Loading article...
Loading article...
see also: Southern California Senior Amateur Championship, Alisal Resort - Ranch Course

Rich Tolly surprises himself by prevailing in four-man, three-hole aggregate playoff
LA HABRA HEIGHTS, Calif. (Sept. 18, 2007)--Rich Tolly of Laguna Hills gave himself an early birthday present at Hacienda Golf Club today. One day before his 57th birthday, Tolly won a four-man, three-hole aggregate playoff by two shots to capture the 30th Southern California Golf Association (SCGA) Senior Amateur Championship.
One of those he defeated, first-round leader Robert Carver of Fullerton, captured the SCGA Super Senior Amateur Championship (for golfers age 65 and older) by 10 shots over Robert Wernick of Rancho Mirage.
The 72-year-old Carver, the Hacienda GC club champion, was bidding to become the first person ever to win both events and the oldest to win a SCGA individual title, but ultimately a triple-bogey 8 on the par-5 seventh hole and a double-bogey 7 on the 10th hole left the door open for his challengers. After shooting 1-under-par 70 yesterday, Carver shot 77 today for a 147 total, 5-over-par for the two rounds.
“It just wasn’t meant to be,” Carver said after the playoff.
Tolly, a member at El Niguel CC, also finished at 147 (74-73) and when he signed his scorecard assumed he was out of championship fray.
“I didn’t think I could win,” he said later, ”because there were too many good players in front of me. So, when I found out I was in a playoff, I was stunned.”
That a playoff was needed at all was courtesy of two-time champion Steve Bogan of Placentia, who came to the 416-yard, par-4 finishing hole with a two-shot lead. Bogan left his approach shot short of the green, but still need only to make bogey to secure his third title.
“The last thing I told myself was not to leave it short,” said Bogan later.
He didn’t, powering the chip through the green and into a greenside bunker, then failing to get up and down.
That left Bogan, Carver, Tolly and Jim Seymour of Bakersfield, who also shot 74-73, to battle it out in a three-hole, total-score playoff. Tolly and Seymour both made par 4s on the first playoff hole (the 387-yard ninth), while Bogan and Carver posted bogey 5s. Tolly, Seymour and Bogan all made par 5s on the 17th hole, but Carver’s bogey 6 left him two shots behind.
On the 18th hole, Tolly nailed a six iron-shot 157 yards into the wind, stopping 12 feet from the flagstick. Seymour’s approach shot landed in a greenside bunker and when he flew his explosion shot into a bunker behind the green, the door was open for Tolly, who two-putted for the victory.
“I’m absolutely speechless,” said Tolly afterwards. “I’ve never won anything in my life and to win this event against this quality field is unbelievable. I hit every shot really solid in the playoff and it turned out to be enough.”
Tolly’s 25-year-old son, Ryan, was caddieing and proved to be a critical asset on the 429-yard 14th hole.
“I had about a 15-foot birdie putt,” said Rich Tolly later, “and I read to break right. Ryan said, ‘No way, dad; it’s going to break a ball to the left.’ Good thing I listened to him because it rolled right in the hole.” That was his only birdie on the day; he also had three bogeys and 17 pars (including the playoff holes).
