John Kollus fires 3-under 69 to Claim South Bay Amateur

Kollus Fires Tournament-Record 69 at South Bay Amateur

Chula Vista, CA—The Golf Channel Amateur Tour held the 4^th annual South Bay Amateur Championship on Monday at San Diego Country Club.  Arguably one of the finest courses in the nation, players were treated to excellent course conditions albeit the hole locations and fast greens gave some players fits on a somewhat windy day. 

John Kollus of San Diego had, surprisingly, not won on Tour since December of 2010.  One of the most talented players on Tour, Kollus turned that around on Monday.  Playing in the final Championship group, Kollus carded six birdies on the day to set the tournament record at the South Bay Amateur with a sparkling 3-under par 69.  With the win, Kollus vaulted up the leaderboard and is now 2^nd on the Order of Merit and could be a strong contender for Player of the Year honors.  Kollus putted beautifully on the day, making a nice 15-footer for birdie on #8 and putting an exclamation point on his round by holing a 20-foot par attempt on the last to secure the win, tournament record, and his first victory on Tour in nearly 17 months.  Gary Robinson of San Diego and Phil Walker of Rancho Santa Fe both played well, tying for 2^nd place at 1-over par 73.  Both players struggled a bit getting it into the house, however, and will look for a stronger performance down the stretch in their next scheduled start.   A pair of National Champions, Jeff Hunter (2006) and Gerry Simoni (2004) tied for 4^th at 3-over par 75 on Monday. 

Three players separated themselves from the pack on Monday in the Palmer Flight.  Jason Matteson of San Diego, Toby Tollack of San Diego, and Chris Paragamian of Claremont all tied for the lead at 8-over par 80.  In the playoff, Paragamian would stand alone, making par on the difficult par-4 10^th hole to secure his 1^st Tour victory in San Diego!  Down but never out, Paragamian survived a difficult stretch with a double bogey on #1 and a triple bogey on #2 to make the playoff.  Jeff Hanser of Rancho Santa Fe, Michael Gonzales of Redondo Beach, and Michael Mariotti of San Diego all tied for 4^th place at 83. 

The Hogan Flight also saw some playoff action on Monday that included a former champion of this event.  Keith Fifield of Chula Vista tied for the low round of the day in the flight along with Steve Johnson of San Clemente.  The playoff would only last one hole, with Johnson coming out on top thanks to a bogey on the first playoff hole.   Congratulations on both players for tying for the lead in the flight, with Steve Johnson earning his 1^st of potentially many victories on Tour.  Greg Velasquez of La Jolla was right there thanks to a birdie on his closing hole, #9, to finish in 3^rd place just a stroke out of the playoff at 84.  Eric O’Keefe rounded out the top 4 at 85. 

David Ziebarth of Los Angeles made the trek down to San Diego for the event and was sure glad he did.  Ziebarth posted an outstanding round of 10-over par 82, which was so good he would have won the Hogan Flight!  In the end, it was a 5-stroke victory in the Sarazen Flight and his 1^st victory of the 2012 season.  Sean Clayman of San Diego finished in 2^nd place at 87, while arguably the hottest player in the flight, Earl Totty, finished up in 3^rd place at 80. 

The Jones Flight saw limited action with only four players, and Paul Hitchcock returned to victory here at San Diego Country Club with a very nice round of 91 which was good for a 6-stroke victory. 

It was a family affair for the winner of the Snead Flight.  Gerardo Furlong was fortunate enough to have his brother and Hogan-Flight Tour winner Jose Furlong on the bag on Monday.  Jose, who is a member of San Diego Country Club, must have given some good reads on the greens as his brother was able to overcome a topped tee shot on #1 to come away with the narrowest of 1-stroke victories over three competitors!  Rod Adolphs, Doug Moore, and Kenneth Swanson all probably were looking at where they could have saved that one or two strokes, as each of them tied for 2^nd place at 96. 

In the Senior Hogan Flight Ted Collins played wonderfully and was rewarded with the victory on the difficult layout at SDCC.  Collins posted a very good round of 2-over par 84 on a difficult day playing from over 6500 yards.  Coming in 2^nd place was John Bendy, the only other player to shoot in the 80’s, at 86. 

