Traditions
1931-2018 | VOLUME 19
AUGUST 6–22, 2018
COMPLIMENTS OF DETROIT LAKES NEWSPAPERS
2017 Pine to Palm Champion
Chris Swenson
Welcome players, family and friends to the
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ASST. CHAIRMAN Vern Schnathorst
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PLAYOFF UMPIRE Vern Schnathorst
HEAD RANGER Jeff Skogmo
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RULES
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| THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018
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THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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“The goal is to keep defending,” — Chris Swenson
Swenson prepared to defend title
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STORY BY ROBERT WILLIAMS • RWILLIAMS@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM
ergus Falls’ Chris Swenson, a 2018-19 Bemidji State University golf commit, returns this year to defend his Pine to Palm championship. Swenson capped a four-year run to the top spot after qualifying but not reaching the final day the past three seasons leading up to last year’s 18th hole victory over Jon Miller. The win avenged a knockout of the tournament by Miller the year prior in the round of 32. Swenson now fully knows the grind of reaching Championship Sunday at the Pine. “The goal is to keep defending,” he said. “Once that putt went in on Sunday I was ready for a break.” Swenson and Miller battled in changing conditions last year with rain steadily growing steadier as the match progressed to the final hole. Mother Nature played a bit into Swenson’s preferences and he took advantage of a Miller shot over the green on 18 to two-putt his way to a win in front of the championship gallery. “For me, I kind of liked that rain and a little bit of wind,” he said. Swenson works and plays out of Pebble Lake Golf Club in Fergus Falls and has been taking lessons from Scott Dirck at the Scott Dirck Golf Academy at Geneva Golf Club in Alexandria. This summer’s training has
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Swenson found ways to work around trouble battling a front nine sand trap here during Friday’s match play at the 2017 Pine to Palm. Robert Williams / Tribune
concentrated on the tee box. “Last winter, I did a lot with the irons and this summer it’s been driver,” he said. “On my own, I’ve been doing a lot of putting.” Growing up less than an hour from Detroit Country Club and having played the Pine to Palm course throughout his childhood, high school and college careers made the win that more special.
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“I think it’s got a big part in it because the course is only 45 minutes away from me and it’s one of the bigger tournaments in Minnesota,” said Swenson. After the tournament, Swenson was taking his time in where to play next after finishing two years at home at M-State in Fergus Falls. He started his career for the Trojans after placing fifth
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individually in the 2014 Minnesota State High School Golf Tournament and seventh in 2015 and helped guide Fergus Falls to a fifth-place team finish in 2014. At M-State, he was named a NJCAA Div. III All-American twice as he led Minnesota State-Fergus Falls to back-toback third-place finishes at Nationals in 2015-16 and 2016-17. Swenson placed seventh in the tournament individually both years and set the school record for the lowest two-year scoring average. He is a three-time club champion at Pebble Lake Golf Club and knows it looks good to add a Pine to Palm championship to his golf resume given the high level of competition every year in Detroit Lakes. “It makes it easier for people looking at me,” he said. “It’s one more thing to add on there and it’s a pretty big thing.” His win garnered the attention of Bemidji State University Men’s Golf head coach Ekren Miller. Miller texted Swenson and the two arranged a school visit in October. “I had different thoughts, but once I toured Bemidji and playing the Birchmont, that was the first time I’ve played that course - I got there and loved the area, the school was nice and I know a lot of kids on the team I played high school golf with.” After the meeting, Miller announced the addition of Swenson and he signed a National Letter of Intent to attend Bemidji State. But first, thoughts are all on defending at the Pine to Palm, a win that took a while to sink in last summer. “On the drive home that night, I had an hour to myself and it was all I was thinking about,” said Swenson. “It kind of sunk in when school started, I saw a lot of people and that’s when the trophy came and I just kind of looked at it and it sunk in right there.” Makine his first trip to Detroit Country Club as the defending champion is also going to take some getting used to. “I probably won’t know until I get out there the first day,” he said. “I think it’s going to be nice walking into match play right away as the one seed.” Like most past champions, Swenson is going to play practice rounds while the field dukes it out for seeding on the two days of qualifying. This year, he begins his defense with the knowledge of what it takes to actually win. “Staying patient and knowing it’s going to take more than one round to get it done, that’s a big part for me,” he said. “I’m just going to stick to what I’m doing; I’ve had a pretty good run every year. I’m going to play aggressively and see where I end up.” Chris and is the son of Kevin and Janet Swenson. Kevin is the director of golf at Pebble Lake Golf Club. Chris plans to major in marketing communications while attending Bemidji State. He will join familiar names from the Pine to Palm on the Beaver’s roster in Cody Cook, Brennan Hockman, Brandon Olson and former Detroit Lakes’ golfer Aaron Schnathorst.
