Moore and Stoltz are Merit Amateur Champions

LIBERTYVILLE, IL (September 7, 2017) - Pat Moore and Drew Stoltz of Scottsdale, AZ posted a total of 17 points in the Team Stableford format to win the 15th Merit Amateur by 9 points at The Merit Club.

The tournament featured 27 holes of play each day: 18 holes of best-ball Stableford, and nine holes of aggregate Stableford.

"It was in the aggregate that we did really well," Stoltz told John Steinbreder of Global Golf Post. "There were no big numbers. Pat played solid golf and I tried not to make too many mistakes."

Two teams shared runner-up honors: Mike Affeldt (Chicago, IL) and Chris Sekella (Naperville, IL), along with Steve Sawtell (Northfield, IL) and Michael Natale (Burr Ridge, IL).

In the Senior Division, it was a blowout win for the Vernasco brothers, John (Libertyville, IL) and Steve (Fort Wayne, IN). Their 54-hole total was an astounding 42 points, 22 points ahead of the second-place team, Lee (Geneva, IL) and Reed Kolquist (Hermantown, MN).

It was the first tournament the Vernascos had won together, and the first tournament of any kind that younger brother John had ever won.