Bill Chapman has his sights set on the Senior National Championship and could very well earn his way there thanks to his 1^st Tour victory on Monday.  The first year player out of San Diego was the only player to break into the 80’s, with his 88 holding up for the win.  Bob Kirkbright and Ted Hynes each tied for 2^nd at 90. 

The Tour returns to action this Friday with the Encinitas Amateur Championship. 

Top Finishers & Payouts

For full-field scores and photos please see www.gcamtour.com/san-diego. 

Championship

69 – John Kollus ($200 and Trophy)

73 – Phil Walker ($125)

73 – Gary Robinson ($125)

75 – Jeff Hunter ($75)

76 – Tom Isaak ($25)

76 – Bill Borden ($25)

76 – Roland Rivera ($25)

Palmer Flight

80 – Chris Paragamian ($175 and Trophy)*

80 – Toby Tollack ($100)

80 – Jason Matteson ($100)

83 – Jeff Hanser ($25)

83 – Mike Gonzales ($25)

83 – Michael Mariotti ($25)

Hogan Flight

83 – Steve Johnson ($150 and Trophy)*

83 – Keith Fifield ($100)

84 – Greg Velasquez ($75)

85 – Erik O’Keefe ($25)

Sarazen Flight

82 – David Ziebarth ($150 and Trophy)

87 – Sean Clayman ($100)

90 – Earl Totty ($50)

Jones Flight

91 – Paul Hitchcock ($100 and Trophy)

Snead Flight

95 – Gerardo Furlong ($150 and Trophy)

96 – Rod Adolphs ($25)

96 – Doug Moore ($25)

Senior Hogan

84 – Ted Collins ($125 and Trophy)

86 – John Bendy ($50)

Senior Sarazen

88 – Bill Chapman ($150 and Trophy)

90 – Bob Kirkbright ($25)

90 – Ted Hynes ($25)

Optional Skins Game Results

Group 1 (Championship & Palmer)

#2 – Bill Brammer ($80)

#4 – John Tinsley ($80)

#13 – Justin Muse ($80)

#14 – Phil Walker ($80, EAGLE)

#15 – Paul Hundhammer ($80, EAGLE)

#18 – Kyle Koop ($80)

Group 2 (Hogan & Sarazen)

#3 – Lawrence Breaux ($100)

#4 – Steve Johnson ($100)

#10 – Ted Hynes ($100)

#13 – Yasuhiro Yoshimi ($100)

#16 – Benjamin Scott ($100)

Group 3 (Jones & Snead)

#5 – Randy Kilburn ($40)

#7 – Scott Fjelstad ($40)

#14 – Ashley Robertson ($40)

#17 – Doug Moore ($40)

John Malone Claims Sycuan Championship

Malone notches 2^ndwin in as many tries on Sunday

El Cajon, CA--The Golf Channel Amateur Tour held the 10th annual Sycuan Championship on Sunday out at the Oak Glen Course.  Conditions were good for scoring with mild temperatures and good playing conditions.

John Malone of Chula Vista continues to impress on Tour and became the 2nd player in the Championship to win multiple events here in 2012 (joining Connor Driscoll of Encinitas).  With nine players in contention coming down the stretch, Malone made a birdie on the par-five 18th hole to win in back-to-back events at even-par 72.   Charles Lyon of San Diego overcame a horrendous bogey-bogey-bogey start to sit tied for the lead at 1-over par heading into 18 but failed to birdie pitting him in a tie for 2nd place.  55-year old Don Eklund continues to prove he can play with anyone.  Eklund was tied for the lead thru eleven holes 1-under par, but two bogeys on the back nine also saw him in a tie for 2nd at 1-over par 73.   Six players amazingly tied for 4th place at 2-over par 74 including Derrick Farino (Poway), Tom Isaak (San Diego), Cory Gladstone (San Diego), Sean Kearns (Coronado), Bill Borden (Alpine), and Ryan Furey (San Diego).

The Palmer Flight turned into a 2-man race on Sunday, with Graham Everett of Irvine and Art Harris of La Mesa.   Harris was the clubhouse leader for sometime, 3 shots clear of the field at 5-over par 77.  Everett, fresh off his Western Masters victory last week and playing in one of the final groups in the flight, carded a nifty 4-over par 76 to earn his second victory in as many weeks.  David Macias of Corona and Jason Matteson of San Diego tied for 3rd at 80.

