The second and final day of the 52nd Senior Portage County Amateur Championship at Windmill Lakes held promise for the first day leaders in each division: Steve Bedell of Brecksville, Platinum Division; Randy Steele of Hudson, Gold Division and David Stover of Pepper Pike, Senior Division.
After the final stroke had fallen at Windmill, only Steve Bedell had managed to maintain his championship position.
SENIOR DIVISION (Age 50-59)
Stover held a slim, one-shot lead over Geoffrey Burge of Aurora following the first round. Burge came roaring back at Windmill adding a four-over-par 74 to his Raccoon Hill score of 76 for a 150 to best Stover (75-79) by four strokes.
The PGA often refers to Saturday as moving day but, for the Portage County Senior Amateur, the final round was moving day as Bobby Wadsworth of North Canton celebrated his birthday with a score of 74 to add to his previous 78 to move up the leaderboard and earn the third-place trophy and money.
GOLD DIVISION (Age 60-69)
Randy Steele of Hudson was on fire at Raccoon Hill, shooting the low round in the clubhouse for the first day of 72 in the Gold Division, one stroke ahead of Dave Peck.
But Peck had other ideas at Windmill, finishing his 18-holes with the only under-par round of the entire tournament, a 69 on the par 70 fairways of Windmill Lakes.
Peck (73-69) and Steele (72-75) were actually closer than the final five-stroke difference as Peck said they traded leads throughout the round until Peck’s final few holes.
Doesn’t get more fun than two golfers playing great golf in the final round of a tournament.
Taking third was George Allen of Warren adding a 72 to his first round of 76 to jump into third place and just miss second by one stroke.
PLATINUM DIVISION (Age 70-plus)
Former champion Steve Bedell made his first appearance in the 70-plus age division by winning the tournament with rounds of 76-73 for a 149 total that bested Don Labaj of Berea by only two strokes.
The final championship threesome in the Platinum Division held onto their trophy spots as Matt Habbyshaw fired a 78 for a 156, topping Chagrin Falls Gerald Musiel (84-76 160) and Duff Long of Mantua (86-75 161).
WRAP-UP
The Portage County Senior Amateur is always a favorite on the Portage County Amateurs calendar of four events. The senior is a reunion for the golfers that play together, many of them for more than 15 years.
Two beautiful days of golf allowed golfers to shoot their best scores for a true test of their abilities. Both Raccoon Hill and Windmill Lakes were in great shape for the tournament.
The 53rd Portage County Senior Amateur will again be hosted by Raccoon Hill Golf Club in Kent and Windmill Lakes Golf Club in Ravenna on the final full weekend in August, the 26th and 27th. Look for registration information on PCAGolf.net.
FINAL RESULTS:
52ND SENIOR PORTAGE COUNTY AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
Racoon Hill Golf Club, Kent – Par 71
Windmill Lakes Golf Club, Ravenna – Par 70
Sat/Sun, August 27-28, 2022
SENIOR (AGE 50-59)
Geoffrey Burge, Aurora 76-74 150
David Stover, Pepper Pike 75-79 154
Bobby Wadsworth, North Canton 78-74 152
Rob Button, Westlake 82-74 156
Thomas Widman, Columbus 78-82 160
Ed Marsinek, Shalersville 77-86 163
Paul Malkus, Streetsboro 83-80 163
Allen Thigpen, Ravenna 84-80 164
Chris Ramiglia, Strongsville 85-80 165
Matt French, Aurora 83-85 168
John Sales, Canton 86-86 172
Tim Feltmeyer, Waterford, PA 94-81 175
Eric Ernsberger, Diamond 94-83 177
Andrew Coddington, Independence 90-97 187
GOLD (AGE 60-69)
Dave Peck, Macedonia 73-69 142
Randy Steele, Hudson 72-75 147
George Allen, Warren 76-72 148
Lee Hood, Alliance 78-74 152
Perry Pogany, Sarasota FL 79-73 152
Robert Gintert, Newton Falls 78-75 153
John Franks, Southington 75-78 153
Ray McNiece, Cleveland 77-77 154
John Sloe, Aurora 78-77 155
Stephen Tischler, Westlake 84-71 155
Ron Rositani, Willowick 81-75 156
Jeff Luken, Middleburgh Hts. 79-75 158
Troy Luckenbaugh, Uniontown 82-76 158
James Reed, Green 81-79 160
Randy Wilburn, Deerfield 78- 160
John King, Aurora 86-79 165
Ken Samoly, Chagrin Falls 98-91 184
PLATINUM (Age 70+)
Steve Bedell, Brecksville 76-73 149
Don Labaj, Berea 77-74 151
Matt Habbyshaw, Aurora 78-78 156
Gerald Musiel, Chagrin Falls 84-76 160
Duff Long, Mantua 86-75 161
Dave Pifer, Windham 83-81 164
Bradley Champagne, Streetsboro 87-93 180
Jim Crowe, Berlin Center 86-98 184
Terry Kekic, Canfield 93-99 192
