Men’s Payout | Senior Men’s Payout
Whitaker Brothers Withstand the Wind, Run Away with 56th Men’s Best-Ball Championship at Palouse Ridge Golf Club
Pullman, Wash. (May 25, 2012) – On a day when players battled a tough course layout and brutal winds, Dan and Ryan Whitaker of Ellensburg seemed unfazed as they cruised to victory in the 56th Washington State Men’s Best-Ball Championship at Palouse Ridge Golf Club. Only eight teams managed to shoot under par in the final round, as the scoring average was three strokes higher than the first round.
The Whitaker’s held a four-stroke cushion entering the final round and progressively added to their lead over the course of the day. After four straight pars on the front nine to start their round, Ryan Whitaker provided the fireworks on the par-5 5th hole. “Well, Dan carried me most of the week but he was in trouble so I needed to carry my weight,” he said. “I hit a six iron, into the wind, and it landed just short of the up slope, leaving me a 40-foot putt and I nailed it. That was the kick start we needed.”
From then on, the brothers simply went to work, carding another six birdies, and no bogeys, en route to a final round of 8-under 64, a two-day, bogey-free total of 18-under 126, and a convincing nine stroke victory. “We just tried to keep it loose out there,” said Dan about their approach this week. “We like the wind so we were comfortable playing in it.” “Dan encouraged me to be more aggressive than normally would be” Ryan added. Ryan also pointed to Dan’s putting as the key this week. “The biggest factor was his (Dan’s) putter. It really came alive this week.”
David Nuhn of Moscow and Drew Reinland of College Place finished alone in second after shooting 5-under 67 in the final round for a two-day total of 9-under 135. Finishing eleven shots off the lead, and in a tie for third, were Craig Larson of Tacoma and Chris Bae of Issaquah, and Christian Wilson and Carson Rasmussen of Seattle, each finishing at 7-under 137 for the championship. Defending champion Rob Matson of Wenatchee, playing with new partner Andrew Whalen of Ephrata, finished in a tie for fifth after posting a 5-under 67 in the final round to jump up the leaderboard.
Tom and Cameron Whittle from Moses Lake took home the net honors after finishing with a two-day net total of 14-under 130.
Brown And O’Rourke Make Back Nine Charge, Outlast Defending Champions Indall And Galbraith To Earn Victory at 19th Senior Men’s Best-Ball Championship
Pullman, Wash. (May 25, 2012) – Kent Brown of Colville and Jim O’Rourke of Spokane erased a two stroke deficit on the back nine in a thrilling comeback to overtake defending champions Chris Indall and Kirk Galbraith of Richland and win the 15th Washington State Senior Men’s Best-Ball Championship at Palouse Ridge Golf Club. The gusty winds on the John Harbottle III-designed, links-style course made play difficult for the competitors, and the results reflected the tough conditions as the scoring average increased nearly four strokes from the first round.
Brown and O’Rourke entered the final round tied at 8-under with defending champions Indall and Galbraith, and the final group did not disappoint as both teams battled from start to finish. An untimely bogey by Brown and O’Rourke on the par-5 10th hole gave Indall and Galbraith a two stroke lead, but the momentum shifted on the 11th hole when Indall and Galbraith made bogey and gave a shot back. Brown and O’Rourke seized the opportunity and played the final seven holes at 3-under, including a crucial par on the 18th hole, to secure the one stroke victory with a final round of 3-under 69 and a two-day total of 11-under 133.
“The golf course was excellent. It’s made for the wind. With 20-25 MPH winds, it was a good test out there”, said Brown, about the conditions today. “My partner (O’Rourke) played great.” As for Indall and Galbraith, Brown was quick to laud their play. “It was very close. They played very well,” he said.
Five-time champions Bruce Richards of Seattle and Dr. Jack Lamey of Bellevue made the biggest move of the day, posting a 6-under 66 to finish the championship at 7-under 137 and earn a solo third place finish. The 2009 Champions, Mike Hickok of Kirkland and Chris DeGrazia of Lynnwood, finished five shots back in a tie for fourth at 6-under 138 with another former champion, Terry Crockett of East Wenatchee (‘10) and his new partner, Lawson Abinanti, of Bellevue.
Richards and Lamey also earned the net title in the Senior Men’s Division, finishing the two-day championship at 17-under 127.