In the Hogan Flight Terry Bodoin carded three birdies en route to a narrow 1-stroke victory over Paul Kerr.   The win is Bodoin’s first since the opening season event all the way back in November and will probably not be his last this year.  Paul Kerr played well and earned a nice 2nd place finish at 81.   In the Senior Hogan Flight Roberto Cardenas of Chula Vista fired the low round in his Tour career and was rewarded with his first victory in four starts.  Cardenas outlasted Scott Goedecke of El Cajon by two strokes, winning with an 83.

In the Sarazen Flight Earl Totty continues to play well, earning his second victory in his last three tournaments on Sunday.   In a very close race, his 85 was good for a 1-stroke victory on Sunday over James Spooner of El Cajon.  Deon Chen finished in 3rd just another stroke back at 86.  In the Senior Sarazen Flight Bob Kirkbright of San Diego played a beautiful round, winning by two shots at 10-over par 82.  James Dunmyer of Laguna Niguel finished in 2nd place at 84, while Ted Hynes wrapped up 3rd at 85.

In the Jones Flight Danny Rosemier was struggling and losing some confidence.  After Sunday that might all be a thing of the past. Rosemier shot his career low score on Tour, an 81, to win by thirteen (13) strokes!  With the win, his 3rd of the season, Rosemier is now qualified for the 2012 National Championships.
In the Snead Flight Alan Wettig went out in 44 and continued that momentum all the way to the winner’s circle, winning with a good score in the flight of 91.  Rod Adolphs finished in 2nd place at 93, while Michael Robinson rounded out the top 3 at 94.

Top Finishers and Payouts
For full field scores and photos please see http://www.gcamtour.com/. 

Championship

72 – John Malone ($150 and Trophy)
73 – Charles Lyon ($100)
73 – Don Eklund ($100)
74 – Sean Kearns ($25)
74 – Cory Gladstone ($25)
74 – Bill Borden ($25)
74 – Ryan Furey ($25)
74 – Tom Isaak ($25)
74 – Derrick Farino ($25)

Palmer Flight

76 – Graham Everett ($175 and Trophy)
77 – Art Harris ($100)
80 – David Macias ($75)
80 – Jason Matteson ($75)
82 – Chris Cagnolatti ($50)
82 – Bob Hanyon ($50)

Hogan Flight

80 – Terry Bodoin ($125 and Trophy)
81 – Paul Kerr ($75)
82 – Allen Cornwall ($50)

Sarazen Flight

85 – Earl Totty ($150 and Trophy)
86 – James Spooner ($100)
87 – Deon Chen ($50)

Jones Flight

81 – Danny Rosemier ($100 and Trophy)

Snead Flight

91 – Alan Wettig ($125 and trophy)
93 – Rod Adolphs ($75)
94 – Michael Robinson ($50)

Senior Hogan

83 – Roberto Cardenas ($125)
84 – Scott Goedecke ($75)

Senior Sarazen

82 – Bob Kirkbright ($150 and trophy)
84 – James Dunmyer ($100)
85 – Ted Hynes ($50)

Optional Skins Game Results

Group 1 (Championship & Palmer)

#1 – Tom Isaak ($100)
#3 – Jason Matteson ($100)
#5 – Jeff Hanser ($100)
#10 – Mike Morris ($100, EAGLE)
#12 – John Tinsley ($100)

Group 2 (Hogan & Sarazen)

#2 – Ted Hynes ($45)
#3 – Ted Hynes ($45)
#4 – Kenneth Shelton ($45)
#5 – Richard Gorham ($45)
#11 – Kevin Apman ($45)
#12 – Allen Cornwall ($45)
#13 – Terry Bodoin ($45)
#15 – John Usilton ($45)
#16 – James Dunmyer  ($45)
#17 – Ted Collins ($45)
#18 – Ronald Gilchrist ($45)

Group 3 (Jones & Snead)

#1 – Doug Moore ($20)
#3 – Alan Wettig ($20)
#4 – Rod Adolphs ($20)
#9 – Kenneth Swanson ($20)
#10 – Michael Robinson ($20)
#12 – Eric Rasch ($20)
#14 – Kenneth Swanson ($20)