2018 Yearbook

26 IGA Senior Match Play Amana Colonies GC, Amana May 31 – June 2 Joe Palmer of West Des Moines won his third IGA Senior Match Play Championship at Amana Colonies Golf Club in early June. Palmer, champion in 2013 & 2015, defeated Tom Norton of Muscatine 5 & 4 in the final match. It was the second straight year Norton has finished as runner-up. Palmer was dominant in his path to the championship. He fired a stroke play qualifying score of 75 to secure the #6 seed in the 32-per- son bracket and he never had to play past the 16th hole in any of his matches. His closest match was a 4 & 2 win over Brad Walkup, of Des Moines, in round two. Norton’s road to the final match was similarly impressive, as he seemed to relish closing things out on the 16th hole. Beginning in round two, he defeated Rob Dickerman, of Marion, 4 & 2, Todd Hingtgen 3 & 2 and Bret Taylor, of Booneville, 4 & 2. Hingtgen, of Marion, was the #1 seed after a qualifying score of even par 72, while Norton posted a 77 and was the #9 seed. 2018 was the first year the IGA ran a separate bracket for Super Senior players (age 65+) and Rob Christensen, of Marshalltown, would come out on top. The win gave the 2017 IGA Super Senior Player of the Year a nice boost in his bid to repeat, which he would eventually accomplish. Christensen secured the win on the 16th hole by a 4 & 2 margin over Muscatine resident John Peters. He came into the match play portion of the championship as the #5 seed, following a qualifying score of 78. Pe- ters was the #3 seed after he posted a 75, while the #1 seed was claimed by Marion’s Steve Kahler, who shot a 1-under par 71. Kahler made it all the way to the semifinals before bowing out to Christensen in a match that wasn’t decided until the 19th hole. The other semifinal match between Peters and Jim Butler, of Fort Madison, was tight as well, with Peters prevailing 1 up on the 18th hole. Stroke Play Qualifying Open 1 2 T3 T3 T5 T5 T7 T7 T7 1 T2 T2 4 5 T6 T6 T6 T6 Todd Hingtgen Terry Cook Jon Brown Ron Peterson James B. Patterson Joe Palmer Mark Greve Tom Norton Robert Dickerman E +1 +2 +2 +3 +3 +5 +5 +5 Steve Kahler John Peters Jim Butler Wes Hogeland Rob Christensen David Studer Terry Porter Randy Studer Dave Sergeant Super Senior -1 +3 +3 +4 +6 +7 +7 +7 +7 Palmer rolls to third Senior Match Play Title Super Senior Champion Rob Christensen Champion Joe Palmer Par-72