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THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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Swenson 85th Pine to Palm champion STORY BY ROBERT WILLIAMS • RWILLIAMS@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM
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fter a week of nice weather, championship Sunday at the 85th Pine to Palm was wet and the battle for the trophy came down to the final hole. Winners need fortune smiling in key spots of a golf round and Chris Swenson of Fergus Falls was graced with it on the 18th hole in both the semifinals and the championship match at Detroit Country Club. However, it was more bad fortune for his opponents, rather than good fortune for himself. Steady play brought home the trophy while the course took advantage of his foes. Swenson avoided trouble and played consistent tee to green, especially on the 18th to cement his first-ever championship. In his semifinal victory over North Dakota State University senior Connor Holland, Swenson sat in the middle of the 18th fairway while Holland’s drive hit a tree right and landed with a view blocked by the three to force a punch out with the match square. That stroke was the difference. In the championship final, both former Bison golfer Jon Miller and Swenson stared at the green from 120 yards out in the fairway under umbrellas in a steady rainfall. Miller shot first and hit the green but his ball bounced high and rolled off the surface and back onto the edge of the cart path. Miller was inches from a playable chip, but his ball had just slipped past any grass to the tar. “I saw a pretty big bounce and I knew long was dead and I had a pretty good feeling that’s where it was,” Swenson said. “I just wanted to make 8
Jon Miller, left, congratulates champion Chris Swenson after the final hole of the 85th Pine to Palm golf tournament at Detroit Country Club in Detroit Lakes. Robert Williams/Detroit Lakes Tribune
sure I didn’t get all the way back there, as well. I got two pretty good breaks on 18 and I’ll take them.” Swenson played to the front of the green and walked up the final hill to assess Miller’s situation. With no relief on either side of the curving path behind the green, Miller was forced to drop from 15-yards back on the 10th tee box with a nasty downhill chip to a downhill slope. His chip trickled past the hole and down the slope while Swenson waited at the back fringe with extra putts for the victory.
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“Eighteen, nothing I can do, middle of the fairway, 120 into the wind, back pin; I hit a 140-club and just flushed it over the green and I’m dead, basically,” Miller said. “I’m just trying to keep it on the green and maybe make a putt for par.” Swenson had all the relief on 18 claiming the championship 1-up. “To be on top at the end is pretty cool,” said Swenson. The match was even at the turn. Swenson led twice by a hole on the front nine and the lead changed hands four times in the final nine holes.
Above: Jon MIller chips from the 10th tee box to the 18th green after his long approach forced a drop to an impossible up and down. A rain-soaked Chris Swenson, right, poses with the championship trophy in the clubhouse at the completion of the Pine to Palm Sunday evening.
