answered with a win at 13. Conaway, 4-down with six holes to go, was running out of holes.

   But Conaway had one more surge left in him and he sent the match to extra holes with wins at the 14^th, 16^th, 17^th and 18^th holes. Jack Homer finally claimed the win, though, by taking the 20^th hole.

   Another Bert Linton Inter-Ac individual champion, Aronimink Golf Club’s Hunter Stetson, who won at Bluestone Country Club as a sophomore at Episcopal Academy in the fall of 2021, was also a round-of-16 casualty as he fell, 3 and 2, to Kelenc-Blank.

   Stevenson’s round-of-16 match was a battle between Catholic League heavyweights as he handed St. Joseph Prep’s Aidan Farkas, playing out of Llanerch Country Club, a 2 and 1 setback. Farkas, who is heading into his senior season, finished in a tie for sixth place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship last fall.

   The winners of Thursday morning’s semifinal matches will battle it out for the title Thursday afternoon.

   There will be one more Homer still alive Thursday morning, although Matt, the twin brother of Jeffrey, will be playing in the first flight.

   Matt Homer, who reached the semifinals of the GAP Junior Boys in each of that last two summers, lost out in a playoff among five players for the final three spots in the championship bracket to little brother Jack, among others.

   Gives you an idea of the kind of talent that is teeing it up at LuLu this week.

   Matt Homer claimed a 2 and 1 triumph over Merion Golf Club’s Nicky Nemo, a sophomore at The Haverford School, to earn a semifinal date with Penn Oaks Golf Club’s Eli Shah, who edged Applecross Country Club’s Ben Saggers, a recent Bishop Shanahan graduate, 1-up, in another first flight quarterfinal match.

   Shah was a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier during an outstanding scholastic career at Penncrest.

   The Central League will be very much in the house in the first-flight semifinals as Waynesborough Country Club’s Kyle Mauro, the Central League’s individual champion and a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior at Conestoga last fall, claimed a 1-up verdict over Commonwealth National Golf Club’s Ryan Quinn.

   Mauro’s semifinal opponent will be Philadelphia Country Club’s Harrison Brown, a junior at The Haverford School. Brown reached the semifinals with a 3 and 1 victory over Overbrook Golf Club’s Marshall Kain in a battle of Inter-Ac foes. Kain helped Malvern Prep claim the Inter-Ac team crown last fall.

 

Fieldstone's Conaway claims medalist honors in GAP Junior Boys' Championship with a 69 at LuLu

   Davis Conaway, the winner of the Bert Linton Inter-Ac League individual championship as a freshman at Malvern Prep last fall, was the only player to finish under par as he claimed medalist honors in qualifying for match play Tuesday in the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s 109^th Junior Boys’ Championship at LuLu Country Club, the Donald Ross classic in Glenside.

   Conaway, playing out of Fieldstone Golf Club, carded a 2-under-par 69 to finish two shots ahead of John Stevenson, playing on his home course at LuLu, and Ian Natale of Sunnybrook Golf Club. Stevenson and Natale are teammates at perennial Catholic League power La Salle.

   From a couple of checks on the live scoring, it appeared Conaway started off the eighth tee at LuLu. He quickly got it to 2-under for the round when he drove it on the green at the par-4 ninth hole and dropped an eight-foot putt for an eagle.

   Conaway dropped a shot with a bogey at the 15^th hole, but bounced back with birdies at 16 and one to get it to 3-under for the round before a bogey at five dropped him back to 2-under.

   Conaway, who led Malvern Prep to the Inter-Ac team crown, claimed a dramatic victory in the Bert Linton when he drove the green at the par-4 finishing hole at Llanerch Country Club -- spotting a trend here, the kid can drive it -- and two-putted for a birdie to turn a one-shot deficit into a one-shot victory.

   Conaway finished a shot out of a playoff for the final berth in a U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier at Chambersburg Country Club Monday with an even-par 73.

   Conaway’s opponent in the first round of match play Wednesday morning will be Jack Homer, the youngest of Wilmington Country Club’s talented Homer brothers.

   Jack Homer survived a playoff among five players for the final three spots in the match-play bracket after his 4-over 75 left him in a tie for 14^th place.

   One of the two players who failed to survive the playoff was Jack Homer’s older brother Matt, who had reached the semifinals of the GAP Junior Boys in each of the last two years. Matt Homer will be one of the top contenders in the first flight.

   Matt’s twin brother Jeffrey was one of three players tied for sixth place as he carded a solid 2-over 73. The Homer brothers were part of the Tatnall School golf team that lost in an aggregate playoff to Tower Hill School for the team title in the Delaware scholastic championships late last month at Baywood Greens in Long Neck, Del.

