NEW HAVEN, Conn. (Aug. 24, 2010) -- Neither Jim Gentile nor his partner Pete Davison attended Yale University (Gentile went to Univ. of Connecticut, Davison Georgia Tech) but the pair have dozens of rounds under their belts at the magnificent Charles Blair Macdonald layout owned by the University and simply called "The Course at Yale."
The Course at Yale has long been the site of the Connecticut State Golf Association's Four Ball Championship, and 2010 marked the 70th playing of the event.
On Tuesday, Gentile and Davison carded six birdies and a single bogey for a 5 under 65, good for a one stroke victory over the teams of Brian Murphy and J. Wise, and Bill Hermanson and Dave Szewczul (the last name, pronounced "sheh-shul" has long been giving fits to new players but is very well known in the state).
According to Davison, the pair got off to a bit of a rocky start on their first hole, the uphill par four 10th.
"You should see how we played that hole - Jim was in the hazard on the right off the tee and I was down the middle, but plugged my second shot into the side of the hill."
Maybe it was a wake up call, but the duo were nearly flawless from there. But the only problem with starting on No. 10 is that you have to finish on No. 9, one of the toughest par 3's in the state, where the long, narrow green is divided into two sections by a swale so big you can't see the hole when you are putting from it.
The pin was all the way back, and did I mention that it's over water?
Gentile, a commercial insurance broker in West Hartford, hit a solid four iron that nearly rolled up the bank to the top tier but trickled down to the bottom of the swale. Davison, who owns a leasing company, followed with a three iron that settled in the right fringe close to the top of the swale.
Gentile's putt came up 10 feet short, and with Davison left with 3 feet for par, he made the putt and took the pressure off his partner.
Since their tee time was among the first of the day, and a tie would result in a playoff, Gentile and Davison stayed around until the last group came in. A long afternoon, but worth it for two players that competed on the same golf team growing up, West Hartford's Conard High School.
View results for Connecticut Four-Ball
ABOUT THE Connecticut Four-Ball
18-hole four-ball stroke play championship. Combined
Team Handicap may not exceed 12.0.
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