Author: iowagolf

Gaer leads 119th Iowa Amateur, several within striking distance

July 12, 20210 commentsChampionships, Iowa Amateur
Photo courtesy of Guy Cook

Scores were low today during the first round of the 119th Iowa Amateur Championship at Wakonda Club (pictured above). First-round leader, Willis Gaer (right) fired a round of six-under 66 that included a 30-yard hole-out for eagle on the 18th hole. Gaer maintained a bogey-free round at a course that is crowded with them.

Tied for second place heading into round two tomorrow is the recent Iowa Masters champion, Nate McCoy and Sperry’s long-hitting Charles Jahn. McCoy carded a bogey-free 67 and Jahn’s 67 included six total birdies. Setting yourself up during the first round is crucial in this environment, and that is exactly what McCoy and Jahn did. Kyle Yerington sits in fourth place alone following the opening round after posting a 4-under 68 with a 34 split. 

There is a four-way tie at three-under par between Iowa Golf Hall of Famers, Jon Brown and Mike McCoy, and Ross Johnson and Sterling Mcllravy. Mike McCoy, who just finished up at the U.S. Senior Open in Omaha over the weekend, recorded five birdies in his round today. Brown played consistent golf with four birdies. Johnson had four birdies and an eagle to help him get into contention and Mcllravy fired a 69 with a 33 on the back nine. 

The second round of the 119th Iowa Amateur Championship will begin tomorrow morning. Follow the live leaderboard by clicking here. 

119th Iowa Amateur Championship
1. Willis Gaer -6 66
T2. Nate McCoy -5 67
T2. Charles Jahn -5 67
Kyle Yerington -4 68
T5. Jon Brown -3 69
T5. Ross Johnson -3 69
T5. Mike McCoy -3 69
T5. Sterling Mcllravy -3 69

Nate McCoy wins third career Iowa Masters crown

July 11, 20210 commentsNews

After postponing the first round of the Iowa Masters, Veenker Memorial Golf Course was able to move forward. Normally a three-round tournament turned into a two-round championship after storms took over on Friday.

The Iowa Masters committee and Veenker Memorial Golf Course’s staff were able to continue one of Iowa’s most loved championship. Ankeny’s Nate McCoy (left), is now a three-time Iowa Masters Champion after claiming the trophy this weekend at Veenker Memorial Golf Course.

“It feels great,” McCoy said. “I love Veenker and I love the Iowa Masters. I grew up playing Veenker as a young kid when I went to Iowa State Golf Camp and loved it ever since. There have been some great champions over the years so to have my name listed with theirs means a lot.”

With this win, McCoy now has two first place finishes on the season and will cruise into first place in the IGA Player of the Year race over Jon Brown, who finished in third place this weekend, and Connor Peck. McCoy’s confidence continues to grow, and this win will be an extra push for tomorrow’s Iowa Amateur.

“I definitely have a little more confidence going into the Iowa Amateur considering I have a couple extra tournaments under my belt,” McCoy said. “Wakonda will be a blast and I am excited to play.”

Sam Lockhart finished in second place, three shots behind McCoy. Lockhart was just down one shot to four-time Iowa Masters winner, Jon Brown, after round one. Lockhart played well in the final round, but McCoy’s final-round of 68 shot him up the leaderboard to earn the win.

In the Senior Flight, Jay Gregory (right) came back and won after being down three shots going into the final round. Ron Peterson was the solo leader after round one, but had some struggles in the final round. Joe Palmer and Kirk Macumber came racing up the leaderboard, but ultimately fell to Gregory by one shot.

Gregory Lee took the win in the Super Senior Division after firing rounds of 75 and 79 for a two-round total of 154. Lee’s two shot lead after the first round grew into a three-shot win after the final round. Lee went one-under in his last four holes to take the victory.

 

Masters Flight (Championship)
1. Nate McCoy 72-68-140
2. Sam Lockhart 71-72-143
3. Jon Brown 70-74-144
T4. Cole Davis 75-73-148
T4. Tyler Sansgaard 73-75-148

Cyclone Flight
1. Caleb Peters 80-74-154
2. Samuel Vertanen 81-76-157
3. Trenton Sann 80-80-160
4. Collin Tjepkes 81-81-162
T5. Evan Krause 80-85-165
T5. Drake Ellgren 81-84-165

Senior Flight
1. Jay Gregory 73-71-144
T2. Joe Palmer 74-71-145
T2. Kirk Macumber 73-72-145
4. Bob Brooks 76-70-146
5. Dave Gaer 71-76-147

Super Senior Flight
1. Gregory Lee 75-79-154
2. Dick Stuntz 77-80-157
3. Pat Ryan 78-82-160
4. Rick Gorbell 77-84-161

Defending champions repeat at 11th IGA Women’s Four-Ball Championship

July 9, 20210 commentsChampionships, IGA Women's Four-Ball

The 11th IGA Women’s Four-Ball Championship concluded Friday afternoon at Sioux City Country Club in Sioux City. Defending champions, Paige Hoffman and Kylie Carey repeated the same success that they had in 2020. Hoffman and Carey fired rounds of 70 and 73 to claim first place over Fiona Watson and Tish Boothe by three shots.