Full results follow, with * denoting Super Senior golfer::
| Name/Hometown | Rd.1 | Rd.2 | Tot. | |
| T1 | Rich Tolly, Laguna Hills, CA | 74 | 73 | 147 |
| T1 | Steve Bogan, Placentia, CA | 74 | 73 | 147 |
| T1 | Robert Carver*, Fullerton, CA | 70 | 77 | 147 |
| T1 | Jim Seymour, Bakersfield, CA | 74 | 73 | 147 |
| T5 | Steve Rhorer, Costa Mesa, CA | 75 | 74 | 149 |
| T5 | Scott Parker, Placentia, CA | 73 | 76 | 149 |
| T5 | Kemp Richardson, Laguna Niguel, CA | 73 | 76 | 149 |
| 8 | Jerry Michals, Carlsbad, CA | 75 | 76 | 151 |
| 9 | Dave Crawford, Camarillo, CA | 76 | 76 | 152 |
| T10 | Warren Caves, Newport Beach, CA | 80 | 73 | 153 |
| T10 | Charley Griswold, Ojai, CA | 80 | 73 | 153 |
| T10 | Gregory Hetzer, San Pedro, CA | 79 | 74 | 153 |
| T10 | Steve Yavorsky, Capistrano Beach, CA | 75 | 78 | 153 |
| T10 | Rick Herrera, Orange, CA | 73 | 80 | 153 |
| T10 | James Myers, Oceanside, CA | 74 | 79 | 153 |
| 16 | Robert Forster, Huntington Beach, CA | 74 | 80 | 154 |
| T17 | Scott Monroe, Julian, CA | 76 | 79 | 155 |
| T17 | Bob Stermon, San Diego, CA | 76 | 79 | 155 |
| T17 | Stephen Friend, Redondo Beach, CA | 74 | 81 | 155 |
| T20 | Jim Krusen, San Diego, CA | 80 | 76 | 156 |
| T20 | Jim Lovell, Yorba Linda, CA | 79 | 77 | 156 |
| T20 | Karl Stewart, Hemet, CA | 78 | 78 | 156 |
| T20 | Donald Ludwig, San Diego, CA | 77 | 79 | 156 |
| T24 | Jim Saivar, San Diego, CA | 81 | 76 | 157 |
| T24 | Robert Wernick*, Rancho Mirage, CA | 82 | 75 | 157 |
| T24 | Paul Shimoff , Redlands, CA | 78 | 79 | 157 |
| T27 | Michael Uptegraff, Irvine, CA | 81 | 77 | 158 |
| T27 | Richard Oh, Chino Hills, CA | 78 | 80 | 158 |
| T27 | Patrick Rohan, San Diego, CA | 78 | 80 | 158 |
| T30 | Peter Daley*, Newport Beach, CA | 80 | 79 | 159 |
| T30 | Bob Jordan, La Habra, CA | 78 | 81 | 159 |
| T30 | Mas Matsumoto*, Monterey Park, CA | 78 | 81 | 159 |
| T33 | Randy Blackman, Glendora, CA | 81 | 79 | 160 |
| T33 | Robert Latiano, Carlsbad, CA | 80 | 80 | 160 |
| T33 | Chip Bridges, Encinitas, CA | 80 | 80 | 160 |
| T33 | Steven Hakes, San Diego, CA | 76 | 84 | 160 |
| T33 | Frank Merhar*, La Jolla, CA | 87 | 73 | 160 |
| T38 | James R. Haxton, Santa Ana, CA | 81 | 80 | 161 |
| T38 | Tony Reboton, Palm Desert, CA | 81 | 80 | 161 |
| T38 | Thomas Hofman, Sierra Madre, CA | 82 | 79 | 161 |
| T38 | Rene Grivel, San Juan Capistrano, CA | 85 | 76 | 161 |
| T38 | George Hunter, Agoura Hills | 76 | 85 | 161 |
| T38 | Larry Grant, Westminster, CA | 87 | 74 | 161 |
| T44 | Allen Belknap, Alta Loma, CA | 85 | 77 | 162 |
| T44 | Beau Miller, Los Angeles, CA | 85 | 77 | 162 |
| T46 | Jack Rector, Thousand Oaks, CA | 81 | 82 | 163 |
| T46 | Donald Garczewski, Carlsbad, CA | 84 | 79 | 163 |
| T46 | Michael Hogan, Oxnard, CA | 80 | 83 | 163 |
| T46 | Stephen Shuchter, San Diego, CA | 85 | 78 | 163 |
| T46 | Don Baker, Woodland Hills, CA | 85 | 78 | 163 |
| T46 | William Cvengros, San Juan Capistrano, CA | 85 | 78 | 163 |
| T52 | Lee Anson, Escondido, CA | 82 | 82 | 164 |
