National Father-Son Invitational returns to CCNC for 51st playing
Doug (L) & Drew Hanzel (CNCC photo)
The Country Club of North Carolina is continuing the storied tradition of the National Father-Son Invitational, with the 51st installment of the event teeing off this week with Championship, Senior, and Super Senior flights.
2012 U.S. Senior Open champion Doug Hanzel and his son Drew, both from Savannah, Georgia are looking to defend their 2019 senior flight title. They are also four-time winners in the Championship flight.
Doug, the 2012 U.S. Senior Amateur champion and two-time low-am at the U.S. Senior Open (2012, 2013), is excited to get back to CCNC to defend.
“It’s phenomenal,” Doug said. “It’s enjoyment for me because I’m playing with my son but it’s as much pressure as I experience all year. The golf courses at CCNC are part of the experience. It’s really enjoyable because they are always in good shape. It’s a great test.”
The four-time AmateurGolf.com Senior Player of the Year and current No. 2 ranked senior is using the tournament as one of his final tune-ups before he heads out west to be a part of the 2020 U.S. Amateur at Bandon Dunes.
The Hanzels are among a list of notable names who have won the event since its inception in 1971. Tom and Tom Kite Jr.; Arthur and Scott Hoch; Rod and Steve Spittle; Kelly and Blair Miller have graced the trophy over the years.
“My Dad passed away a few years ago but I still have the trophies in my study,” said the 1992 U.S. Open champion Kite. “They kind of look like water pitchers not like the trophies of today.”
This year’s event will not have just one but two former U.S Senior Amateur champions in the field. Paul Simson, a 29-time champion of Carolinas Golf Association events including two Carolinas Amateur titles, was a late addition to the field. In 2006 he won the North Carolina Senior Amateur, the added the British Senior Amateur and the North and South Senior title to his resume to vault to No. 2 rank in the US among Senior players. In 2010, Simson won the British Senior Amateur, Canadian Senior Amateur, and the US Senior Am in a span of 55 days.
The three-round event begins July 24 with teams playing best-ball Friday and Saturday. The final round will take place on July 26 when combined score will be the name of the game to help crown three new champions.
Rick and Connor Jones have won two of the last three National Father-Son Championships at CCNC.
ABOUT THE National Father-Son Invitational
54-hole tournament with Championship, Senior and
Super Senior divisions. The first and second rounds
are
Better-Ball of Pair, and the final round is Aggregate
Medal Score. A father may compete with more than
one
son.
The tournament was conceived by Dale Morey, a
CCNC member and a noted amateur player who was
also a basketball All-America at LSU. He won the
U.S. Senior Amateur Championship in 1974 and
1977.
View Complete Tournament Information