Swenson made par four on the 11th to go 1-up. Miller evened the match and went ahead with back-to-back birdies on holes 12 and 13, a par five and a four. His only lead of the day was erased a hole later when he bogeyed the par-3, 14th, and Swenson dropped a bomb of a birdie putt to take the lead back in a steady rain on 15. After halving 16, Miller made par to Swenson’s bogey on the par-3, 17th hole to set up the dramatics on 18 all square. “It was fun; it’s quite the grind Tuesday through Sunday but it was very fun,” said Swenson. “The rain makes you think a lot more, hit more controlled shots; it gets a little slippery.” Battling the elements was compounded by the fatigue of getting to Championship Sunday. “It was brutal, we battled all day, Miller said. “I, personally, played 140 holes this week and I think it kind of showed on the front.” Both golfers made their first appearance in the Pine to Palm championship final and Swenson plans to return to defend, something that hasn’t happened since 2015.
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Piatz picks up second Pine to Palm Mid-Am title STORY BY ROBERT WILLIAMS • RWILLIAMS@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM
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xbow Country Club’s Perry Piatz completed a swift run through the Mid-Am bracket of the 85th Pine to Palm golf tournament and claimed his second championship victory in the past five years. “I struggled early; we both made a couple bogeys early, but I just settled in and starting making the pars and playing solid,” said Piatz. Michael Melhus had an intriguing week on the course displaying some brilliant shot making that produced low scores, but he also had rounds on the opposite end of the spectrum. “He wasn’t playing his best today,” said Piatz. “I just played steady and made some easy pars. I was putting for a lot of birdies but didn’t make a whole lot.” No. 2 Piatz had one close match on his trip to the finals, a 1-up quarterfinal victory over No. 7 Paul Uithoven. He escaped that match winning without a birdie on the scorecard. 10
“It’s always fun to win here and play here,” he said. “I love this course. It fits my game. I don’t hit it far, but I hit it straight. Yesterday, in my quarterfinal match, I made 17 pars and a bogey.” Piatz was second in qualifying finishing one stroke behind medalist Jason Justesen. He took that momentum into match play recording a 7-5 win over No. 15 Tony Stein and advancing to the finals with the same score in defeating No. 3 Darren Haley. In the finals, while both players struggled early in changing conditions from mist, to brief stints of sunshine, before rainfall later in the round, Piatz got up by one hole after six and two at the turn and picked up momentum leading 4-up on 13 and closing out the match a hole later. Melhus was unable to get his game going to extend the match. “That’s how it goes out here
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sometimes,” Piatz said. “Sometimes you run into people making birdies like crazy and you can run into people who are struggling a bit. I was fortunate to be on that side.” Piatz was consistent off the tee box and set himself up for success playing down the middle all week from a strong showing in qualifying 72-71143 (+1) to notching a big win on Sunday. “My driver was good all week,” he said. “I had to punch out one or two times all week. This course is a lot easier if you play from the fairway which I did a lot of. That was the key.” Piatz earned his first Pine to Palm Mid-Am title in 2013 Perry Piatz won his second Pine to Palm Mid-Am championship adding to his trophy case from a first victory at Detroit Country Club in 2013. Robert Williams/ Tribune
Ystebo cruises to Pine to Palm Senior title STORY BY ROBERT WILLIAMS • RWILLIAMS@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM
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f the four championship matches at the 2017 Pine to Palm, the Senior division ended the most swiftly as Fargo’s Dan Ystebo completed a string of four solid matches after qualifying in the sixth position to claim his first Senior division championship Sunday at Detroit Country Club. He faced defending champion AJ Greff seven-match winning streak in the final match with a 4&3 victory.
