Another great season at the Kansas City Golf Association has come to a close with the conclusion of the Kansas City Masters, an invitation only, two-day tournament where the best of the best fight for their last chance at a title.

This year’s Masters was held at Wolf Creek Golf Club and it certainly did not disappoint. In great condition and a reputable atmosphere, Wolf Creek provides a difficult, yet fair test for the best golfers in the KC area.

40 players accepted an invitation and ages ranged from 16 year old high schoolers Justin Wingerter and Joe Bultman to our reputable senior players Steve Groom and Jim Seward. It’s a unique event that allows great representation of the talent we have.

Day one of competition showed the difficulties of Wolf Creek as only three players carded rounds under par. Justin Wingerter, Greg Diederich and defending champion Park Ulrich all came in with rounds of 69 (-3). Fourteen birdies were carded on day one between the three of them and lead the field by three.

Heading in to day two of competition, Parker Miller and Jeff Bell sat in a tie for fourth place after shooting even par rounds with Joe Bultman on the outside looking in after a round of 73 (+1).

Day two brought a lot of changes in the leaderboard as scores seemed to be consistently lower than round one with everyone chasing the leading group. Some notable scores from day two included a two-under round from Mark Terranova, a one-under round from Ed Brown and a three-under round (69) by Jackson Foth.

The leading group struggled a bit on the final day of competition to create a little bit of excitement as the tournament came down the stretch. Both Parker Miller and Joe Bultman carded even par rounds of 72 to become the leaders in the clubhouse at 144 (E) and 145 (+1). With the final group still out, both Bultman and Miller waited to see how their scores would hold up.

Greg Diederich and Park Ulrich would both struggle down the stretch with a few bogeys to leave the door open for Justin Wingerter. Despite a few bogeys on the back nine, Wingerter’s great play on day one would be enough to hold off the field. Wingerter’s final round of 74, (+2), would bring him to a total score of 143 (-1) and beat out Parker Miller, 144, for first place. Joe Bultman would finish in third place with his one-over total score of 145.

Greg Diederich shot a final round of 77 (+5) to finish tied for fourth with Mark Terranova (146). Park Ulrich shot a final round of 78 (+6) to finish tied for sixth with Jackson Foth (147).

With the season finally ended, we would like to thank everyone who makes what we do possible. We have a great group of volunteers who donate their time to support our events throughout the season. We also couldn’t do what we do without the players who continue to support us and choose to play in our events all season long.

Thank you for the continued support and we will see you all in April!

On a beautiful, fall day in Kansas City, Oakwood CC hosted both the KC Cup and Women’s KC Cup Championships on October 24.

Defending women’s champions, Staley Farms GC, #2 seed, competed against Sunflower Hills, #1 seed, in three four-ball matches. 3 total points were available in the championship match, in which a team needed 2 points to secure the win and avoid a sudden death playoff. All three matches went the distance with two ending after 18 holes and one on the 17th green. Tammy Harmon and Tracee Lechner of Staley Farms took the first point with a 1 up win over Sunflower in the low handicap four-ball match. The second and deciding point for Staley Farms came a few minutes later when Kim Ekiss and Tawyna Neal claimed victory on the 17th green with a 2 and 1 win. Having clinched the championship, Staley Farms finished out its final match between Angel Harbison/Julie Scriven vs Teresa Gumm/Alane Studley of Sunflower Hills. Staley took the final point of competition with a 1 up win and ultimately defended their Women’s KC Cup Championship with a final score of 3 to 0.

In the KC Cup Championship, two teams competed that had not been in the final last year. Tiffany Greens GC, #1 seed, battled St. Joseph CC, #7 seed, in various formats over 11 matches in which the winning team needed at least 6 points to claim the title.  Tiffany Greens got off to a quick start over St. Joseph’s with a win in the first three matches: chapman alternate shot, open singles and open handicap singles. The two teams would trade off the next two matches, each claiming one point in the senior handicap and senior singles matches. The score stood at 4 to 1 in favor of Tiffany Greens with six matches left to finish. With a win in the senior handicap four-ball match, St Joseph would close the gap by another point (4 to 2). The professional/amateur four-ball match point went to Tiffany Green to get them closer to clinching the KC Cup final, but St Joseph fought back with a win in the handicap four-ball match. With the score standing at 5 to 3, Tiffany Green just needed one point out of the last three matches to become the 2018 KC Cup Champions.

Tiffany Greens would do just that after winning their second handicap four-ball match with a clutch par save on the 18th green to clinch the win. All players whose matches were finished gathered around the 18th green at Oakwood to watch the intense finish. Tiffany Greens’ players erupted in applause and cheers after securing the 2018 title with two matches remaining in play. The last two matches would finish out and St Joseph’s would gain another point in the scratch four-ball match and a half point in the open/senior four-ball match. With a final score of 6 1/2 to 4 1/2, Tiffany Greens became the 2018 KC Cup Champions!

What a great KC Cup season we had this year. The KCGA is able to reach so many players through this event, and we hope the players enjoy it as much as we do. Thank you to all the players and the team captains for all their hard work in score posting and scheduling matches. We look forward to next year and see is Staley Farms can repeat for a third time, and if Tiffany Greens can defend their new title!

Qualifying for the US Four-ball Championships got off to an early start this week at Kansas City CC and Mission Hills CC.

On October 22nd, KCCC hosted the US Four-Ball qualifying round with over 40 teams. Teams competed in an 18-hole qualifying round for two qualifying spots and two alternates. Expectations for teams were high in order to have a shot at a spot in the USGA Championship.

An incredible 20 total teams came in under par. The low round of the day and top qualifying spot would go to Tyler Cummins and William Gantz with a great round of 65, five under. The pair carded eight birdies on their round to clinch a spot in the 2019 Championship. Four teams tied for second place with rounds of four-under, 66’s. A playoff for the last qualifying spot and the two alternate spots took place between the four teams.

Danny Amundson and Michael Martin would birdie the Par-2, second in order to claim the last qualifying spot. Through the rest of the playoff, Sidney McKnight/Alan Stearns and Nathan Lee/Peter Noble would claim the alternate spots.

The following day at Mission Hills CC would be the women’s turn. 8 total sides would compete for one qualifying spot and two alternate spots. In a strong field, four out of the eight teams shot under par rounds. Lacey Shelton and Megan Propeck, names well known to the KCGA, would shoot the low round of the day to claim the only qualifying spot with an incredible five-under, 65. The team carded six birdies and only one bogey on their round to earn the spot in next year’s event.

Brooke Biermann and Claire Solovic shot a three-under, 67 to claim the first alternate spot. For the last alternate spot, Kayla Eckelkamp and Kelly Osborne would defeat Erin Carney and Martha Linscott in a one-hole playoff.

Good luck to all of the teams that qualified in the 2019 Four-ball and Women’s Four-ball Championship!

For men’s qualifying results, see here.

For women’s qualifying results, see here.