OVGA Amateur Golf Tour

In the Nicklaus Flight, the wrist must be a lot better for John Davis as he won his 5th career OVGA Tournament with a 3-shot victory over Jarred Horn.  Davis went 40-38 and was one of only two golfers to shoot sub-80.  Horn was the other with a low gross 74.  It was the first victory in 2008 for Davis who won four times in 2007, with the last win coming September 15 at The Mill Course.

In the Palmer Flight, Charles Felts won his first Palmer Flight tournament and his second OVGA tournament by a shot over Tom Haley.  Felts was consistent all day, shooting 42-43 to tie Haley for the low gross in the Palmer Flight.  Felts trailed Chris Blake by a shot at the turn, but would outshoot Blake on the back nine by 4 shots to capture the victory.

In the Hogan Flight, Frank Hill captured his first career OVGA victory in a one-hole playoff over James Crockett.  Both Hill and Crockett ended the day at net 67 and a scorecard playoff ensued with Hill taking it with a net par on #18.  Hill trailed Crockett by 6 shots at the turn, but his back nine 45 (net 28) helped him make up the difference.  Michael Fischer had the low gross round for the Hogan Flight with a 93, but finished 1 shot out of the playoff.

In the Trevino Flight, Charles Felts snagged top honors with his 6-under net 66 for a one shot victory over Tom Haley.  It was Felts second Trevino Flight win this season.  His first came at Walden Ponds back on April 27.

In the Lopez Flight, after four 2nd place finishes in the Lopez Flight, Debbie Lakes got her first win of the year with an even par net 72.  The win moves Lakes very close to Mary Sturgill in the race for the Lopez Flight championship.

The tour heads to Deer Run Country Club next Sunday for the Shotgun Shootout, named for 1530 Homer radio host Lance McAlister.  Deadline to register is Tuesday at noon.  Looking forward to seeing you on the first tee!

Email from Karen Flinn who help us set up Operation Sand Save.

Operation Sand Save was a success!  The number of items donated was overwhelming.  Those guys and gals are going to be stunned when they open those boxes - Christmas in July!  Bill and Cheryl, thanks for staying to help with the packing (and the clean-up).  You two were a great help.  

Batavia Post Office picked up the boxes this morning at the Church.  We ended up shipping all items except the second bag w/clubs, etc. and 4 boxes of balls.  I found a box for the 2nd bag and will send it out with four boxes of balls on Monday.  The items are going to four different units - one in a forward operating base and three in remote areas where they have no ‘perks’ - these guys are in tents with no dining facility, PX, etc.  - they create their own recreation.  So they’re going to love those clubs (and the Swing Speed Radars). 

And thanks also for the postage donation.  The shipment cost today was $1372 — actually less than we anticipated.  Shipping those lighter brown boxes was a savings.  And we saved on the heavier items using the flat-rate boxes. 

Thanks to the OVGA for supporting our troops! 

Karen Flinn

We will have a full list of all the donated items up soon…thank you again to all the OVGA members who donated clubs, balls and other items to send to our troops.  And thanks again to Bill Shannon for his tireless work to make Operation Sand Save a huge success!

This week the OVGA is at a new venue, Sebastian Hills Golf Club in Jamestown, just outside of Xenia. The course has everything from rolling hills to tree-lined fairways to wide open windy holes (in the spring and fall anyway) to carries over water and ravines. It has 5 par threes, two of which are over 200 yards from the tips. It also has 5 par fives, including 3 of the final 4 holes on the course. This week’s Hole Of The Week is the Par 5 18th hole. This 1 HDCP hole plays 515 from the blue tees and 495 from the white tees. It also employs something rarely encountered: a blind layup shot and an optical illusion. The hole doglegs left at the 200 yard mark, where the fairway seems to disappear. It actually slopes down about 20 feet before emcountering a creek, then rising again to the green. Tee shots finding the right or middle of the fairway are straightforward, but shots to the right will have to hit into an opening framed by trees, and here’s the illusion: If you hit at the opening, you may be hitting into the woods. I recommend players drive up and look at the lower fairway. You will notice that it widens on the left. Players on the left of the upper fairway need to play close to the left tree line. Below are some distances to make note of:

First fairway bunker  –  280 yards in
Second fairway bunker  –  230 yards in
End of upper fairway  –  200 yards in
Creek  –  110 yards in

An eagle on the 18th hole by the Wuellner/Amend group clinched the point the West needed to win the 2008 East/West Cup, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods.  Final score was 4.5 to 3.5 to the West.  Details on the matches can be found here later.

Match 1: Halved
Match 2: West 4 & 2
Match 3: East
Match 4: East
Match 5: West
Match 6: West 2up
Match 7: West
Match 8: East