The win was indicative of Ystebo’s run through the championship bracket. He led 1-up after six holes and pushed his advantage to threeup after the 11th hole before going up four and closing out early. Ystebo never saw the 18th green completing all his matches early on the back nine during an impressive run to the finals. He opened with a 6-4 victory over No. 11 Duane Geiger, followed by
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WHAT’S BLACK AND WHITE AND READ ALL OVER
a 3-2 quarterfinal victory over No. 3 Thomas Solein. In the semifinals, Ystebo advanced to the championship winning 4-3 over No. 7 Greg Birdsell. Greff had a similar run to the championship match and took out some former winners in the process. Greff defeated No. 16 Brad Solheim 5-3 to open match play, then 2015 champion Keith Aasen 4-3 and twotime Mid-Am champion, No. 12 Kent Spriggs, 2-1 in the semis. Greff was a win away from being the first back-to-back champion in Seniors in 16 years dating back to Robert Wernick (2000-2001). Ystebo is the 13th different champion in that span. Scott Linnerooth has won twice (2012, 2014), as well as Tim Rubis (2010, 2013) and Pat Vincelli (2002, 2006). The Senior field had every champion from the past decade in attendance in 2017: A.J. Greff (2016), Keith Aasen (2015), Scott Linnerooth (2012, 2014), Tim Rubis (2010, 2013), Rob Harris (2011), T.L. Solien (2009), Joe Sauer (2008), and Jim Bergeson (2007). Fargo’s Dan Ystebo captured the Senior division championship of the 85th Pine to Palm golf tournament with a 4-3 victory over defending champion AJ Greff. Robert Williams/Tribune
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THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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511 Yards
You Could Too!!!
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Handicap-5
The first and longest hole on the course...tee shots should climb a long hill and begin left toward the green...trees will come into play on left side...bunker and out-ofbounds on left of green.
2
Par 4
371 Yards
Handicap-11
Straight away hole...out-ofbounds on left of fairway... bunkers on either side of green will come into play.
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1 Par 5
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3
Par 3
222 Yards
Handicap-15
Long and difficult Par 3, narrow fairway lined with trees. Out of bounds on left... elevated tee and green, bunker 10 yards in front of green on left side. Tough Par 3.
4
5
Par 5
507 Yards
Handicap-7 Fairway goes uphill then downhill to green. Driving area has a severe slant to the left which makes it difficult to hold drives in the fairway. Bunker 200 yards out plus green is protected by bunkers.
Par 4
417 Yards
Handicap-1 Number 1 handicap hole offers a very narrow driving area, first 200 yards of this hole is lined with trees on both sides. Narrow tee box...gradual rise to the green with a bunker on right side of green.
6 Par 4
282 Yards
Handicap-13
Narrow fairway requires accurate tee shots, many golfers will use an iron off the tee to keep the ball in play. Out of bounds on the right and behind the green. Green is protected by two large trees, pin placement will make a big difference on this hole.
THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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7
Par 4
286 Yards
Handicap-9 Out-of-bounds on either side of fairway...rolling hole, with hills and gullies...shots have to be well-placed as three bunkers circle green.
8 Par 3
174 Yards
Handicap-17
The first in a series of 3 holes that will make or break your score. 174 yard, Par 3, 3 bunkers protect the green, slanting green with outof-bounds on left side.
9
Par 4
419 Yards
Handicap-3 Number 3 handicap hole, one of the longer Par 4’s on the course. Bunkers on 3 sides of the green with out-ofbounds behind the green.
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10
Par 4
390 Yards
Handicap-4 Number 2 handicap hole. Sloping fairway could cause problems with rolling tee shot. Narrow opening to the green, accurate approach shot is essential. Bunkers on the left, right and behind the green, also, green is tough to hold.
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Par 4
366 Yards
Handicap-10
Water hazard on left side of fairway...about 175 yards out...bunkers left and right side of green.
THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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12
Par 5
487 Yards
Handicap-2 Water both sides of fairway 225 yards out...gutsy player will shoot for beyond water and leave himself an iron to the green...good birdie hole...bunkers right front, left side with trees behind.
13 Par 4
338 Yards
Handicap-12
Dogleg left...water present, but shouldn’t enter into play with true shots...bunker on right front of green...hitting it over puts ball on 14 tee box.
15 Par 4
357 Yards
Handicap-8
14
Par 3
156 Yards
Handicap-16 Difficult pot hole bunker located in front of the green, and bunker on the left. Sloping green will make for some interesting putts.