Watson and Boothe were consistently at the top of the leaderboard for the entirety of the tournament. Two late bogeys in their final round put an end to their run at the Open Division. First timers, Allison and Morgan Nuss, came in third place after rounds of 77 and 75.

For the first time in IGA Four-Ball history, the defending champions in each division won again. Rosalie Kubesheski and Margene Grady fended off Kathy Fortune’s and Laura Leszczynski’s late final round charge. Kubesheski and Grady have now won this event four times together and this is Kubesheski’s fifth total time winning it.

Fortune and Leszczynski shot up the leaderboard in the final round after the team recorded a total of four birdies. The duo carded scores of 78 and 74 and missed a playoff by one shot. Kubesheski finished off a four-footer for par on the 18th hole to close out the tournament. Ila Gilbert and Janis Owens took third place with back-to-back rounds of 77.

Open Division
1. Kylie Carey / Paige Hoffman 70-73-143
2. Fiona Watson / Tish Boothe 71-75-146
3. Allison Nuss / Morgan Nuss 77-75-152

Open Net Division
1. Allison Nuss / Morgan Nuss 70-70-140
T2. Fiona Watson / Tish Boothe 71-76-147
T2. Kylie Carey / Paige Hoffman 72-75-147

Senior Division
1. Margene Grady / Rosalie Kubesheski 76-75-151
2. Kathy Fortune / Laura Leszczynski 78-74-152
3. Ila Gilbert / Janis Owens 77-77-154

Senior Net Division
1. Ila Gilbert / Janis Owens 66-68-134
2. Carroll Dethrow / Janece Schwartzkopf 70-68-138
T3. Jackie Warrick / Shirly Rochelle 64-75-139
T3. Kathy Fortune / Laura Leszczynski 71-68-139

Packed leaderboard at 11th IGA Women’s Four-Ball

July 9, 20210 commentsChampionships, IGA Women's Four-Ball

After the first round of the 11th IGA Women’s Four-Ball hosted by Sioux City Country Club, Kylie Carey and Paige Hoffman are leading the Open Division at 2-under. In the Senior Division, Rosalie Kubesheski and Margene Grady are tied with Jackie Warrick and Shirly Rochelle at the top of the leaderboard.

Fiona Watson and Tish Boothe (Open Division) were the first group off this morning and posted a 1-under 71 to head into the final round in second place. Allison and Morgan Nuss currently sit in third place and are six shots back after carding a 77.

Ila Gilbert and Janis Owens (Senior Division) will play alongside Beth Duenow and Nancy Olberding in tomorrow’s final round after tying for third place. Gilbert and Owens recorded a 77 with a 36 on their front nine and Olberding and Duenow carded a 77 with a 38 on their back nine.

The final round will begin tomorrow with an 8:30 a.m. starting time off the first tee. You can follow our live leaderboard using this link.

Open Division
1. Kylie Carey / Paige Hoffman 70
2. Fiona Watson / Tish Boothe 71
3. Allison Nuss / Morgan Nuss 77

Senior Division
T1. Jackie Warrick / Shirly Rochelle 76
T1. Margene Grady / Rosalie Kubesheski 76
T3. Ila Gilbert / Janis Owens 77
T3. Beth Duenow / Nancy Olberding 77

Three advance to U.S. Amateur from Lake Panorama National Resort

July 7, 20210 commentsNews, USGA, USGA Qualifiers

Harrison Ott (right), of Brookfield, Wisconsin, claimed the medalist honors at U.S. Amateur Qualifying hosted by Lake Panorama National Golf Course in Panora. Ott went low in the first round, firing a 6-under 66 and was able to follow it up with a 5-under 67 in the final round.

“My goal was to get to 10-under par,” Ott said. “I got to 10-under, but then I bogeyed six. I came back and birdied seven and nine to get to 11-under and finished my round. “I thought 10 would do it, but I just had really good speed on my putt on nine and it ended up dropping.”

