Knecht opens 2019 with Old Corkscrew Senior title
1/6/2019 | by AmateurGolf.com Staff
see also: View results for Old Corkscrew Senior, Old Corkscrew Golf Club
It took extra holes, but Mark Knecht is the first senior amateur champion of 2019
ESTERO, Fla. (Jan. 6, 2018) – The first senior amateur title of 2019 went to Mark Knecht after the 56-year-old defeated Owen Joyner in a playoff at the Old Corkscrew Senior. Both men finished 54 holes at Old Corkscrew Golf Club with a 10-over total, but Knecht prevailed in extra holes.
Knecht, a Paducah, Ky., resident, opened with back-to-back rounds of 74 but a final-round 78 allowed the field to catch up to him. Still, Knecht’s good play stretches back to the end of 2018, when he won the Senior Azalea Invitational in September and followed that with top-4 finishes at the Golfweek Senior Tournament of Champions and Ralph Bogart Tournament in November and December.
As for runner-up Joyner, rounds of 76-73-77 got him to 10 over. At the start of January 2018, Joyner won the Gateway Senior Invitational wire-to-wire. The last time he played the Old Corkscrew event, in 2017, he was runner-up.
Emile Vaughan had consistent rounds of 77-76-76 for a 13-over total that left him solo third. Leon Roday was a shot behind that in fourth. First-round leader Jonathan Valuck shared fifth with Kip Estep at 15 over.
In the super senior division, Pete Allen jumped to the first-round lead with a 73, then used closing rounds of 78 for a two-shot victory. Allen hails from Southport, N.C. Runner-up James Castagna, of Sandy Spring, Md., spent the week on Allen’s heels with rounds of 74-78-79 but couldn’t quite overtake him.
John Blank won the legends division at 10 over. He and Bill Engel, who finished runner-up a shot back, went toe to toe all week but Blank got the edge thanks to a final-round 77.
ROUND 2
Mark Knecht drew on consistency Saturday to take over the lead in the Old Corkscrew Senior Championship. Knecht, who ended 2018 with two top-5 finishes in senior events, threw out back-to-back rounds of 74 to gain a one-shot advantage entering Sunday’s final round.
Knecht started the day two shots behind first-round leader Jonathan Valuck, but had the second-best second-round score. Owen Joyner, in second, had the best score of the day: a 73 that bumped him from fifth to second.
Leon Roday is third at 7 over after rounds of 75-76. Emile Vaughan is another two shots back in fourth.
First-round leader Valuck is part of a four-man tie for fifth at 11 over, seven off the lead.
In the super senior division, Pete Allen had rounds of 73-78 to reach 7 over and take a one-shot lead on James Castagna.
Bill Engel leads the legends division with a 3-over total. He has a two-shot advantage on John Blank.
ROUND 1
In his 2019 debut, Jonathan Valuck picked up right where he left off last year. The Oklahoma City resident won the SOS Founders Cup in November, and now has the first-round lead in the Old Corkscrew Senior.
Valuck opened with 72 at Old Corkscrew Golf Club, which gave him a two-shot advantage on pursuers Mark Knecht and Harold Payne, who both had 74.
Knecht, of Paducah, Ky., won the Senior Azalea Invitational in 2018. Payne, of Hurrance, W.Va., didn’t get a major senior victory in 2018. He was in the top 10 at last year’s Senior Corkscrew, however.
Leon Roday is solo fourth with 75 while three players tied for fifth with rounds of 76: Mike Arnold, Steve Groom and Owen Joyner.
Knecht, a Paducah, Ky., resident, opened with back-to-back rounds of 74 but a final-round 78 allowed the field to catch up to him. Still, Knecht’s good play stretches back to the end of 2018, when he won the Senior Azalea Invitational in September and followed that with top-4 finishes at the Golfweek Senior Tournament of Champions and Ralph Bogart Tournament in November and December.
As for runner-up Joyner, rounds of 76-73-77 got him to 10 over. At the start of January 2018, Joyner won the Gateway Senior Invitational wire-to-wire. The last time he played the Old Corkscrew event, in 2017, he was runner-up.
