2019 USCA Seniors Masters Championships November 20-24, 2019 | National Croquet Center | West Palm Beach, Florida
Singles Titles for Sheely, Sullivan at Seniors Masters
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lways one of the largest and most enjoyable events on the USCA calendar, this year’s Seniors Masters lived up to all expectations. Held over the span of five days, 10 courts were utilized to host the 80 enthusiastic competitors. The weather was amiable throughout and a standard blockto-ladder format was in use. Matches were timed at 75 minutes, the courts were in fine shape and play ran smoothly throughout. While singles action, except for the Second Flight, divided participants into Senior (6069) and Masters (70 and above) divisions, the three flights of doubles combined players of all ages. In the Second Flight, John Grabow and David Kepner took a victory lap after a well-played victory over Lovejoy Duryea and Sally McGrath, both teams having finished with 4-1 records after Block play. First Flight ended with a minor upset when local favorites Larry McDermott and Dick Scherf overcame the previously undefeated duo of Steven Grassbaugh and John Schoo. Lastly, within the Championship Flight, no one chose to make wagers as the pre-tournament top two seeds faced off in the Finals. When a late charge from Randy Cardo and Bob Chilton failed, Matt Griffith and Rick Sheely went home with top honors. In the combined Second Flight Singles, Christine Smith found her groove and, after having been seeded seventh after Block play, won her three playoff matches by a total of four points. She eventually outdueled Terry Cassidy in the 14-13 Final. Yen Sullivan, improving with lightening speed, captured
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Randy Cardo
the First Flight Seniors over the struggling but resilient Jeff Morrison. Meanwhile, within the First Flight Masters division, Ted Thelin looked much the best with a deliberate 18-5 victory over Bill Sadowski. The entertaining Championship Seniors Singles Final found bubbly Jodie Rugart, having already defeated Randy Cardo and Matt Griffith, facing off against the steady Rick Sheely. In his methodical fashion, Sheely backed up his 2017 victory by capturing this year’s title, a nice bookend to match his Doubles success. Dick Sullivan, in the Masters portion of the Flight, also found an enthusiastic opponent, Ken Scoggins, in the Finals.
And, again, slow and deliberate tactics prevailed, Sullivan joining his wife as a 2019 Singles winner. Larry McDermott was honored as the “Grand-Master” for displaying the best performance by a player above the age of 80. The Seniors Masters, as always, brought with it a great sense of camaraderie throughout. Play was competitive, but the social affairs may have been the most enjoyable portion of the tournament. Thanks go out to the USCA staff for the hard work and to Sandy James for the wonderful food and festivities. I am certain everyone is already looking for next year’s event!
