Fast Finish nets Kinkopf the Golfweek POY Classic title

DADE CITY, Fla. (January 18, 2019) - Ken Kinkopf (Jupiter, Fla.) birdied the final two holes to overtake Keith Decker (Martinsville, Va.) and win the Golfweek Senior Player of the Year Classic by one shot at Lake Jovita Golf & Country Club. Kinkopf, who earlier this week led the Kingsway Senior Invitational, only to let it slip away in the final round, closed with three birdies on the final five holes after trailing Decker the entire way. Decker was a part of a three-way tie for the first-round lead with Scott Smith (Houston, Texas) and Allen Peake (Macon, Ga.) at 2-under 70. A second-straight 70 gave him a two-shot lead over Kinkopf, whose second-round 69 was the low round of the tournament. With Smith and Peake falling back in round two, the final round became a two-man race between Decker and Kinkopf. Both players made bogey on the first hole, which would turn out to be the only dropped shot for either player the rest of the way. Over the next 12 holes, the two players matched pars to keep Decker two ahead with five to go. But Kinkopf finally broke the streak with a birdie two at the short 14th, and two birdies to finish gave him the win. It was the only time in the 54 holes that Kinkopf took the lead. His closing 70 gave him a three-round total of 4-under 212. After the opening bogey, Decker finished with 17 straight pars for a 73 and a 3-under 213 total. Bob Royak (Alpharetta, Ga.) took third place with a closing 71 to finish five shots behind Kinkopf at 1 over. Smith was fourth at 3 over, with Peake fifth at 5 over. SUPER SENIOR DIVISION George Walker (Fairhope, Ala.) erupted for eight birdies and an eagle en route to a 65 and a three-shot win over Fred Clark (Mobile, Ala.). Starting on the back nine, Walker kickstarted his round with an eagle three at the 11th, then racked up four birdies in a row from the 16th through the 1st. John Armstrong (Frostburg, Md.) was third, five shots back. Second-round leader Ron Eilers (Columbia, Mo.) and Robin Rubrecht (Newburgh, Ind.) rounded out the top five. LEGENDS DIVISION David Rasley (Payson, Ariz.) took a two-shot lead into the final round, the closed with a 73 to hold off Jack Ramsey (Germantown, Tenn.) and Wayne Garder (Mobile, Ala.) by three shots. Rasley's winning total was even-par 216.