Ott wasn’t the only player to post a low score today, Cecil Belisle (left) carded a 70 and a 6-under 66 in his final round to earn second place. Belisle, who is from Red Wing, Minnesota, knew he had some work to do to qualify.

“My mom told me I was in a good spot, and she told me to stay focused and that is what I did,” Belisle said. “I said to myself that you have to make at least one more coming in and I ended up making two more.”

The third qualifying spot went to Dennis Bull (right), of Norwalk, who posted rounds of 68 and 70. Bull stayed inside the top-three for the entirety of the day. Bull recorded a birdie on 14 and 17 to take the third-place finish and the last ticket to Oakmont Country Club, site of the 2021 U.S. Amateur.

“It feels really good to qualify for this thing,” Bull said. “I have been playing well, but my putting has been struggling lately. We got off to a good start today by making a 15-footer for birdie on the first hole. My group played amazing today which really pushed me.”

A playoff was needed to decide the first and second alternates. Connor Peck defeated Nate McCoy on the fourth playoff hole to become the first alternate for the U.S. Amateur. Peck made birdie after just missing the green short with his second shot.

U.S. Amateur Qualifier
1. Harrison Ott 66-67 – Medalist
2. Cecil Belisle 70-66 – Qualifier
3. Dennis Bull 68-70 – Qualifier
4. Connor Peck 70-69 – 1st Alternate
5. Nate McCoy 71-68 – 2nd Alternate

Smith wins 10th Iowa Women’s Match Play, defends her crown

July 2, 20210 commentsChampionships, News, Wmn's Match Play

Leanne Smith (pictured above) did it again at the 10th IGA Women’s Match Play Championship at Talons Golf in Ankeny. Smith has now won the last four IGA match play events she has entered (2019, IGA Women’s Match Play, 2020 IGA Women’s Match Play, 2021 Forever 39 Match Play and now the 2021 IGA Women’s Match Play).

“I really enjoy match play,” Smith said. “I know that I am going to mess up some holes and that I can recover on the next hole, so I just take it one hole at a time.”

The journey to back-to-back titles was not easy for Smith. In her earlier matches, she defeated Jolee Belzung, Kelly Grimes and Laura Leszczynski. Smith continued to dominate the competition as she made her way around the course.

Up next after dispatching Leszcynski on Thursday afternooon, Smith had to play two young competitors, Hannah Bermel and Anna Jensen, in her last two remaining matches. Smith was able to save par on the 18th hole to close out the match against Bermel in the morning after a back and forth battle.

“Hannah was so fun to play with and it is fun to watch her, and other players grow into who they are now,” Smith said.

After the match against Bermel, Smith knew would be playing Anna Jensen (right), who was the youngest player in the field (19). Jensen won her match against the No. 1 seed and stroke play medalist, Brooke Newell, and advanced to the final round.

The Smith and Jensen match started to heat up right away after Jensen won the first hole. This showed Smith that Jensen was there to compete, and that was exactly what she did. The two players battled back-and-forth all the way to the 16th hole where Smith made par to seal the victory and win her second straight IGA Women’s Match Play.

“Anna is super talented and will be a tough competitor for a long time and she is great for Iowa golf,” Smith said.

Smith’s match play record continues to grow in a positive manner, as she has added three new trophies to her collection in the last two years. However, her match play record is not the only thing growing as the Iowa Golf Association continues to host more and more talented women golfers.

Next up on the IGA schedule will be the U.S. Amateur Qualifier at Lake Panorama Golf Course in Panora This event will take place on Tuesday, July 6th with the IGA Women’s Four-Ball to follow.

Palmer wins 33rd IGA Match Play title, makes history in the process

July 2, 20210 commentsChampionships, IGA Match Play

Joe Palmer (pictured above) made history this week at the 33rd IGA Match Play at Talons Golf in Ankeny. Palmer became the first player in IGA history to win an IGA Senior Match Play Championship and an IGA Match Play Championship in the same year. Palmer, 58, also became the oldest IGA Match Play winner and the third player in IGA history to win the IGA Match Play more than once (Palmer won back in 2002).

“It is a great feeling (winning both IGA events); this was a terrific field and I got through some pretty good matches, Palmer said. “I played great and drove the ball terrific and that sets up your game and I took it from there.”

At the start of the event, Palmer came out of the stroke play portion as the No. 30 seed. Palmer, who was on the side of the bracket named after the late Jim Hasley, an Iowa Golf Hall of Fame member who passed away earlier this year, was faced with an uphill battle as he faced off against the No. 35 seed Henry Weresh in round one. His next opponent was not an easy test either, Palmer faced the No. 3 seed and two-time IGA Match Play winner, Jon Olson in round two.