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Narrow fairway...out-ofbounds on left...trees at 175 yard mark make fairway even narrower, although strong tee shot could climb over... bunkers on left side, right front and right side.
Mid-Am to enter 10th year
16 Par 4
288 Yards
Handicap-14
Many matches are won or lost on this hole. Green is reachable with a drive over the trees on right, conservative players will use an iron off the tee. Bunkers surround the green, out-of-bounds left of green.
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STORY BY ROBERT WILLIAMS RWILLIAMS@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM
J Par 3
175 Yards
Handicap-18
Par 3...possible out-ofbounds on left...bunkers left and right side of green.
18 Par 4
360 Yards
Handicap-6 Excellent finishing hole, dogleg left, you can gamble and play left side, uphill to tough green, bunkers on left, right and behind the green.
ay Olafson was the first Mid-Am champion defeating Kent Fronk 3&2 in 2009. Olafson rebounded from getting into a mess of trees on hole No. 11, but responded with three straight hole victories to go 2-up and finished the match on hole No. 16. The win was the first of two for Olafson (2011). Of the nine previous Mid-Am tournaments, three winners have won twice. Kent Spriggs (2014-2015) and Perry Piatz have also captured two crowns. Piatz is the defending champion this year and won his first in 2013. The inaugural medalist was Otis Hesteness (72-73 145). Hesteness was a member of the Detroit Country Club ground crew at the time. He reached the semifinals of match play before falling to Olafson 2-up. Olafson was defeated in the 2010 finals by Chad Niles negating a possible three-peat to start the division’s play. Olafson was also the 2013 runner-up to Piatz. A.J. Gref was the 2012 winner. Greff also swept medalist and champion finishes in the 2016 Senior division and was the runner-up last season. Scott Uithoven captured the 2016 Mid-Am title and is a two-time medalist (2014-15). Mid-Am History (Year, Champion, Runner-Up, Medalist) 2017, Perry Piatz, Michael Melhus, Jason Justesen 2016, Scott Uithoven, Matt Johnson, Jim Mikkelson and JT Johnson 2015, Kent Spriggs, Scott Uithoven, Scott Uithoven 2014, Kent Spriggs, Bob Cavanagh, Scott Uithoven 2013, Perry Piatz, Jay Olafson, Kent Spriggs 2012, A.J. Greff, Kent Spriggs, Mike Seelye 2011, Jay Olafson, Duane Siverson, Kent Fronk 2010, Chad Niles, Jay Olafson, Duane Siverson 2009, Jay Olafson, Kent Fronk, Otis Hesteness
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Gillam snaps Renner’s streak to take Super Senior crown STORY BY ROBERT WILLIAMS • RWILLIAMS@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM
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hange was in the air on championship Sunday in the Super Seniors division and a local golfer put a new name up on the winner’s board for the first time in more than half a decade. Doug Gillam told six-time defending champion Doug Renner he wanted to play and beat the reigning champion after the 2017 Pine to Palm and Gillam did just that dethroning the consistent Renner and snapping an incredible match winning streak at 27 dating back to 2011. 18
“There is no streak that runs forever,” said Renner. “I just can’t tell you how thrilled I am and to beat a great champion like Chuck Renner is...I’ll never forget it,” said Gillam. “I managed to come up with the shots at the right time.” Gillam got off to a quick start taking a 3-up lead early in the round before Renner took a hole back by the fifth hole. “I knew I had to keep going because he’s just too good of a player to let him back in the game,” said Gillam.