   Matt and Jeffrey Homer recently graduated from Tatnall and Jack Homer will be a junior in the fall. The Homers and Joe Ciconte, a Tatnall teammate (and, pretty sure, a cousin of the Homers) led Wilmington Country Club to a five-shot victory over Overbrook Golf Club in the team competition.

   Wilmington had a 10-over 223 total in the four-score-three format.

   Representing Overbrook were a couple of Conaway’s teammates on Malvern Prep’s Inter-Ac championship team, Michael Henry and Marshall Kain, Liam McFadden, who plays at The Haverford School, and Radnor High’s Lannon Boyd. Overbrook finished with a 15-over 228 total.

   Boyd was in the group along with Jeffrey Homer and Aronimink Golf Club’s Hunter Stetson in the tie for sixth place at 2-over 73 as all three earned spots in the match-play bracket.

   Stetson was the Bert Linton Inter-Ac League individual champion at Bluestone Country Club as a sophomore in the fall of 2021 and finished in third place behind Conaway in defense of his title last fall at Llanerch.

   Jaden Minter of Spring Ford Country Club and Michael Lugiano of Huntsville Country Club each recorded a 1-over 72 and finished a shot behind Stevenson and Natale in a tie for fourth place.

   Minter was the Pioneer Athletic Conference’s individual champion and helped Spring-Ford capture the PAC team crown for the second straight fall.

   Lugiano finished in third place in the PIAA Class AA Championship at Penn State last fall as a junior at Lake Lehman and led Lake Lehman to the PIAA Class AA team championship.

   Lugiano was also at the U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier at Chambersburg Monday and lost in a playoff for the final berth to the prestigious national event after carding a 1-under 72. Lugiano was the first alternate from Chambersburg, so he’ll be checking his email regularly for the next few weeks, just in case the USGA comes calling.

 

 

 

Dillman prevails in a playoff to claim a Philly Junior Tour victory in a two-day event at Hickory Valley

   Boyertown junior Chase Dillman, playing close to his home in Gilbertsville, toured the twin courses at Hickory Valley Golf Club in New Hanover Township with a pair of 79s and then prevailed in a playoff in a Philadelphia Section PGA Tour two-day event that wrapped up Friday.

   The 36-hole event awarded Junior Golf Scoreboard points, which can give players some status to compete at the higher levels of junior golf like the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA). The Philly Junior Tour broke out its usual 16-to-18 and 13-to-15 divisions, but the JGS points were awarded to top finishers in the overall 13-to-18 division.

   At Hickory Valley, though, the top-10 finishers in the overall scoring all came out of the 16-to-18 division. Friday’s second round was interrupted by the intense line of thunderstorms that crossed the region just before noon, but the players were able to return to Hickory Valley’s par-72 Presidential Course to complete the second round.

   Dillman made a clutch birdie on the 18^th hole and had 10 pars on his scorecard in a 7-over-par 79 in the final round at the Presidential Course to get into a playoff with Radnor senior Shaun Mazzalupi and Unionville senior Rex Opdahl, each landing on 15-over 158. Dillman prevailed in the playoff to finish first in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall 13-to-18 scoring.

   Dillman put together a solid 8-over 79 over the par-71 Ambassador Course in Thursday’s opening round as he made a birdie on the eighth hole and had 11 pars on his card, finishing his round with six straight pars.

   That left Dillman in a tie for the lead with Opdahl and Twin Valley senior Shayne O’Doherty going into Friday’s second round.

   Mazzalupi, who has been a PIAA Class AAA qualifier each of the last two falls, closed with a solid 5-over 77 in Friday’s second round to get a spot in the playoff. Mazzalupi made birdies at the first and fifth holes and had 10 birdies on his card at the Presidential Course.

   Mazzalupi made back-to-back birdies at the 14^th and 15^th holes and had seven pars on her card in an opening-round 81 Thursday at the Ambassador Course.

   Opdahl had the same splits as Dillman did, carding 79s at both of Hickory Valley’s courses.

   Opdahl made birdies at the sixth and 17^th holes and had nine pars on his card in his 7-over round at the Presidential Course in Friday’s second round. Opdahl made birdies at the third, 10^th and 11^th holes and eight pars on his card in his 8-over loop in the opening round at the Ambassador Course.

   Nolan Corcoran of Lansdale was just a shot out of the playoff as he finished in fourth place among the older guys and in the overall scoring with a 16-over 159 total. Corcoran added a solid 6-over 78 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 81 at the Ambassador Course.

   Brody Bell, a member of Malvern Prep’s Inter-Ac League championship team as a sophomore last fall, and Jeremiah Brown of Audubon finished in a tie for fifth place in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall standings, each landing on 160.

   Bell’s 4-over 76 at the Presidential Course was the best round of the tournament as he made a birdie at the sixth hole and had 13 pars on his card. Bell had opened with an 84 at the Ambassador Course. Brown had bookend 80s, 8-over at the Presidential Course and 9-over at the Ambassador Course, to get his share of fifth place.

