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Barry, Yates Capture Four-ball Championship, Earn Top KCGA Heart of America Seed

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Barry_YatesMatt Barry and Colby Yates found themselves in familiar territory Tuesday at Canyon Farms Golf Club.

The duo won The Heart of America Championship in 2014, and aim to repeat in 2016 as teammates.

Over the course of two days, at Staley Farms Golf Club and Canyon Farms GC, the former University of Missouri-Saint Louis golfers fired off rounds of 64 and 68, en route to a two-day 11-under, 132 total.

However, Barry and Yates needed five playoff holes to outlast the teams of Alex Higgs and Park Ulrich, as well as, the senior division champions Mark Addington and Steve Groom.

On the fifth and final playoff hole, Barry sank a well-placed tee shot on No. 5 for eagle, sealing the tournament victory for he and his teammate.

All three teams punched their ticket to August’s Heart of America Championship at Milburn Country Club. The tournament is Aug. 8-10.

The Heart is much different now, than in year’s past.

Over the winter, the Kansas Golf Association and the KCGA teamed up to create a new format where 16 KGA and 16 KCGA teams must qualify for the bracket style tournament.

The KCGA qualifying teams and seeds are as follows:

  1. Matt Barry/Colby Yates
  2. Mark Addington/Steve Groom
  3. Alex Higgs/Park Ulrich
  4. Gage Ihrig/Conrad Walcher
  5. Ed Walsworth/Don Kuehn
  6. Matt Kelley/Andy Kelley
  7. Mark Worthey/Dave Kirschbaum
  8. John Platz/Jeff Bell
  9. Tim Hendrix/Michael Hillyard
  10. Ward Zerger/Kurt Lorenzen
  11. Pierce Moling/James Henderson
  12. Ian Schneider/Chris Beaubien
  13. Don Walsworth/Tripp Walsworth
  14. Pete Robbins/Dennis McCormack
  15. Travis Holt/Patrick Roth
  16. Kevin Handlan/Bill Hanger

For more information on this year’s Heart of America Championship, click here.

For complete results and scores from the KCGA qualifying tournament, click here.

KWGA Amateur/Open Championship Re-Scheduled

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The re-scheduled KWGA Amateur/Open Championships will be played Tuesday, July 12 and Wednesday, July 13, 2016.

Amateur Championship competitors will play the 54-hole championship at Firekeeper GC; Mayetta, KS over two days. Tuesday, July 12 with tee-times to begin at 7:30am—the first 18-hole round will be followed by play of the front nine second round. Competitors will be re-paired and flighted on the basis of the first 27 holes for Wednesday play.  Wednesday, July 13, tee-times will begin at 7:30am—the back nine of the second round will be played followed by the third/final round.

Open Championship competitors will play a 36-hole championship at Firekeeper GC; Mayetta over two days. The published entry fee will include a motorized cart for each day of championship play. Open Championship competitors will play their first 18-hole round Tuesday, July 12 and their final 18-hole round Wednesday, July 13.  Competitors will be flighted and re-paired after the first round of play.

Likes, Parker Claim Medalist Positions At Lawrence Country Club

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The Kansas City Junior Tour got off to a shining start at Lawrence Country Club June 7.

Jessica Parker, of Fairway, Kan., fired a seven-over, 77 en route to her Girls 16+ division title, sinking birdies No. 13, a 265-yard par 4, and No. 18, the 298-yard par 4.

Parker leaned heavily on her length off the tee to take advantage of the 4,800-yard course.

Jackson Likes, of Olathe, Kan., posted the tournament-low round of five-over, 75. and claimed the Boys 13-15 age division medalist position.

Likes also rolled in two birdies, his first on the 136-yard, par 3 No. 2 and again on the 309-yard, par 4 No. 15. The Olathe junior was in full control on the course’s par 3s as he parred three of the four holes in addition to his early birdie.

Cannon Miller, of Kansas City. Mo., Zach Bischler, of Parkville, Mo., and Nathan Shull, of Lees Summit, Mo., all tied for first in the Boys 16+ division with 12-over, 82s, respectively.

Victoria Klausner won the Girls 13-15 division with her 29-over, 99.

Prepster Myles King claimed the prep division with a 13-over, 48 9-hole score.

The next KCJT event is June 9 at Paradise Pointe Golf Complex on The Posse. Pairings for the juniors can be found here, while the prep division pairings are here.

JParker LCC

Wilkin Wins Watson Challenge

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Rob Wilkin, Head Golf Professional at Heritage Park Golf Course, prevailed in a playoff to win the 10th Watson Challenge.

Wilkin, who led by 4 after the first round and 1 after the second round, and Watson battled back and forth all day. Watson’s round started off with some fireworks on the second hole, where he holed a 4-iron for an ace to get to 4-under for the tournament. Watson made the turn with the lead and looked in control heading to the par 3 15th. Wilkin knocked one close on the short par 3 and made birdie, while Watson found the hazard short of the green and made bogey. Wilkin would not hold the lead long, however, as a double bogey at 16 handed the lead right back to Watson. Unfortunately for Watson, a bogey at the 17th would put Wilkin and Watson into a tie, and Watson would not lead again.

Watson’s birdie attempt on 18 just slid by the hole, and the players headed to the 10th tee for a sudden-death playoff. Wilkin and Watson played 10, 11, 12, and 10 again, before the tournament was decide on the 11th hole. Both players missed birdie putts, but only Wilkin was able to convert his par putt, earning the victory.