“Match play is different,” Palmer said. “You have to play your competitor instead of the golf course at times and I knew this course was going to yield some birdies, so I tried to score when I could, and I took it one match at a time. If you don’t make a lot of bogeys, which has always been a strong point in my game, you start getting up in matches.”

Palmer’s next two opponents were the No. 14 seed, Dennis Bull, and the No 6 seed J.D. Anderson. The key to Palmer’s success was to limit the mistakes, and that is exactly what he did the entirety of the tournament.

On the final day, Palmer was faced with another grinding match against the red-hot Kelly Brown. Brown, who was the No. 39 seed, caught fire and was winning his matches by margins of three, four and six holes. Brown took Palmer to the 21st hole, where Palmer was able to gain the edge off the tee box and ultimately won hole by concession after Brown was unable to find his tee shot and provisional ball in the deep rough.

As the championship match began, Palmer and Nate Vance, who was on the side of the bracket named after the late Jerry Johnson, also an Iowa Golf Hall of Fame member who passed away recently, knew they would be fighting for the trophy. Palmer knew that Vance was going to be longer off the tee, so he stuck to his game plan and that seemed to be enough to earn the victory.

“Vance uses the ground just like PGA Tour golfer, Justin Thomas,” Palmer said. “Vance can hit in places that many people can’t, and I knew that. I just stuck with my game and limited my mistakes.”

Vance played tremendous golf all week long, knocking off players like Willis Gaer, Scott Hart and Scot Cook. Vance’s morning match on the final day against Gaer finished on the 17th hole where Vance made a clutch up-and-down to seal it and head to the final match.

In the final match, Vance (right) and Palmer continued to knock down the flag. As the match came closer to an end, Palmer started to gain the edge over Vance. Heading to the 17th hole, Palmer drove into the fairway and Vance was forced to punch out after hitting his tee shot to the right.

Vance could not make an up-and-down for par, but it wouldn’t have mattered because Palmer made a clutch birdie putt. Standing on the 18th tee box, Vance knew he needed to make something happen, so he pulled out his driver and hit it inside 50 yards.

After a short pitch onto the green, the birdie opportunity Vance had to tie the match and send it to the 19th hole lipped out and the match was over. Palmer made par after hitting yet another green in regulation and was able to two-putt from there. The two competitors shook hands, and the 58-year-old was crowned champion.

Next up on the schedule will be the 36-hole U.S. Amateur Qualifier at Lake Panorama Golf Course in Panora. This event will take place on Tuesday, July 6th with the IGA Women’s Four-Ball to follow.

Semifinal matches set at 10th IGA Women’s Match Play, 33rd IGA Match Play Championship

July 1, 20210 commentsChampionships, IGA Match Play, News, Wmn's Match Play

 

Only four players are left at the IGA Women’s Match Play at Talons Golf in Ankeny. The stroke-play medalist’s chances are still alive in Brooke Newell, who defeated Niki Clayton and Ardrae Parmenter today.

Newell will face off against Anna Jensen who claimed victories over Janece Schwartzkopf and Tabitha Schumacher in the round of 16 and the quarterfinal round. Jensen, the No. 4 seed, had a back-and-forth with Schumacher, but made par on 18 to close out the match.

Defending Champion, Leanne Smith secured wins over Kelly Grimes and Laura Leszczynski today. Smith will have the opportunity to take on University of Northern Iowa’s fifth-year senior, Hannah Bermel. Bermel won her two matches over Renee Buckner and Mikayla Olson.

The final day of the IGA Women’s Match Play Championship will begin tomorrow morning and you will be able to follow live scoring by using this link.

Players Advancing
Brooke Newell
Anna Jensen
Leanne Smith
Hannah Bermel

One day is left remaining at the IGA Match Play at Talons Golf in Ankeny. The round of 16 and quarterfinals concluded this afternoon, and four players remain. Nate Vance, the No. 5 seed, is the highest remaining seed left in the field.

Vance took down Scot Cook this morning and followed it up with a win over Scott Hart in the quarterfinal round. In both matches, Vance was down going into the back nine. He caught fire towards the end of both his matches and claimed two victories.

Willis Gaer will be Vance’s opponent tomorrow, after defeating Bret Taylor and Felipe Pedraza. Gaer, the No. 8 seed, got off to a quick start in both of his matches. This helped Gaer seal two victories and make his way into the semi-final round.

Kelly Brown, the No. 39 seed, will play this year’s Senior Match Play Champion and No. 30 seeded, Joe Palmer. Brown had to play a tough stretch of competitors to make it to the semi-final round. Brown knocked off the defending IGA Match Play Champion, Connor Peck in the round of 16, and followed it up with a win over the red-hot Ben Epperly in the quarterfinals.

