Old Oaks and Century Host US Open Sectional Today

A strong field of 80 golfers will take their shots at qualifying for the U.S. Open today at Old Oaks CC and Century CC in Purchase.  The contestants will play a round on each course, with a mere handful going on to Pinehurst for the big show in a couple of weeks.

Local contenders in the field include Brian Gaffney of Darien, CT, who made a double eagle on the 508-yard, par-five 12th hole at Bedens Brook Club while earning medalist honors in local qualifying. Gaffney, who shot 3-under 69 in the first round qualifier, qualified for his first U.S. Open in 2012. He is the head professional at Quaker Ridge GC.

Steve Scott, head professional at Paramount CC in New City, NY, will contend as well. Scott was the 1996 U.S. Amateur runner-up to Tiger Woods, losing in 38 holes.  He played on the PGA, Web.com and Canadian Tours was a member of two USA Walker Cup Teams, in 1997 and 1999.

Cameron Wilson, 21, of Rowayton, CT, won the 2014 NCAA Division I Championship just last week, defeating Georgia Tech’s Oliver Schniederjans with a 10-foot birdie putt on the third playoff hole. Wilson, a senior at Stanford, qualified for the 2012 U.S. Open at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, and has competed in three U.S. Amateurs.

Other notables in the field: Lee Janzen (1993 and 1998 U.S. Open champion); Web.com Tour winners Kevin Foley, Jon Curran, Jamie Lovemark (2007 USA Walker Cup Team) and Jim Herman; amateur Nathan Smith (four-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion; three-time USA Walker Cup competitor); Michael McCoy (2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion); amateur Cameron Wilson (2014 NCAA Division I individual champion); amateur Brandon Matthews (2013 U.S. Amateur quarterfinalist; alternate for 2013 U.S. Open).

The qualifiers are open to the public, by the way, and spectators are encouraged to attend.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

Bensel Captures Third PGA National Assistant Championship

Frank Bensel during the third round. Photo by Kat Griggs/PGA

Frank Bensel, a longtime Met PGA stalwart and assistant pro at Century Country Club, took his third National PGA Assistant Championship title today at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, FL. Bensel shot out of the gate with an eagle on the first hole in the final round this morning, propelling him to a ten-under finish of 278, six strokes ahead of runner-up Charles Frost of North Carolina.

Bensel won the event in 2010 and 2011. He also topped the field for the Met Open in 2009 and was Met PGA Player of the year in 2005 among many other honors earned in his career.

St. Andrew's assistant Greg Bisconti was in the field for the eighth time, placing T-43 this year. His best finish in the Championship was a share of fifth in 2000.  Other Met Section pros placing in Port St. Lucie included John Guyton, T-19, and Nick Beddow, T-43.

Bensel won a spot in the 47th PGA Professional National Championship, June 22-25, 2014, to be held in Myrtle Beach, SC, at The Dunes Club and the Grande Dunes Resort Course. The Dunes Club will host the final two Championship rounds exclusively after the field is trimmed to the lowest 70 scorers and ties.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

From the Battlefield to the Caddy Yard

Joseph Page

This summer, Joseph Page returned from the battlefields of Afghanistan eager to resume civilian life and provide for his young family. His first stop? The caddy yard at Century Country Club in Purchase, NY. The Purple Heart recipient told me, "I took a week off, then started caddying. It's a good way for me to keep only good things in my life."

Page was in the thick of the action in Afghanistan. He was awarded the Purple Heart for the injury he received while riding as a gunner on a truck that hit an IED while on patrol and was hospitalized for three weeks. Two other squad members were injured as well and their Afghan interpreter was killed by the explosive device. Page served two tours in Logar Province as part of Operation Enduring Freedom as a squad leader in B Company, 2-30 Infantry, Fourth Brigade, Tenth Mountain Division.

The 29-year-old found refuge on the pristine fairways of the quiet Westchester club. They were a welcome contrast to the constant danger he endured in the stark landscape of Afghanistan. "I love the game," he says, "It's also a relief not to have to watch your back all the time."

Page had caddied at the Garden City Golf Club as a youngster. He graduated from Hempstead High and went to college on a partial football scholarship. When it became clear that his dream of becoming a professional quarterback probably weren't going to be realized, he enlisted in the army. "I wanted to do something for myself and for my country," he explains.

Page receives Purple Heart from Major General James Richardson

Today, even on the golf course, Page wears a constant reminder of this price of freedom. It's a KIA bracelet, a tribute to his comrade Sgt. Keith Ruzinski, who was killed on April 7, 2011, while on patrol with Page.