   Archbishop Carroll senior Matthew Hurchalla and Luke Tappeiner of Northfield, N.J. had identical 80-81 splits as they ended up in a tie for seventh place in the division and in the overall scoring, each landing on 161.

   Twin Valley’s O’Doherty was tied for the lead following his opening-round 79 at the Ambassador Course that included a birdie at the seventh hole and nine pars. He struggled a little, particularly when play resumed following the weather delay, as he recorded an 83 at the Presidential Course to finish in ninth place in the division and in the overall standings with a 162 total.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall standings was Evan Murphy of Stroudsburg as he added an 82 in Friday’s second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 81 at the Ambassador Course for a 163 total.

   Luke Daniels of Devon made birdies at the seventh and 18^th holes and had eight pars on his scorecard, including six straight to open his round, as he closed with an 82 on the Presidential Course in Friday’s second round to finish atop the leaderboard in the 13-to-15 division with a 22-over 165 total.

   Daniels had eight pars on his card as he opened with an 83 on the Ambassador Course just outside the top 10 in the overall scoring in 11^th place.

   It was seven shots back to Nilas Skjeveland of Jamison as he was the runnerup among the younger guys with a 172 total. Skjeveland made four pars on his way to an 88 in the second round at the Presidential Course after making six pars in an opening-round 84 at the Ambassador Course.

   Gavin Pychinka of Northampton was the leader in the 13-to-15 division following the opening round as he made birdies on the first, fourth, sixth, 11^th and 15^th holes and had six pars on his card on his way to a solid 9-over 80 on the Ambassador Course.

   Pychinka made five pars as he struggled a little in a second-round 94 on the Presidential Course that left him in third place, two shots behind Skjeveland with a 174 total.

   Zach Raihall of West Chester added an 86 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his  opening-round 89 at the Ambassador Course to finish in  fourth place with a 175 total.

   Jin Sun of Princeton, N.J. was two shots behind Raihall in fifth place with a 177  total as he added an 88 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 89 at the Ambassador Course.

   Carter Hippauf of Quakertown carded a 90 at both the Presidential and the Ambassador courses as he finished in sixth place with a 180 total.

   Luka Fediukov of Downingtown was three shots behind Hippauf in seventh place with a 193 total as he added a 93 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening round of 89 at the Ambassador Course.

   Ryan Kelly of Harleysville and Liam McEwen of Oreland ended up in a tie for eighth place, each landing on 186.

   After opening with a 90 at the Ambassador Course, Kelly carded a 96 on the Presidential Course in the second round. McEwen recorded a 93 at both the Ambassador and Presidential courses.

   Patrick Manion of Villanova took 10^th place with a 211 total as he added a 104 at the Presidential Course in the second round to his opening-round 107 at the Ambassador Course.

   Rounding out the field in the 13-to-15 division was Reid Tornetta of Collegeville as he bounced back from an opening-round 137 on the Ambassador Course with a 94 on the Presidential Course for a 231 total.

   Naez Mehta of Newtown was the overall winner among the girls with a 167 total. Playing out of the 13-to-15 division, Naez Mehta made eight pars on her way to an 84 in the second round at the Presidential Course after making a birdie on the 15^th hole to go with six pars on her scorecard in an opening-round 83 at the Ambassador Course.

   Naez Mehta finished two shots clear of Germantown Academy junior Kiran Bagga, who was the lone entry in the 16-to-18 division, in the overall 13-to-18 standings.

   Bagga had the best score of the day in the second round as she made eight pars, including five straight pars to open her round, on her way to an 82 on the Presidential Course. Bagga had opened with an 87 on the Ambassador Course that was highlighted by five pars.

   Mara Dubacher of Bethlehem and Elayna Fanelli of Villanova finished in a tie for second place in the 13-to-15 division and in a tie for third the overall scoring as each landed on 178.

   Dubacher had the best score of the day in the opening round as she made a birdie on the 10^th hole and had five pars on her card on her way to a solid 82 on the Ambassador Course. Dubacher struggled to a 91 in the second round, despite making six pars on the Presidential Course.

   Fanelli made a birdie on the first hole and had four pars on her card as she closed with an 88 on the Presidential Course. Fanelli had five pars on her card as she opened with a 90 on the Ambassador Course.

   Rounding out the field in the 13-to-15 division was Emma Lewis of Downingtown as she finished in fourth place in the division and fifth overall with a 209 total. Lewis added a 103 in the second round on the Presidential Course to her opening-round 106 on the Ambassador Course.

   Logan Turner of Berwyn came on strong in the second round on the Presidential Course with a 42 to catch Xunnan Dang of Newtown Square, each landing on 88, and then prevailed in a playoff to best the field of nine-holers.

   Turner made four pars in the second round. He had made pars on the first two holes in an opening-round 46 on the Ambassador Course.