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Renner made par on six to close to 1-down, but had a short putt on seven lip out to give a hole right back. Gillam was on the green with his tee shot on the par-3 eighth hole and Renner was above the green with a tricky downhill chip. Renner made an incredible shot to put the ball inches from the hole and Gillam three-putted in an unlikely swing back to a one-hole lead. Renner’s 58-degree wedge, a favorite club, let him down on hole No. 9 pushing his chip well past the hole
Far Left: Doug Gillam is the first man since 2010 to win the Pine to Palm Super Senior championship other than Chuck Renner. Gillam snapped Renner’s incredible 27-match winning streak in the final match. Left: Chuck Renner was the runner-up for the second time in eight years to go with his six championships. Robert Williams/Tribune
for a long par putt that turned into a bogey. Gillam made par to make the turn leading by two. Grabbing the early lead and holding onto it for the opening nine holes were keys to success for Gillam. “It gave me the confidence I can play with him,” Gillam said. “A lot of people get behind him early and he’s such a good player that he’ll just do fairways and greens, make a lot of pars and you have to catch him. To be ahead and he had to catch me, the roles were kind of reversed and I held on to enough game today to do what I had to do.” Trailing in matches was nothing new for Renner and Sunday was the one day he could not make a move for the comeback victory. “I’ve been down in every match I played this week and I don’t know how many times I’ve been down in matches that I’ve played, not just here, but other places,” said Renner.
“It’s a long day, but I made mental mistakes on the front nine and that’s probably what put me so far behind.” Gillam was solid from tee to green to keep some distance from Renner on the scorecard down the stretch. “Until the last couple holes it was the tee box,” said Gillam. “I was hitting the ball in the fairway and making good contact. I made some nice putts. My putting has been better in this tournament than it has in some time. I switched to cross-hand a few years ago and it is really starting to feel good.” “Give Doug credit because he really hit a lot of quality shots,” said Renner. “He missed some but he just keeps hanging in. He’s a good player and that will probably make a lot of people happy now that there is somebody else,” Renner joked about the end of his streak. “I can’t be disappointed, other than the fact that I wanted to extend it.”
Gillam’s lead was 4-up on hole No. 14 and he closed the match out on the 15th green. “I pictured the match today by just trying to not get hung up in Chuck’s game, but trying to play my own game,” Gillam said. “I was trying to stay in the moment and stay in the game. It sounds secure, but a 3-up lead against a good player like Chuck...once you lose two holes in a row you’re talking to yourself and he’s in the driver’s seat.” Renner has a pinpoint memory of many of the matches in the streak and can recite a tale of hole-by-hole, shotby-shot detail of those matches, one of his favorites was against Joe Sauer coming back from a three-hole deficit with four to play. “I told him it was like being in the bottom of the grave and he’s throwing dirt on me,” Renner said. “I was thinking I can birdie all three and still not win. That, to me, was the best comeback.” Speaking of comebacks, Renner did announce he will be returning to the Pine to Palm in 2018 on a quest to get his championship back. Gillam also plans to be back to defend and keep his own winning streak of four matches going. “I will just have to work a lot harder in the winter to avoid some of those mental mistakes, more discipline,’ Renner said. “I didn’t thoroughly think out some of those critical shots. They’re all critical when you play someone like Doug.”
THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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Dan Ystebo
Jason Justesen
Nick Myhre
Alan Spriggs
Daily highlights from MONDAY The senior division turned 50 years old at the 85th Pine to Palm in 2017. Since 2001, the Seniors have not had a repeat champion (Robert Wernick 2000-01). From the inaugural season in 1967 to 2001, the feat happened nine times: Wernick did it for the first time in 1996-1997. Joe Mayer won in 1994 and 1995. Bill Swanston 199192, Rodney Adolph 1988-89, Harold Erickson 1978-79, Don Sarenpa 1975-76 and Ed Printz round out the list. Printz is the only golfer to capture three straight doing so from 1968-1970. Three golfers: Pat Vincelli 2002, 2006, Tim Rubis 2010, 2013, and Scott Linnerooth 2012, 2014 have each won two titles since 2001 but not back-to-back. Dan Ystebo is this year’s defending champion.