While he enjoys looping at Century, the steady young man hopes to find a more permanent career with the NY Police Department. This summer he took both the NYFD and NYPD exams and scored near the top on both. His ambitions get wholehearted support from his wife, Divisay, and sons Joseph, 10, and Joel, 4.

"In the military," Page says, "the mission is always first. Now, my mission is my family."

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

Local Talent Heads for US Senior Open

Nelson Long

Next week's U.S. Senior Open will have some local talent in the field at Omaha Country Club in Omaha, NE. Nelson Long, head pro at Century CC in Purchase, NY, landed a slot by shooting a 70 in the Sectional Qualifier at Garden City Country Club on June 27.

Also shooting 70s to qualify were Mark Mielke, head pro at the Mill River Club in Oyster Bay, NY, and Bruce Zabriski, who played on the PGA and European PGA Tours before a long career in the Met area, where he was Met PGA Player of the year five times and served as assistant pro at both Winged Foot and Westchester Country Club before decamping for Florida.

The Francis D. Ouimet Memorial Trophy
(John Mummert/USGA)

George Zahringer, one of the Met area's leading amateurs, also qualified. It will be his eighth appearance in the event.

The USGA says 2,746 players entered to play in the 2013 edition of the championship. The field includes 12 former champions among the 78 players who are fully exempt. Past champs include Roger Chapman (2012) who withdrew from this year's tournament, Olin Browne (2011), Bernhard Langer (2010), and Fred Funk (2009).  Among the headliners in this year's field are Fred Couples, Hale Irwin, Tom Kite, Colin Montgomerie, and Kenny Perry.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

Rough Road to Merion Through Century and Old Oaks

Jesse Smith on the first tee at Century CC
(Copyright USGA/Michael Cohen)

Jesse Smith of Dover, NH, was the medalist during yesterday's damp and daunting US Open Sectional Qualifyier held at Century CC and Old Oaks CC in Purchase, NY.  Smith captured one of four treasured slots in the field for the US Open at Merion. 79 players competed.

The top finishers were:

Jesse Smith, Dover, N.H. - 70-67--137
Geoffrey Sisk, Marshfield, Mass. - 68-69—137
(a) Gavin Hall, Pittsford, N.Y. - 70-67--137
Jim Herman, Palm City, Fla. - 70-68—138

Not making the cut were popular PGA Tour pro Brad Faxon, who posted 140, local am standout Max Buckley, 140, and two leading local pros, Greg Bisconti of St. Andrew's, 144, and Rob Labritz of GlenArbor, 145.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

US Open Test In Westchester

If you want to watch some great golf at the ideal price--free--head to Century CC and Old Oaks CC in Purchase Monday, June 3. After a three-year hiatus, sectional qualifying for the US Open returns to the two venerable clubs. The Metropolitan Golf Association conducts this sectional for the USGA, rotating the venues every three years between Westchester County and New Jersey. Canoe Brook CC in Summit, N.J., had the qualifier from 2010-2012.

Century Country Club was designed by the team of Charles Hugh Allison and Harry Colt and opened in 1908.  Old Oaks, situated on 220 acres and designed by A.W. Tillinghast with help from Charles Hugh Allison and Harry Colt, was established in 1925.

Several notable players are scheduled to compete in this sectional, including amateur Mike Miller, who led New York to the 2012 USGA Men's State Team Championship last fall and was part of the team that brought home the Carey Cup from Ireland this spring. Other notables in the field are past PGA Tour winner and 1983 USA Walker Cup member Brad Faxon, 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur champion and 2012 Junior Amateur runner-up Jim Liu, 2004 U.S. Amateur runner-up Luke List and reigning USGA Senior Amateur champion Paul Simson, who competed in the 1998 U.S. Open at The Olympic Club.

Also in the field are two local PGA Champions, Rob Labritz from GlenArbor GC, who was low club pro at the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in 2010, and Greg Bisconti of St. Andrew's GC, who brought home the same trophy from Hazeltine in 2009. Anthony Casalino, assistant pro at Willow Ridge and recent contestant on the Golf Channel's Big Break, joins them in the field along with Max Buckley, an amateur from Westchester CC, Mark Ledom from Sunningdale CC, Grant Sturgeon from Winged Foot GC, and Brian Bartow from Apawamis.

The Open hopefuls will play 36 holes, one round on each course, in a long, grueling test to see who will compete at Merion the following week. Spectators are welcome at the qualifying venues.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf