By PETE DAVIS
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP – Jim Guidotti is another new Ocean City Thursday Senior Golf League member who seems to have found his footing with both the group and the course at Harbor Pines.
Jim came out and shot a 41 on the front nine and then followed that up with a 39 to record a great final round score of 80. Jim had 10 pars with only one score of six, nothing higher. A net 62. The problem for Jim was his opponent, Frank Mancini. Frank played the front in 39 and the back in 37. A final round score of 76. Frank had 11 pars and two birdies with only one score of six, nothing higher. A net 60. One of Franks birdies was on the number one handicap 9th hole where he was surrendering a handicap shot. That birdie and his subsequent birdie on the 16th hole swung the day to his side. What a fantastic match. Four points to Frank.
Another new member of our group, Mike Bogdash, fired a gross score of 83. With a current handicap of 24, his low net score went sub-60. A net 59. With a birdie on the par 5 7th hole for good measure, Mike was able to overcome Jim Hoagland, who posted a very respectable net 64. Four points to Mike.
Bill Clarke and Sam MacDonald went toe to toe in their match, with Sam taking the early lead as he made the turn in 45 shots, to Bill’s 49. The back nine swung back the other way as Bill bested Sam 44 to 47. Sam won the gross by a shot but the one handicap shot fell to Bill so the match halved with both players shooting Net 68. Bill also birdied the par four 12th hole but it wasn’t enough as Sam claimed a margin of two holes in match play. Couldn’t be much closer. 3 points to Sam, 1 point to Bill.
A few other matches in A Flight were extremely tight. Ron Venturi finished one stroke ahead of Phil Gaffney, 88 versus 89. Ron was buoyed by a birdie on the 12th hole and actually played the stretch 12th to 15th holes in one under. Ron also captured the match play. 4 points to Ron. Pete McInerney and Bob Pierce finished in a gross score tie of 94s. Pete’s one handicap stroke became the difference. Match play and 4 points to Pete. Glenn Giveans our A Flight leader keeps rolling along. A back nine score of 39 helped overcome a rare stumble on the first hole. He shot a net 65 and over powered Drew Klein for 4 points.
Guy Hackney won 4 points in a match of cards but deserves an extra shout out for birdies on the 13th and 15th holes. Jay Ammon took on A Flight lowest handicapper John Blady and did an admirable job in posting a net 68 versus John’s 72. While John birdied the 2nd and 12th holes, Jay made good use of his handicap shots and played a very clean round, even birdieing the 10th hole. John couldn’t shake him so 4 points to Jay. Other A Flight point winners were Joe Dempsey (4) and Jack Mahon (4).
Over in B Flight Tony Valeo squared off with Garth Moyle in an unusual match that turned out in a dead tie, 2 points awarded to each. Both players shot net scores of 71 and both tied in match play with six holes each.
John Rutter and Dom Scalfaro ended their match with equal net scores of 67. John bested Dom in match play seven holes to six, so 3 points to John and 1 point to Dom. B Flight leader Mike Janel continues to roll as he swept his sixth match of the season, this week topping Joe Sheridan. Mike won the stroke competition by three shots and the match play by two holes. He finds a way to win almost every week. Rick Schultz is trying to catch Mike in the standings and he upset the favored Mike Coffman to earn 4 points and keep pace with the leader. Rick and Mike had “blood” on 17 of their 18 holes. Other B Flight point winners were Brian Lefke (4), Tom Szkaradnik (4) and Jack Dersheimer (4).
If you would like information on joining our League please contact Chuck Barry, membership director at cbarrysr@yahoo.com or League Director Al Malatesta at malatesta9088@gmail.com.
UNOFFICIAL STANDINGS
A FLIGHT POINTS
Glenn Giveans 22
Pete McInerney 21
Guy Hackney 19
Frank Mancini 19
Joe Dempsey 16
Phil Gaffney 16
Mike Bogdash 16
Paul Sullivan 16
B FLIGHT
Mike Janel 24
Rick Schultz 19
Mike Coffman 16
Mike Collins 16
Tom Gahr 15
Garth Moyle 14
Joe Sheridan 14