Emile Vaughan had consistent rounds of 77-76-76 for a 13-over total that left him solo third. Leon Roday was a shot behind that in fourth. First-round leader Jonathan Valuck shared fifth with Kip Estep at 15 over.
In the super senior division, Pete Allen jumped to the first-round lead with a 73, then used closing rounds of 78 for a two-shot victory. Allen hails from Southport, N.C. Runner-up James Castagna, of Sandy Spring, Md., spent the week on Allen’s heels with rounds of 74-78-79 but couldn’t quite overtake him.
John Blank won the legends division at 10 over. He and Bill Engel, who finished runner-up a shot back, went toe to toe all week but Blank got the edge thanks to a final-round 77.
ROUND 2
Mark Knecht drew on consistency Saturday to take over the lead in the Old Corkscrew Senior Championship. Knecht, who ended 2018 with two top-5 finishes in senior events, threw out back-to-back rounds of 74 to gain a one-shot advantage entering Sunday’s final round.
Knecht started the day two shots behind first-round leader Jonathan Valuck, but had the second-best second-round score. Owen Joyner, in second, had the best score of the day: a 73 that bumped him from fifth to second.
Leon Roday is third at 7 over after rounds of 75-76. Emile Vaughan is another two shots back in fourth.
First-round leader Valuck is part of a four-man tie for fifth at 11 over, seven off the lead.
In the super senior division, Pete Allen had rounds of 73-78 to reach 7 over and take a one-shot lead on James Castagna.
Bill Engel leads the legends division with a 3-over total. He has a two-shot advantage on John Blank.
ROUND 1
In his 2019 debut, Jonathan Valuck picked up right where he left off last year. The Oklahoma City resident won the SOS Founders Cup in November, and now has the first-round lead in the Old Corkscrew Senior.
Valuck opened with 72 at Old Corkscrew Golf Club, which gave him a two-shot advantage on pursuers Mark Knecht and Harold Payne, who both had 74.
Leon Roday is solo fourth with 75 while three players tied for fifth with rounds of 76: Mike Arnold, Steve Groom and Owen Joyner.
Results: Old Corkscrew Senior
| Place | Player | Location | Pts | Scores |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paducah, KY | 700 | 74-74-78=226 | |
| 2 | Bonita Springs, FL | 400 | 76-73-77=226 | |
| 3 | Montgomery, AL | 300 | 77-76-76=229 | |
| 4 | Henrico, VA | 300 | 75-76-79=230 | |
| T5 | Rockwall, TX | 300 | 78-79-74=231 |
About the Old Corkscrew Senior
Opening "major" event of the Senior season which earns players points in the Golfweek and AmateurGolf.com senior rankings. The event is a 54 hole individual stroke play tournament for amateurs fifty-five years and over. The tournament includes a Seni...
Most Popular Articles
2025 PGA TOUR Q-School Guide: Sites, Scores, and Who Advanced
Dec 5, 2025Second Stage is complete and Final Stage awaits at Sawgrass — follow every Q-School leaderboard and the players still chasing
2025 LPGA TOUR Q-Series: Final Qualifying Stage FINAL SCORING
Dec 8, 2025Helen Briem earns medalist honors, 31 players headed to the LPGA next year
2025 PGA TOUR Q-School Final Stage: Ewart Leads Five New TOUR Card Winners
Dec 14, 2025A.J. Ewart topped Final Stage at TPC Sawgrass, leading five players who secured PGA TOUR membership for 2026.
Australian Open at Royal Melbourne: Preview, amateur bios, and how to watch
Nov 30, 2025Rory McIlroy headlines one of the championship's top fields in years - at least four amateurs will have their chance at glory
Inside Gil Hanse’s Restoration of Baltusrol’s Upper Course: A Return to Tillinghast’s
Dec 11, 2025Renowned architect Gil Hanse reveals how he brought Baltusrol’s Upper Course back to life by honoring A.W. Tillinghast’s original