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
