The annual event, pitting the finest amateurs against the best professionals as determined through a qualifying points’ system, went to the NCGA in both the regular (Hanna-Wehrman Cup) and senior (Staedler-Jetter Cup) matches.

In the Hanna-Wehrman Cup, the amateurs began the final day’s singles’ matches with a 6-4 advantage. Taking any mystery out of the event, the first six amateurs took home a full point for a win, clinching the cup by a 13-7 margin. Jeff Burda’s 4 & 3 defeat of Dennis Tuhn proved to be the clincher for the amateur team. The Olympic Club’s Randy Haag, Steven Chung of Teal Bend and Andrew Bowdish of Stevinson Ranch all won their singles’ matches taking home 2.5 out of a possible 3 points for the event.

“A pretty solid last day,” amateur team captain and NCGA President Mark House said. “Winning those first six matches set the tone. I think our amateurs are playing awfully well right now.”

The NCGA seniors have now held the Staedler-Jetter Cup for eight consecutive years. Their commanding 18.5 – 9.5 victory is testament to the depth of quality of amateurs in Northern California in their age group.

“Even though they have the age advantage (professionals can compete as seniors at age 50 to the amateurs’ 55), we have more time,” amateur Rob Thompson of Merced said alluding to the retired status of many players on the amateur team. “We play a lot of events together.”

That togetherness propelled the amateurs to a 7-point lead before today’s final matches began. It was then only a matter of time before Brentwood’s Bob Olds clinched the cup in the eighth senior match of the day.

Thompson, Ronnie Wiley of Mariners Point, Bill Bowen of Lincoln Hills and Doug Johnson of Fig Garden all captured a perfect 3 out of a possible 3 points for the winning senior amateur team.

Despite the amateur’s back-to-back victories, the NCPGA still clings to the overall lead in the Hanna-Wehrman Cup series 17-16-8 while the NCGA seniors lead the Staedler-Jetter Cup series 11-4-1. The last professional win in the Hanna-Wehrman Cup came in 2004 while the senior professionals last captured the Staedler-Jetter Cup in 1999.

--Story courtesy NCGA

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