We had a great tournament on Saturday at Palm-Aire on Saturday! We played the Cypress Course and although the course played very tough, I think everyone had a good time. The weather was great – clear skies and not too hot – and the greens were in excellent shape. They are a bit firm since they were recently re-done, and they rolled fast and true.
The course proved very difficult though, challenging everyone to play their best.
Donald Westbrook had the shot of the day, holing out for eagle on #18 from about 165 yards! In doing so, he won the Sarazen Flight, shooting an 85 and edging Mark Sapsford and Gene Greystone by a single stroke! Westbrook said he struck it well and knew it was a good shot, but didn’t see it after It landed. When his group arrived on the green, they found his pitch mark, but no golf ball. After looking around for a minute, he checked the hole – and there it was! Great shot and great finish, Donald!
In the Championship Flight, Phillip Yribarren claimed his first Am Tour victory, finishing with a grinding 79 on a very difficult 6,800 yard course. After a rough start, Yribarren turned things around with a birdie on #9 and added two more after the turn. Alex Ojea finished one stroke back at 80. On the long, par-3 7th hole, all three Championship Flight players hit driver into the wind to reach the green. Afterwards, Ojea said it was the most difficult course he had played in his three years on the Tour!
In the Palmer Flight, Pete Sorrentino had the low score, winning by two strokes with an 82 from the Green Tees (6,500 yards). Mark Schaefer of Rancho Santa Margarita, CA finished 2nd with an 84. Sorrentino had two birdies on the day, carding 3s on the Par-4 5th and 15th holes.
Randy Ricker ran away from the field in the Hogan Flight, firing an 81 and winning by 6 strokes over Guillermo Zuloaga. Showing how difficult the course played on Saturday, Ricker and Zuloaga were the only Hogan players to break 90, playing from the Green Tees at 6,500 yards. Ricker played steady golf, taking nothing worse than a bogey all day.
David Fraser claimed another trophy in the Jones Flight, carding a very strong 86 from the White Tees (6,000 yards). William Oldrup of Jacksonville Florida finished 2nd with an 89. Nice rounds, guys!
Domenico D’Alfonso won his 2nd Am Tour event of the season with a solid round of 92. Tony Maroon finished 2nd, two strokes back at 94 and Harold Geisse finished 3rd with a 96. D’Alfonso is another example of not letting a bad start ruin your round. He made the turn at 51, then played the back nine in 41.
D’Alfonso, Jeff Hill and Tim Ruwe were the biggest skins winners of the day. They pocketed $126 each for their birdies on #15, 14 and 16, respectively. There was $140 in rollover money from Heron Bay on the January 12th in addition to Saturday’s skins pool.
I would like to thank all the participants for making it a great tournament! Also, many thanks to the staff at Palm-Aire who made sure everything went smoothly from the time we arrived until the last golfer headed home!
Next up is Boca Country Club this Saturday (WPB Schedule) and then The Woodlands East Course on February 9th!
See you there!
Jeff
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