Florida Azalea Senior: Rich Buckner wins by one shot

March 10, 2024 | by Justin Golba of AmateurGolf.com

Rich Buckner (Palatka Golf Club Photo)

Buckner held off a late push by No. 4 ranked senior amateur Kevin VandenBerg to secure the victory

Rich Buckner of Hobe Sound, Fla., finished at even par to win the Florida Azalea Senior Amateur Championship at Palatka Golf Club in Palatka, Fla.

Buckner shot rounds of 67-71-72 to finish even par, besting Kevin VandenBerg of Naples, Fla., by one shot. VandenBerg started the day four shots behind Buckner, but a final round 1-under 69 allowed him to move up to the top of the leaderboard. However, Buckner was able to hold him off and win.

VandenBerg is currently ranked No. 4 in the AmateurGolf.com Senior Rankings.

John Bearrie of Marana, Ariz., finished in solo third place, and Robert Bechtol of Tallahassee, Fla., and 2023 champion Matthew Avril of Vero Beach, Fla., finished T4 at 5-over to round out the top five.

In the Super Senior Division, James Starnes of Fort Meyers, Fla., won by four shots, finishing at 1-over after shooting rounds of 70-72-69. David Anthony of Jacksonville, Fla., finished 5-over and four shots back of Starnes.

In the Legends Division, Gregory Osborne of Lititz, Pa., finished 1-under to win by one shot over Bobby Lundquist of Sanford, Fla., who finished in solo second place at even par. Marc Fried of Solo, Ohio finished in solo third place at 1-over.

In the Super Legends Division, Jim Carley of Ormond Beach, Fla., finished 6-over to win by five shots over Pete McDade of Apollo Beach, Fla., who shot 11-over. In the Grand Master Division, Brian Sachs of Newberry, Fla., shot 6-over to win by three shots over Nick Kirkland of Snellville, Ga., who finished 9-over.

Palatka Golf Club was designed by Donald Ross in 1925 and borders the beautiful Ravine State Gardens. The course is only 6000 yards long from the tips, but the small Ross greens and well-placed bunkers will give your game a test. The greens are firm and fast for the tournament.

Results: Florida Azalea Senior

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Rich Buckner	Gainesville, VA	700	67-71-72=210
2	Kevin VandenBerg	Pulaski, NY	400	69-73-69=211
3	John Bearrie	Marana, AZ	300	72-69-72=213
T4	Matthew Avril	Vero Beach, FL	300	67-77-71=215
T4	Robert Bechtol	Tallahassee, FL	300	72-71-72=215

View full results for Florida Azalea Senior

About the Florida Azalea Senior

Florida Azalea Senior: Rich Buckner wins by one shot

54 hole stroke play championship with Senior (ages 55+), Super Senior (ages 64-69), Legends (ages 70- 74) and Super Legends (ages 75+) divisions. Players will be grouped into six flights by handicap. After 36 holes the Championship flight will be cut...