Next year’s Watson Challenge will be contested at Milburn Country Club.

For complete results, click here.

Wilkin Holds Lead at Watson Challenge

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The leaderboard saw little change on day two of The Watson Challenge at Hallbrook Country Club.

Tournament leader Rob Wilkin saw his lead shrink from four strokes to two after a two-over, 74. By the end of day two, Wilkin sat at three-under, 141 overall.

Wilkin did birdie back-to-back holes on No. 13 and 14 to help maintain his lead and ensure a spot in Sunday’s final pairing.

Five-time champion Tom Watson rolled in seven birdies Saturday, including back-to-back birdies on No. 3 and 4, 7 and 8 and 10 and 11. However, a double-bogey on No. 18 and four other bogeys on the day left Watson one shot out of the lead, but in the final pairing for Sunday. Watson finished Sunday two-under, 142 overall.

Chase Hanna, the third golfer in Saturday’s final pairing, managed three birdies on the front nine, but fell victim to bogeys on No. 9 and 13 before notching a double-bogey on No. 15. Hanna finished his day ever-par, 72 and in a tie for third place.

Travis Mays played his way into Sunday’s final pairing with the help of a trio of birdies and an exclamation point on No. 18 with an eagle. Mays’ one-under, 71 boosted his overall score to one-under, 143.

Outside of the top three, Bryan Norton and Mark Terranova sat three strokes off the lead, sharing a tie for fifth with rounds of ever-par, 144, respectively. Norton carded a one-under, 71, while Terranova shot his second round of even golf.

Sunday’s Championship round begins at 7:30 a.m. with Wilkin, Watson and Mays teeing off at 10 a.m. as the last group of the day.

For results and pairings for Sunday’s round, click here.

Watson Challenge Day Two

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Follow all scores and results from day two of The Watson Challenge at Hallbrook Country Club.

Entering the day, Rob Wilkin held a four-stroke lead over Tom Watson, Chase Hanna and Josh Weems.

Results and pairings are found here. TWC Day 2

Wilkin Sets Pace at Watson Challenge

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Youth took a back seat Friday during the first round of The Watson Challenge.

Watson Challenge veteran Rob Wilkin posted the lowest opening-round score, setting the pace with a blistering five-under, 67.

Wilkin piled up five birdies on the day, on No. 3, 4, 14, 16 and 18, and an eagle on No. 12.

Tournament namesake Tom Watson issued a challenge to the entire field Thursday at the annual Player’s Dinner, telling the 47 other golfers to “bring it.”

Watson delivered on his challenge, firing a one-under, 71.

The five-time Watson Challenge champion carded birdies on No. 6, 7 and 18.

However, sharing a T-2 with Watson was defending champion Chase Hanna and Josh Weems who each posted one-under, 71s.

Hanna rolled in birdies on No. 1, 8 and 18 and tacked an eagle on No. 4.

Weems’ scorecard was littered with six birdies, including a stretch of back-to-back-to-back birdies on No. 10-12.

Four golfers shared a T-5 finish with even-par, 72s, including Mark Terranova, Travis Mays, Bryan Norton and junior exemption Tanner Owen.

Saturday’s second of round begins at 7:30 a.m. and concludes at 10 p.m.

The final pairing on Saturday includes tournament leader Wilkin and a partial recreation of last year’s Watson Challenge pairing between Watson and Hanna.

All results and pairings can be found on the website, here.

Remembering Bill Ludwig

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Long-time KCGA contributor Bill Ludwig passed away on May 30th, 2016. Bill spent much of his 86 years deeply involved in the game of golf. Not only did Bill put together a playing career worthy of induction into the Missouri Golf Hall of Fame,  but he dedicated hundreds of hours as a rules official and course rater. Bill was also on the board of directors of the KCGA for a number of years.

Bills complete obituary can be seen by clicking here.

Please consider making a contribution to the Golf Foundation of Kansas City to honor Bill’s life-long love for the game of golf.

Field Set for the 2016 Watson Challenge

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Following a long and stormy day-and-a-half at Falcon Ridge, the field is finally set for the 2016 Watson Challenge. Ian Boat, Bret Burgmeier, James Henderson and Jason Hull fought through hours of delays and swampy conditions to play their way into the final four spots.

Listed below are the 48 players who will compete for this year’s title:

Professionals Amateurs
Chris Mabry Michael Greene
Robert Russell Ryne Fisher
Sean Dougherty Steve Groom
Jeff Sedorcek Travis Mays
Zac Gavlak Mark Terranova
Tyler Dunn Bryan Norton
Rob Wilkin Craig Broswick
Evan Scobie Preston Fleenor
Jeff Sheppard Charlie Schorgl
Clay Ederer Josh Weems
John Richman Alex Higgs
Nate Sargent Mark Addington
Zane Burgess Alex Springer
Larry Hadden Dave Cunningham
Chris Bussell Matt Kelley
Ryan Burchett Ryan Argotsinger
J.D. Brake Chase Hanna
Jay McBride Joe Ida
Tom Watson Don Walsworth
Michael Letzig Andy Spencer
Mark Meacham Tanner Owen
Korbin Kuehn James Henderson
Clay Devers Jason Hull
Ian Boat
Bret Burgmeier