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TUESDAY Detroit Lakes’ own Jason Justesen shot matching rounds of par 71 to claim Mid-Am medalist honors on day two of play. Justesen (71-71 142) began play four strokes off the lead held by Michael Melhus of Rogers after he fired a four-under 67 Monday and held a three stroke advantage over Paul Uithoven of Bozeman, Montana and Troy Ness of Horace, N.D., going into play on Tuesday. WEDNESDAY Wednesday’s play began with a four-way tie atop the championship leaderboard between Jacob Dehne of Bismarck, Noah Lawson of Blaine, Nick Myhre of Rolette, N.D. and Erik Weiss from Moorhead, all with scores of four-under 67. At the end of the day, Myhre and Lawson shared medalist honors. The duo broke a string of four years of medalist dominance by Big 10 golfers. Myhre, along with NDSU teammates Lucas Johnson (third) and Dax Wallat (fourth) put three Bison in the top four positions.
| THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018
THURSDAY Seven of eight top seeds advanced in both Mid-Am and Super Seniors play. In seniors, No. 15 John Berg pulled off the biggest upset of the day defeating No. 2 George Strand 1-up. The championship division saw two top five qualifiers knocked out in the round of 64. Alan Spriggs had the biggest upset of the day advancing as the 61st seed with a 2&1 victory over No. 4 Dax Wallat. Brennan Hockman, seeded 60th, duked it out with No. 5 Bill Carlson in a marathon match winning 1-up on the third extra hole in a match that ran from their 2:03 p.m. tee time to 8:30 p.m. FRIDAY Only three top 10 qualifiers remained in the Pine to Palm championship field by Friday. No. 60 Hockman continued his upset bid winning with a big bender of a putt on 18. Local favorite and former Laker Tanner Lane used some of his own putter magic. He and Bryant Buckellew were all square on 18 and
Tanner Lane
Chuck Renner
Doug Gillam
the 2017 Championship needed a string measurement to determine who was out on matching birdie putts. Buckellew had the easier of the two putts but was out and made his to put on the pressure. Lane walked his downhill right-to-left putt into the hole to go to extras, where he would win with a par. The eventual championship tandem made some noise as well. Fergus Falls’ Chris Swenson, the No. 31 seed pulled off the upset of the day defeating No. 2 and co-medalist Noah Lawson 5&4. Swenson built a 4-up lead early and kept at it to exit the course early. No. 24 Jon Miller continued a battery of top 10 golfers taking out No. 9 Benjamin Dirck 5&4.
SATURDAY Nobody knew it yet, but Saturday marked the end of a winning streak that will likely remain untouched forever. Chuck Renner, winner of six consecutive Super Senior championships, stretched his match winning streak to an incredible 27 victories to advance
to the final pairing. The final four were determined in the championship division with a unique matchup of two lefties Connor Holland and Chris Swenson to do battle and two righties in Jon Miller and Andrew Passanante. All four players came out of the middle of the qualifying pack: Holland at 35, Swenson 31st, Miller the high seed at 24 and Passanante in at 29th overall.
SUNDAY Championship Sunday brought the most challenging weather of the seven days of play forcing players to adapt to wet conditions under intermittent rain showers to claim victory. Doug Gillam dethroned Renner, snapping the win streak, and became only the third man in the eight years of Super Senior play to win the championship. Dan Ystebo defeated defending Senior champion AJ Greff and snapped Greff’s seven-match winning streak with a 4&3 victory.
Perry Piatz notched his second Mid-Am title (2013) to complete a week where he cruised through match play. He had one close match in the quarters winning one-up, before a 7&5 win in the semis and finishing the championship on hole No. 14 against Michael Melhus. Miller and Swenson put on a show for the members of the gallery willing to watch in the rain coming down to a crazy finish on 18 where Miller found trouble with the cart path by mere inches and Swenson capitalized to win his first Pine to Palm championship.
“There is no streak that runs forever,” — Chuck Renner
THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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| THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018
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THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018 |
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| THE PINE TO PALM GOLF TOURNAMENT — AUGUST 6-12, 2018