| T52 | Ralph Rubenstein*, La Quinta, CA | 84 | 80 | 164 |
| T52 | Lloyd Sappington*, Ranch Santa Fe, CA | 83 | 81 | 164 |
| T55 | Ray Vanyo*, Banning, CA | 84 | 81 | 165 |
| T55 | John Donnelly, San Diego, CA | 85 | 80 | 165 |
| T57 | Mike Wilcock, Irvine, CA | 80 | 86 | 166 |
| T57 | Bill Cunerty, Mission Viejo, CA | 80 | 86 | 166 |
| T57 | Tom Eastlack*, Prescott, AZ | 83 | 83 | 166 |
| T57 | Barry Glaser, Upland, CA | 80 | 86 | 166 |
| T57 | Jim Miller*, Carlsbad, CA | 84 | 82 | 166 |
| T57 | Douglas Swinehart, Pauma Valley, CA | 84 | 82 | 166 |
| T63 | Ken Krieger*, La Quinta, CA | 82 | 85 | 167 |
| T63 | Dick Logan*, San Diego, CA | 83 | 84 | 167 |
| T63 | John Paige, La Jolla, CA | 83 | 84 | 167 |
| 66 | Bill Clemo*, Ventura, CA | 83 | 85 | 168 |
| T67 | Robert Vales*, Cardiff, CA | 82 | 87 | 169 |
| T67 | Avio Piombetti, Encino, CA | 88 | 81 | 169 |
| T69 | Howard Paulson*, Yorba Linda, CA | 85 | 85 | 170 |
| T69 | Herbert Young*, Los Angeles, CA | 85 | 85 | 170 |
| T69 | David Hamdorf, San Clemente, CA | 87 | 83 | 170 |
| T69 | Douglas Tambara, Huntington Beach, CA | 87 | 83 | 170 |
| T73 | Steve Wilson*, Solana Beach, CA | 83 | 88 | 171 |
| T73 | Philip Lawler, Lake Forest, CA | 85 | 86 | 171 |
| T73 | Bill Brooks* , Simi Valley, CA | 87 | 84 | 171 |
| T73 | Patrick Russell, Camarillo, CA | 93 | 78 | 171 |
| T77 | Stephen Grubman, North Hollywood, CA | 85 | 87 | 172 |
| T77 | Bob Claydon, Aliso Viejo, CA | 86 | 86 | 172 |
| 79 | James Hopkins, West Hills, CA | 87 | 86 | 173 |
| 80 | Bruce Short, Palos Verdes Estates, CA | 85 | 90 | 175 |
| 81 | Jerome Napier*, Venice, CA | 92 | 85 | 177 |
| 82 | Tom McCutcheon*, Cypress, CA | 85 | 94 | 179 |
| 83 | Bob Warburton*, Bermuda Dunes, CA | 91 | 90 | 181 |
Story by Robert D. Thomas, SCGA

This event is open to members with handicap indexes of 9.4 and below and are age 55 and above. Competitors compete in 18 holes of qualifying play in order to reach the final field of 84 players. In the championship, players compete over 54 holes of s...
Masters: Memorable performances by amateurs in the last 40 years
Apr 2, 2026A Mid-Amateur legend and a 14 year old have won low-amateur honors at Augusta National over the years
Meet the Amateurs in the 2026 Masters: Six Different Paths to Augusta National
Mar 22, 2026From teenage phenoms to seasoned dreamers, the amateur class at the 2026 Masters brings six compelling stories to Augusta
FINAL RESULTS: 2026 Junior Invitational at Sage Valley
Mar 14, 2026Miles Russell surged with a closing 67 to reclaim the boys title while Asterisk Talley dominated the girls division at Sage Valley
San Francisco City Championship: Champions Crowned
Mar 22, 2026Joey Hayden, Gianna Singh, Bob Niger, and Jeff Thomas capped championship week with title-winning performances at Harding Park.
Gary Woodland Wins Houston Open in Emotional Comeback After Brain Surgery
Mar 30, 2026Gary Woodland’s Houston Open win is a reminder of why perseverance matters in golf