DIETZ WINS IN A PLAYOFF; ATCHISON COASTS TO SENIOR TITLE
The final outcomes of the 21st Mitchell-Haskell Championship at Brookside Country Club — and the three-hole playoff that came as an added bonus – were as different as the swings of Ben Hogan and John Daly.
On a perfect day for golf, three players – Randy Dietz, Adam Lewicki and senior Tom Atchison – entertained and eventually became the names that will be remembered by Northern Ohio PGA members and those fortunate enough to watch it.
Atchison, one year retired as the PGA Head Professional at Salem Country Club, was dazzling as he cruised to his fifth Senior Division Championship since 2011 by a whopping six shots.
Dietz and Lewicki, two of the most well-liked players in the Section, went driver to driver and putter to putter for 21 holes before Dietz emerged with his second Mitchell-Haskell Tour Championship title since 2019.
Dietz, a PGA Teacher and Coach at Windmill Golf Center, and Lewicki, the PGA Head Professional at Portage Country Club, finished regulation play with identical 36-hole scores of 68-71 and a 3-under 139.
Beechmont PGA Head Professional Jaysen Hansen and Brandywine PGA Assistant Golf Professional Michael Balcar finished in a tie for third with identical rounds of 69-71—140 and Jim Troy, PGA Assistant Golf Professional at Windmill Golf Center and the winner of this event the last two years, was fifth at 68-73—141.
Atchison, 62, turned in the best 36-hole score regardless of division with rounds of 66-68 for an 8-under 134. Scott Pollack, Managing Partner at 1899 Golf-CLE East, was second at 70-70—140.
“I don’t ever remember winning a tournament by six shots,” said Atchison, who had one bogey over the 36 holes and hit 17 of 18 greens in regulation during the second round.
Atchison began the day with a four-stroke lead and simply played steady golf as no one was able to mount a serious challenge. He 3-putted the 212-yard fourth hole from about 50 feet for his only bogey but quickly made amends with a birdie two holes later.
“I was nervous,” Atchison said of his seemingly comfortable lead. “I know it sounds easy to have that much of a lead but personally I think it’s hard. You still want to play aggressive but you’re trying to play conservative but this golf course is so tough and the greens are so tough that if you try to play conservative you’re going to have a long putt or a putt that’s going to break 12 feet. So, I just kept hitting fairways and greens.”
After a birdie on the sixth he reeled off six straight pars and birdied the 13th with a 20-foot putt and the 15th and monstrous par-5 17th by making six-footers.
By then, however, the drama was long gone.
That wasn’t the case in the Regular Division, which really turned into a match-play event between Dietz and Lewicki and contained more drama than a Shakespearean play.
Lewicki, who posted his best finish in this event, fell into the playoff when he bogeyed the 600-yard 17th and Dietz got into the playoff by making birdie on the 529-yard 18th.
The playoff began with both making routine pars on the 18th and the 389-yard 10th, with Lewicki burning the edge with a par putt and Dietz leaving his par attempt one inch short.
Tournament officials shortened the 11th hole from its customary 420 yards to 291. Both men drove the green, with Lewicki’s ball rolling about 40 feet past the hole and to the top of a perilous downhill putt and Dietz facing about an 18-footer along the same line.
Lewicki, who adopted a new putting grip for this event and putted lights-out for most of the two rounds, left his eagle attempt about eight feet short. His birdie attempt missed the mark as well.
“That (first) putt was so fast it reminded me of the Brookside of a few years ago,” he said. “It was a tough putt.”
The rain and heavy dew the last two days left Brookside’s renowned ultra-fast greens more palatable.
Dietz’s first putt curled away to the right but stopped about three feet away. He made the birdie putt for the win.
“Today was a grind,” said Dietz, who began the day tied for the lead with Lewicki, DJ Holub and two-time winner Jim Troy. “I played solid on the front (one-over 34) but I really felt I gave it away on the back nine. I was surprised I got into the playoff.”
Dietz recovered from a near-disastrous second shot from the right rough on the first playoff hole. He was only able to advance it about 100 yards but was able to salvage par.
“I got a little greedy there,” said Dietz. “I tried to be a little more aggressive and hit a 3-wood through that rough and pulled out of it at the last minute and got the old topper.”
The victory continued Dietz’s outstanding play since he took one month off earlier this summer. In his last four events, he won a stroke-play event at Shaker Heights, finished in a tie for ninth in the Habitec Toledo Open with two rounds of 70, tied for second in the NOPGA Professional Championship at Westfield with rounds of 67-70-70 and won on Tuesday.