   Dang had opened with a solid 42 on the Ambassador Course with six pars on his scorecard, including four straight pars to open his round. He opened his second round at the Presidential Course with a par on the first hole on his way to a 46 before falling in the playoff and settling for runnerup honors.

   Preston Mino of Lansdale and Ruben Yoon of Wilmington, Del. finished a shot out of the playoff in a tie for third place as each landed on 89.

   Minio had grabbed the lead with an opening round of 41 on the Ambassador Course that featured five pars. Minio made a par on the eighth hole on his way to a 48 in the second round on the Presidential Course.

   Yoon made a birdie on the sixth hole and had two pars on his card to close with a 44 on the Presidential Course after making two pars on his way to a 45 in the opening round on the Ambassador Course.

   William Thorkelson of Bryn Mawr got off to a strong start as he had five pars on his card in an opening-round 42 at the Ambassador Course. He added a 50 in the second round at the Presidential Course as he   finished in fifth place with a 92 total.

   Ty Thompson of Devault was two shots behind Thorkelson in sixth place with a 94 total as he added a 49 in the second round on the Presidential Course to his opening-round 45 on the Ambassador Course.

   Noor Mehta, another member of Newtown’s Team Mehta, was three shots behind Thompson in seventh place with a 97 total. Noor Mehta added a 47 in the second round at the Presidential Course to an opening-round 50 on the Ambassador Course.

   Joseph Aronson of Souderton added a 51 in the second round on the Presidential Course to his opening-round 48 on the Ambassador Course as he ended up in eighth place with a 99 total.

   Rounding out the field in the coed 12-and-under division was Gray Biborosch of Berwyn as he closed with a 54 on the Presidential Course after opening with a 50 on the Ambassador Course to finish in ninth place with a 104 total.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crowley cruises past Isztwan in final to capture title in BMW Philadelphia Amateur at Huntingdon Valley

   Mike Crowley wants to challenge himself when it comes to the game of golf.

   That’s why the Hunt Valley, Md. resident got himself a membership at Briarwood Golf Club in York, so he would be eligible to compete in the Golf Association of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Golf Association events.

   Because Crowley knows he’s going to run into all kinds of top-notch competition on all kinds of great golf courses.

   When Crowley stepped on the first tee for the scheduled 36-hole final of the 123^rd BMW Philadelphia Amateur early Saturday morning, the challenge was even greater than he might have imagined.

   Crowley had the kind of great golf course he was seeking in the William Flynn gem at Huntingdon Valley Country Club. He had a talented foe in Patrick Isztwan. But in the 20-year-old Isztwan, Crowley was taking on a player who had grown up at Huntingdon Valley, a guy who knew all of the considerable subtleties of the golf course and who would have the membership behind a favorite son.

   The 21-year-old Crowley, a senior at Loyola of Maryland, had all of that stacked against him, but never blinked, rolling to a 7 and 6 decision and putting his name alongside some truly great amateur players on the J. Wood Platt Trophy.

   And this wasn’t a situation where the moment was too big for Isztwan, a junior at Richmond. Isztwan didn’t lose this championship, Crowley won it. With the usual match-play concessions, Crowley played 7-under golf for the 30 holes of the match.

   “To win a big tournament like this feels amazing,” Crowley told the Golf Association of Philadelphia website. “I’ve had a lot of close calls in a lot of events over the last couple of months.

   “I’ve worked really hard. It feels like a big stage (out there) with a lot of people (In the crowd) and the cameras around.”

   The Philly Am goes back as far as our National Open, being played in Los Angeles this week, does. If Crowley went looking for a prestigious title to add to his amateur resume, he found it at Huntingdon Valley.

   Crowley was the runnerup in the Patriot League Championship hosted by Greyhounds at Hillendale Country Club in Phoenix, Md. in late April. His talent was on full display at Huntingdon Valley.

   Crowley never trailed in the match. After Crowley won the third hole, Isztwan evened the match by taking the fourth hole, but Crowley rattled off wins at five, seven and eight to take a 3-up lead.

   On the 604-yard, par-5 seventh hole, Crowley was right in front in two and dropped a five-foot putt for birdie. At the tough 467-yard, par-4 eighth hole, Crowley stuck his approach to 10 feet and converted the birdie try.

   Isztwan cut his deficit to 2-down with a majestic 5-iron that nearly found the hole for double eagle at the 571-yard, par-5 15^th hole. But Crowley took a 3-up lead into the lunch break by winning the 486-yard, par-4 finishing hole at Huntingdon Valley with a par.

   Isztwan, who won a Bert Linton Inter-Ac League individual championship at Huntingdon Valley as a freshman at Penn Charter in 2017, again cut the deficit to 2-down by winning the 20^th hole, but Crowley answered by draining a 20-foot birdie putt on the 233-yard, par-3 third hole, the 21^st of the match, to restore his 3-up advantage.

