By TONY CHERBY/For the Sentinel
BUENA VISTA – Two of the lowest rounds for the Tuesday Ocean City Senior Golf League at Buena Vista Country Club were hatched Sept. 1.
I was there for Mark Lapham’s 78. It featured a rare birdie on No. 10, a monster par-5. Then he bagged a second one on 15, our second longest par-4.
The one on 10 came after a spectacular flop shot to the highly elevated green, followed by a great 8–10-foot putt. On No. 15, he hooked a huge drive into the trees. Rather than pitch out to safety, Mark took a chance and manufactured a perfect draw betwixt the coniferous lumber that resides there. Then for his 3-count, he went on to jar the 4-footer that resulted. After that, I made a mental note to give him Shot(s) of the Day honors. I’d have bet your house that he was also a shoo-in for Round of the Day. Nope. Didn’t happen.
Awe got back to the barn, along came Roger Probert, sporting a scorecard that read 77! He also birdied 10, but in even more specular fashion than Mark. That, after a birdie on No. 4. Then for some laughs and giggles, he threw a third birdie into the air fryer on 16, which is our longest par-4.
There sat Roger, all humble and quiet. (For an ex-naval P-3 pilot, what’s the big deal with a 77?) As usual, we’d gathered post-round over suds and such to whine and complain about the ones that always get away. But silent as your proverbial mouse did Roger remain, revealing nothing about any of his recent feats. Roger’s opponent, Philly Frank Coppenbarger, a podcaster who like me never passes on a chance to ramble on about a good story, thankfully told me exactly what did go down with Roger’s birdie on 10; a tale that a mere digit on a card could never divulge. So, after that, sorry, Mark, but no Round of the Day honors nor Shot of the Day ones either. Just some kudos.
Turns out that after sculling his third shot over 10’s highly elevated green, Roger’s ball commenced to trundle on down the steep embankment behind the thing. The approach shot to 10 is a blind one, so he saw none of this until he got back there. But any time you scull one over a hill, you don’t have to be Norman Einstein to know right away that nothing good will come of it.
His ball even rumbled past the cart path, and then into the piney South Jersey rough. Didn’t Roger chip his fourth shot right into the cup? Yes, he did! And 4 out of 5 on a 5 is a birdie.
Had we not had two aces this season, that certainly would have gone down as our Shot of the Year.
Also, had Mark’s and Roger’s two little operas not unfolded, Ralph DeLanzo’s nailing down of our Season’s Best award for Most Points would have been our big story. He and Dane Mayson, the only guy I know with two name that are almost always going to be misspelled, fought it out for first place. Ralph narrowly won, as Dane put up a good fight, which he has done all year. It came down to the last two holes which, in Steady Ralph fashion, he won. Had Mayson prevailed, it would have put him 1 point behind RD, so they’d have to go at it again the following week for all the marbles. But RD shut that door, so the party’s over for one of our “Big Four” Season’s Best awards.
(Greg Harlan’s 72 remains the best.)
Another great story that could have made the headlines is Rich Hawthorne’s putting performance. While his fewest putts win of 28 for the day isn’t a record for us at BVCC (Carter’s 25 from last year is), what is a record is Sir Richard’s astounding eight 1-putts in a row, from holes 8 to 15. But wait until he sees this, because he thinks he only got 6 in a row. That may be because his scorecard is a bit of a mess. (I should start announcing winners for our “Worst Looking Scorecard of the Week.” Problem is, there’d be too many ties.) Now, if I were a journalist, I’d call Rich to make sure I got this right. But why risk ruining a good story with facts?
Here are the results of all our matches: DeLanzo 4, Mayson 0; Baird 4, Wright 0; Harlan 4, Van Zandt 0 ; England 2, Lee Hollerbach 2; Carter 2, Cherby 2; Lapham 4, Hawthorne 0; Probert 4, Coppenbarger 0; Curtis 3 Bill Gardner 1; Chestnut 4, Bill Mackey 0.
WEEKLY WINNERS
Low Gross (77): Probert
Low Net (67): Lapham
Fewest Putts (28): Hawthorne
Birdies: Probert (3), Harlan (2), Lapham (2), Cherby, Gardner, Hawthorne, DeLanzo,
Most Pars (9): Lapham
Bogies (12): Baird, Carter
Closest to the Pins
No. 5: Baird 3’6”
No. 8: Hollerbach 7’9”
No. 12: Cherby 6’6”
No. 17: Lapham 10’2”