“I think I’m something like 17-under in my last eight or nine rounds,” he said.
The win also came on his favorite courses. He won at The Country Club in 2019 and now at Brookside.
“It’s a real good feeling in terms of winning,” he said. “They are two of my most favorite venues around so that means a lot to win it on these two venues.”
FINAL RESULTS: Northern Ohio PGA
2022 NOPGA Mitchell Haskell Tour Championship
Brookside Country Club, Canton, Ohio
September 19 & 20, 2022
Championship Division
1 Randy Dietz Windmill Golf Center 68-71–139 -3 $1,400.00 (playoff)
2 Adam Lewicki Portage Country Club 68-71–139 -3 $1,000.00
T3 Jaysen Hansen Beechmont Country Club 69-71–140 -2 $850.00
T3 Michael Balcar Brandywine Country Club 69-71–140 -2 $850.00
5 Jim Troy Windmill Golf Center 68-73–141 -1 $700.00
T6 Mark Scott Jr. Brookside Country Club 69-73–142 E $550.00
T6 Sean McGuire Pepper Pike Club 69-73–142 E $550.00
T8 Rob Moss Pepper Pike Club 73-70–143 +1 $425.00
T8 DJ Holub Pepper Pike Club 68-75–143 +1 $425.00
10 Zack Ford Tippecanoe Country Club 72-72–144 +2 $350.00
T11 Nick Paez GolfTEC – Cleveland West 74-71–145 +3 $250.00
T11 Patrick Milkovich Canterbury Golf Club 73-72–145 +3 $250.00
T11 Drew Pierson The Clubhouse 72-73–145 +3 $250.00
14 Cory Kumpf Brookside Country Club 75-71–146 +4 $200.00
T15 Joe Puch Fox Meadow Country Club 75-73–148 +6
T15 Mark Bixler Kirtland Country Club 74-74–148 +6
17 David Morgan Eagle Creek Golf Club 71-78–149 +7
18 Nick Gustin Erie Shores Golf Course 73-77–150 +8
T19 Jordan Paolini Shaker Heights Country Club 76-75–151 +9
T19 Daniel Terry Chippewa Golf Club 75-76–151 +9
T19 William McKinley Sharon Golf Club 74-77–151 +9
22 Darin de Lelys Westfield Group Country Club 74-78–152 +10
23 Matthew Creech The Mayfield Sand Ridge Club – Sand Ridge 77-76–153 +11
24 Jared Toom GolfTEC-Stonebrook 76-78–154 +12
T25 Zac Cork Pepper Pike Club 79-76–155 +13
T25 Joe Meglen StoneWater Golf Club 77-78–155 +13
27 Brett Coluccio Fore Golfers Indoor Golf Center 79-78–157 +15
28 Mary Suitca Tannenhauf Golf Club 86-74–160 +16
T29 Trent Maxwell Windmill Golf Center 82-78–160 +18
T29 Ryan Brawley Northern Ohio PGA 79-81–160 +18
T31 Andy Silverman Canterbury Golf Club 81-81–162 +20
T31 Jason Nussbaum Congress Lake Club 82-80–162 +20
33 Derek Smith Red Tail Golf Club 88-77–165 +23
34 Adam Stinogle Westwood Country Club 84-85–169 +27
35 Dylan Champney Avon Oaks Country Club 86-89–175 +33
Senior Division
1 Tom Atchison PGA Of America Life Member 66-68–134 -8 $900.00
2 Scott Pollack 1899 Golf, CLE East 70-70–140 -2 $700.00
T3 Rob Moss Pepper Pike Club 73-70–143 +1 $416.67
T3 Tony Adcock Seven Hills Country Club 72-71–143 +1 $416.67
T3 Mitch Camp Club Walden 70-73–143 +1 $416.67
T6 Jon Jones Youngstown Country Club 75-70–145 +3
T6 Gary Rusnak 1899 Golf, CLE East 75-70–145 +3
8 Eric Morgan Plum Brook Country Club 76-70–146 +4
9 Steve Parker Portage Country Club 72-77–149 +7
10 Tony Milam North Coast Junior Tour 72-78–150 +8
11 Kevin Sullivan GolfTEC – Brecksville 78-74–152 +10
12 Dan Sutton Heather Downs Country Club 84-76–160 +18