   Wins at the next two holes increased Crowley’s lead to 5-up

   After Isztwan won the 24^th hole to cut his deficit to 4-down, Crowley delivered the dagger at the 604-yard, par-5 seventh hole, the 25^th of the match, by lasering a 5-iron from 277 yards away to five feet before settling for birdie and a 5-up lead.

   It wasn’t quite the storybook ending that Isztwan envisioned, but the kid had a tremendous week on his home course and, I’m sure, thrilled the Huntingdon Valley membership.

   For a guy who wasn’t in the lineup when Richmond teed it up in the Atlantic 10 Championship in April, the run to the final of the Philadelphia Amateur will give Isztwan a needed confidence boost.

 

 

 

Hurchalla captures Philly Junior Tour victory with a 74 at Valleybrook

   Archbishop Carroll senior Matthew Hurchalla carded a 2-over-par 74 to claim the top spot in the 16-to-18 division in a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop Wednesday at Valleybrook Country Club in Blackwood, N.J.

   Hurchalla, who has been solid on the Philly Junior Tour this spring, made birdies at the third, eighth and 16^th holes and had 11 pars on his scorecard to cruise to the victory.

   Justin Forman of Sewell, N.J. made birdies on the 10^th and 15^th holes and had 10 pars on his card as he was the runnerup to Hurchalla with a 6-over 78.

   Matthew Daughtry of Williamstown, N.J. made a birdie on the fifth hole and had 10 pars on his card as he finished a shot behind Forman in third place with a 79.

   Michael Dignazio of Wilmington, Del. and Luke Canino, another Sewell, N.J. entry, finished in a tie for fourth place as each posted an 81.

   Gavin McCloskey, another player out of Williamstown, N.J., took sixth place with an 85, Samuel Morris of Riverton, N.J. was seventh with an 87, Joseph Mancini of Philadelphia was eighth with a 95 and Julian Boyer of Deptford, N.J. was ninth with a 96.

   Rounding out the field in the 16-to-18 division was Isaiah Garcia of Runnemede, N.J. as he finished alone in 10^th place with a 98.

   Thomas Carpenter of Bristol made a birdie on the 17^th hole and had seven pars on his scorecard, five of them on Valleybrook’s outgoing nine, as he recorded an 82 that gave him a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division.

   Michael Acchione of Sewell, N.J. had eight pars on his card as he was the runnerup among the younger guys with an 85.

   Drake Brogan of Ocean View, N.J. made a birdie on the sixth hole and had five pars on his card as he landed in third place with an 89.

   Ty Sheftic of Blue Bell and Nicholas Fargnoli of Mickleton, N.J. finished a shot behind Brogan in a tie for fourth place, each ending up with a 90.

   Lucas Zhang of Yardley took sixth place with a 91, Justin Delfidio of Ambler was seventh with a 92, Gage Fadely of Havertown was eighth with a 93 and Jacob Shachar of Sewell, N.J. was ninth with a 94.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division was Gus Wolfe of Downingtown as he finished alone in 10^th place with a 101.

   Sarah Cohen of Lafayette Hill made birdies at the third and 13^th holes and had three pars on her scorecard as she captured a Philly Junior Tour victory in the girls 16-to-18 division with an 87.

   Annabelle Corigliano of Sewell, N.J. had three pars on Valleybrook’s incoming nine as she rounded out the field in the 16-to-18 division with a 102 that gave her a runnerup finish.

   Anna Firko of Wilmington, Del. matched Cohen for the low round of the day among the girls as she claimed a Philly Junior Tour victory as the lone entry in the 13-to-15 division with an 87. Firko had seven pars on her scorecard.

   Rayan Shah of Newtown bested the field of nine-holers as he made a birdie on the sixth hole and had four pars on his scorecard on his way to a solid 3-over 39. Shah has been hanging around near the top of the leaderboard in the coed 12-and-under division all spring.

   Lucas Solano of Vineland, N.J. made a birdie at the third hole and had three pars on his card as he earned runnerup honors with a 5-over 41.

   Zachary Proud of Stroudsburg and William Thorkelson of Bryn Mawr finished in a tie for third place, each landing on 47. Proud’s round featured a par on the first hole and Thorkelson made a par at five.

   Samuel Karas of Blue Bell and Jack Gilbert of Bryn Mawr each registered a 50 to share fifth place. Another Bryn Mawr entry, Bruce Moyer, rounded out the field in the coed 12-and-under division as he finished in seventh place with a 58.

 

 

 

Isztwan will feel right at home at Huntingdon Valley as he takes on Crowley for BMW Philadelphia Amateur title

   Patrick Isztwan is a pretty good golfer no matter where he tees it up. You don’t play golf at a Division I program like Richmond unless you have some game.

   But Patrick Isztwan teeing it up on the course he grew up playing as a youngster, the William Flynn gem that is Huntingdon Valley Country Club, takes him up a notch.

   Isztwan was a freshman at Penn Charter when the Quakers hosted the Bert Linton Inter-Ac League individual championship in 2017 and he captured the title.

   And it isn’t just Isztwan. When Huntingdon Valley played host to the Pennsylvania Golf Association’s R. Jay Sigel Match Play Championship a year ago, Patrick Isztwan’s older brother Brian captured the title, beating another Huntingdon Valley stalwart, Ben Cooley, in the final.

   Saturday morning, 19-year-old Patrick Isztwan will try to join the 16 other Huntingdon Valley members whose names are inscribed on the J. Wood Platt Trophy when he battles Mike Crowley of Briarwood Golf Club in the scheduled 36-hole final of the 123^rd BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship.

   Getting into the Philadelphia Amateur on his home course was a major golf for Isztwan, who was coming off a disappointing sophomore season at Richmond. Isztwan didn’t make the Richmond lineup for the Atlantic 10 Championship at the Reunion Resort’s Nicklaus Course in Orlando, Fla. at the end of April.

   He was an alternate after a qualifier for the Philly Am, but got into the field. In qualifying for match play, Isztwan was among 10 players involved in a playoff for the final nine spots in the match-play bracket, but after some anxious moments – he holed a 30-footer for bogey on the first hole of the playoff to keep his hopes alive – he was in.

   Since then it’s been obvious why Isztwan wanted to get into the tournament so badly. Simply put, the guy is tough to beat on his home course.

   Building off a stunning upset of qualifying medalist Troy Vannucci of Little Mill Country Club, one of the region’s top mid-amateur players, in the opening round of match play, Isztwan has gotten stronger as the week has gone on.

   Isztwan made eight birdies in his 4 and 2 victory over Llanerch Country Club’s John Lalley in Thursday morning’s semifinals to punch his ticket to the title match. A couple of times, Lalley made birdie just to get a half.

   Isztwan made four straight birdies to close out the front nine and take a commanding 4-up lead.

   Isztwan knocked a gap wedge from 130 yards away to three feet at the 410-yard, par-4 eighth hole and holed the putt for a birdie. Isztwan again pulled the gap wedge when he had 122 yards left into the 460-yard, par-4 ninth hole and he drilled it to six feet and converted the birdie putt.

   But Lalley wasn’t finished. A gap wedge at the 405-yard, par-4 10^th hole left Lalley with a tap-in for birdie. Lalley made a second straight birdie at the 375-yard, par-4 11^th hole, but Isztwan matched it to maintain a 3-up advantage.

   Lalley won the 12^th hole with a par and a bogey at 13 was good enough for another win that drew him within 1-down.

   But Isztwan saved par by dropping a 10-foot putt at the 472-yard, par-4 14^th hole to take that hole and stuck a 60-degree wedge from a fairway bunker from 100 yards away to 12 feet at the 572-yard, par-5 15^th hole and converted the birdie try to restore a 3-up advantage with three holes to go.

   A par by Isztwan at the 399-yard, par-4 16^th hole closed out the match.

   “It was a great match,” Isztwan told the Golf Association of Philadelphia website. “We both played well. I didn’t really realize how well we were playing until some point on the back nine.

   “I was 4-up at the turn and played 10 through 12 even par and was 2-down on those holes. I had a large lead, but it never really felt like it was over.”

   The 21-year-old Crowley is a Hunt Valley, Md. resident who maintains a membership at Briarwood in York that gains him entry into GAP events. A junior at Loyola of Maryland, Crowley capped a solid spring with a runnerup finish in the Patriot League Championship, hosted by the Greyhounds at Hillendale Country Club.

   The 22-year-old Smith, playing out of the Country Club of Harrisburg, was coming off a solid spring of college golf himself at Mount St. Mary’s as he finished in a tie for 11^th place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference at Disney’s Palm Course in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. in April. Smith was a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a senior at West Perry in 2018

   Crowley pulled out a hard-fought 1-up decision over Smith to earn his spot opposite Isztwan in Saturday’s final.

   Crowley found himself 2-down to Smith through nine holes, but turned the match around with three straight wins at the 12^th, 13^th and 14^th holes.

   When Crowley stuck a 54-degree wedge to three feet at the 16^th hole and converted the birdie try, he had Smith 2-down with two holes to play. A two-putt par from 40 feet at Huntingdon Valley’s tough finishing hole gave Crowley the victory.

   It sets up an interesting battle between the two college kids. Crowley might have a little bit of a talent edge, but Isztwan will certainly be in his comfort zone in front of friends and family on a course that feels like home to him.

 

 

 

 

Lugiano earns medalist honors in Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship qualifier with a 69 at Huntsville

   It was one last chance to earn a spot in the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship Tuesday at Huntsville Golf Club in Dallas and Michael Lugiano made sure he was invited to the party with a sparkling 3-under-par 69 that made him the medalist for the day.

   Lugiano finished in third place in the PIAA Class AA Championship and then led Lake Lehman to the Class AA team crown as a junior last fall.

   He jump-started his round at Huntsville with three straight birdies at the seventh, eighth and ninth holes. He added birdies at the 12^th and 14^th holes on Huntsville’s incoming nine and had 11 pars on his scorecard.

   Lugiano led a group of 14 players who earned a spot in the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship, which will be played July 10^th at the Toftrees Golf Resort outside of State College. The top finishers at Toftrees will earn a spot in the Boys Junior PGA Championship, a major national event for junior golfers which tees off Aug. 1^st at Hot Springs Country Club in Hot Springs, Ark.

   The Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour broke out its usual 16-to-18 and 13-to-15 age groups and I’ll round them up. The overall qualifier was for players ages 13-to-18, although in this case Haverford School sophomore Liam McFadden, the division winner with an 81, was the only player in the 13-to-15 division to earn a spot in the field at Toftrees.

   Lugiano’s sparkling round gave him the top spot in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring.

   Michael Maslanka of Taylor made birdies at the first, 12^th and 18^th holes and had 10 pars on his card as he earned runnerup honors among the older guys and in the overall standings with a 2-over 74.

   Twin Valley senior Shayne O’Doherty and Robert Manley of Clarks Summit were two shots behind Maslanka in a tie for third place in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring as each recorded a 4-over 76.

   O’Doherty made birdies on the ninth and 12^th holes and had 11 pars on his card while Manley made birdies at the 10^th and 16^th holes and also had 11 pars on his card.

   Haverford School senior Alex Nemo, Pocono Mountain East senior Evan Murphy, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier last fall, and Drew Clark of Kennett Square each posted a 5-over 77 as they shared fifth place in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring.

   Judah Fulchiero of Hollidaysburg was a shot behind that trio in eighth place in the division and in the overall standings with a 78.

   Fleetwood senior Ryan Hromiak, winner of the Berks County individual crown last fall at Blackwood Golf Club, and Connor Matteo of Drums each landed on 79 as they ended up in a tie for ninth place in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring.

   Michael Felty of Selinsgrove, Gavin June of Nicholson and Alex Wilson of Roaring Brook Township earned the last three tickets to Toftrees out of the 16-to-18 division as each registered an 81 to finish in a tie for 11^th place in the division and in the overall standings.

   McFadden made a birdie at the seventh hole and had 11 pars on his scorecard as his 81 gave him the top spot in the 13-to-15 division and enabled him to advance to the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship at Toftrees on the number.

   McFadden shared 11^th place in the overall scoring with Felty, June and Wilson from the 16-to-18 division.

   Haverford School sophomore Nicky Nemo, a member of Bryn Mawr’s Team Nemo, and Luke McGraw of Boalsburg shared second place in the 13-to-15 division as each landed on 82.

   Nicky Nemo made a birdie on the ninth hole and had nine pars on his card while McGraw made birdies on the fourth and 14^th holes and had six pars on his card.

   Logan McGinn took fourth place among the younger guys with an 85, Ben Walsh of Clarks Summit was fifth with an 86 and Andrew Carroccio of Newtown Square was sixth with an 87.

   Evan Smith of Elkton, Md. and Onyu Park of Blue Bell finished in a tie for seventh place, each landing on 88.

   Luke Daniels of Devon and Cole Amann of Downingtown rounded the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each carding a 91.

   North Pocono senior Gwendolyn Powell, a two-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier, was the only girl to compete in the girls divisions and earned a victory in the 16-to-18 division with a solid 3-over 75.

   Powell made a birdie on the 14^th hole and had 10 pars on her scorecard.

   The stop at Huntsville was not a qualifier for the girls. The Philadelphia Girls Junior PGA Championship is an open event and will be held July 6^th at Spring Ford Country Club with the top finishers earning a trip to the Girls Junior PGA Championship, which will, like the boys, tee off Aug. 1^st at Hot Springs Country Club in Hot Springs, Ark.

   William Hanrahan of State College bested a two-man field of nine-holers as he made a birdie on the fourth hole and a par on the first on his way to an 11-over 47.

   Charlie Shutte of Allentown rounded out the field in the coed 12-and-under division as he was the runnerup with a 56.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Isztwan carries the Huntingdon Valley banner into semifinals of BMW Philadelphia Amateur

   For the second straight summer, an Isztwan is making a deep run in a marquee amateur match-play event on his home course at Huntingdon Valley Country Club.

   A year ago it was Brian Isztwan, who recently wrapped up a solid career on the Harvard golf team, battling to the final of the Pennsylvania Golf Association’s R. Jay Sigel Match Play Championship and defeating clubmate Ben Cooley in a 20-hole thriller.

   This time it’s Brian Isztwan’s younger brother Patrick displaying his considerable local knowledge on the William Flynn test that he grew up playing while making a bid for the title in the 123^rd BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship.

   When Conor McGrath won the Philly Am title two years ago at Cedarbrook Country Club two years ago, he was the 16^th Huntingdon Valley player to put his name on the J. Wood Platt Trophy. Huntingdon Valley has accounted for 25 Philly Am winners overall in the storied history of this championship.

   After rolling to a 4 and 3 victory over St. Davids Golf Club veteran Brian Gillespie in Wednesday afternoon’s quarterfinals, Patrick Isztwan, a junior on the Richmond golf team, found himself in the semifinals of the BMW Philadelphia Amateur.

   “It’s a dream come true, honestly,” Patrick Isztwan told the Golf Association of Philadelphia website. “I’ve grown up at Huntingdon Valley. It’s like a second home. The community here is so good. I’ve had a lot of support out there the last couple of days. I’s just been incredible. Very surreal.”

   Patrick Isztwan briefly fell behind in his quarterfinal match when Gillespie won the third hole. But Patrick Isztwan won four of the next five holes to turn his 1-down deficit into a 3-up advantage and take control of the match.

   There was a 110-minute delay for rain and lightning during the quarterfinals.

  Earlier in the day, Patrick Isztwan survived a tough test against The Ridge at Back Brook’s Brandon Dalinka in the round of 16, pulling out the victory on the 21^st hole. Half of the round of 16’s eight matches went to extra holes.

   Patrick Isztwan was ahead for much of the match against Dalinka, who starred scholastically at Council Rock North and played his college golf at North Carolina. But Dalinka kept battling and forced extra holes by winning at the last with a 4.

   But Patrick Isztwan pulled out the victory on the third hole of sudden death with a 3.

   Dalinka is a really solid player and won the New Jersey Mid-Amateur crown for the second time in four years last summer.

   Patrick Isztwan’s semifinal opponent Thursday morning will be Llanerch Country Club’s John Lalley, who pulled out a 1-up decision over Rutgers sophomore Logan Paczewski, a four-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier during a standout scholastic career at Dallas.

   There’s something about those slick putting surfaces at Llanerch that make Llanerch members good putters no matter where they go.

   Lalley got a little bit of a break in the always grueling Philly Am schedule with an easy 7 and 6 victory over Saucon Valley Country Club’s Evan Eichenlaub in the round of 16 earlier Wednesday. Eichenlaub wrapped up an outstanding scholastic career at Moravian Academy by finishing in fourth place in the PIAA Class AA Championship at Penn State as a senior last fall.

   On the other side of the bracket, Mount St. Mary’s senior Ben Smith, playing out of the Country Club of Harrisburg, reached the semifinals with a 2 and 1 victory over Xiong Da, a native of China who wrapped up his sophomore season at Delaware this spring.

   Smith, who began his college career at Penn State, and Da took out the only remaining past champions in the field in the round of 16 earlier Wednesday.

   Smith claimed a dominating 5 and 4 victory over Pine Valley Golf Club’s Jeff Osberg, who was a Huntingdon Valley member when he captured the Philly Am title in 2014 at White Manor Country Club, one of the seven Golf Association of Philadelphia major championships on his glittering resume.

   Smith’s match with Osberg began on the 10^th tee and Smith had a 4-up lead by the time they made the turn to the front nine at Huntingdon Valley.

   Da, a USGA/GAP entry, pulled out a round-of-16 victory over the defending champion, Michael R. Brown Jr. of LuLu Country Club, on the 20^th hole.

   When Brown won the Philly Am crown a year ago at Philadelphia Country Club, he joined Osberg and Overbrook Golf Club legend Chris Lange as the only players to have completed the career grand slam of GAP major championships, which includes the GAP Middle-Amateur Championship, the Philadelphia Open and the Patterson Cup, in addition to the BMW Philadelphia Amateur.

   Smith’s semifinal opponent will be Mike Crowley of Briarwood Golf Club as he pulled out a 1-up decision over Campbell Wolf in the fourth quarterfinal match.

   Crowley, a Hunt Valley, Md. native, was the runnerup in the Patriot League Championship at Hillendale Country Club as a junior at Loyola of Maryland this spring.

   Crowley had begun his day by taking out the only other current Huntingdon Valley member still left in the match-play bracket, earning a 2 and 1 victory over former Villanova standout Andy Butler.

   Butler served as the captain for Huntingdon Valley’s BMW GAP Team Matches teams and Huntingdon Valley won the title in the top tier for a record 34^th time this spring.

   It’s already been a banner spring at Huntingdon Valley. A couple more match wins for Patrick Isztwan would make it even better.

   The winners of Thursday morning’s semifinal matches will meet in a scheduled 36-hole final Saturday morning.