Palmer is marching in uncharted territory as he has a chance to win the Senior Match Play and the IGA Match Play in the same season. Palmer defeated the No. 14 seeded Dennis Bull in the round of 16 and then had to face J.D. Anderson in the quarterfinals. Anderson’s last two matches went into extra holes with his match yesterday finishing on the 26th playoff hole.

The final day of the IGA Match Play Championship will begin tomorrow morning and you will be able to follow live scoring by using this link.

Players Advancing
Willis Gaer
Nate Vance
Kelly Brown
Joe Palmer

33rd IGA Match Play, 10th IGA Women’s Match Play continues

June 30, 20210 commentsChampionships, IGA Match Play, News

Day two of the 33rd IGA Match Play at Talons Golf in Ankeny has concluded. During the first day of stroke play qualifying, Wade Pettitt took home the medal after firing a low round of 66 in the stroke play qualifying round. Pettitt earned the No. 1 seed, but fell to the University of Iowa’s, Charles Jahn, 3&2 in the afternoon.

In the second round, the defending champion, Connor Peck, defeated Tyler Sansgaard in a close match (3&2). Peck will have to play Ben Epperly in the third round on Thursday. Epperly took down Nick Pittman on the 19th hole.

IGA Senior Match Play champion, Joe Palmer defeated the No. 3 seed Jon Olson with a 10-footer on the 18th hole. Palmer will move on to play the No. 14 seeded, Dennis Bull. In the second round, Bull defeated Jay Gregory, 4&3.

Later in the second round, Ethan Mechling’s and J.D. Anderson’s match went to 26 holes, which was one of the longest matches in recent history. J.D. Anderson won the match on the eighth hole and will play the No. 11 seeded Nate McCoy tomorrow.

The quarterfinal round will begin tomorrow morning and you will be able to follow live scoring by using this link.

Players Advancing
Charles Jahn
Felipe Pedraza
Willis Gaer
Bret Taylor
Frank Lindwall
Scott Hart
Nate Vance
Scot Cook
Connor Peck
Ben Epperly
Kelly Brown
Ben Pettitt
Joe Palmer
Dennis Bull
J.D. Anderson
Nate McCoy

Sixteen women are headed to day three after completing the first round of the 10th IGA Women’s Match Play. On the first day, Brooke Newell claimed the medalist honors in the stroke play qualifying round. Newell earned the No. 1 seed and won her first match over Marlene Williams and will advance to the second round.

Defending champion and No. 2 seed, Leanne Smith defeated Jolee Belzung, 8&7 and will take on Kelly Grimes in the second round. Grimes won a close match against Granger’s, Taylor Sedivec to earn a spot in the round of 16.

University of Northern Iowa senior, Hannah Bermel made her way into the second round after defeating Morgan Conn. Bermel will play Renee Buckner who won her match over Ila Gilbert after playing the 19th hole.

The second round will begin tomorrow morning and you will be able to follow live scoring by using this link.

Players Advancing
Brooke Newell
Ardrae Parmenter
Rosalie Kubesheski
Niki Clayton
Anna Jensen
Janece Schwartzkopf
Tabitha Schumacher
Jan Sewright
Leanne Smith
Kelly Grimes
Laura Leszczynski
Lydia Steier
Hannah Bermel
Renee Buckner
Mikayla Olson
Kathy Fortune

Pettitt fires 66, Newell posts 75 to earn top seeds

June 29, 20210 commentsChampionships, IGA Match Play, News

Low scores flooded the leaderboard during the stroke play qualifying round of the 33rd IGA Match Play Championship at Talons Golf in Ankeny. Wade Pettitt, of Waukee, earned the medalist honors by one shot after firing a low round of 66 (-6).

Pettitt started his day off with a bogey on the first hole and caught fire after that. Going into his 15th hole, Pettitt made four-straight birdies to jump into the top spot over Ankeny’s, Jon Olson, and Frank Lindwall, of Cedar Rapids.

Olson and Lindwall carded rounds of 67 and Nate Vance took fourth place with a four-under round of 68. J.D. Anderson, Cody Holck, Willis Gaer, Connor Peck, Andrew Huseman and Jon Brown rounded out the top-five with rounds of 69. Peck will be the #2 seed in the match play bracket as the defending champion.

The 64-player cut finished at five-over par (score of 77).

Stroke Play Qualifying
1. Wade Pettitt -6 66
2. Jon Olson -5 67
3. Frank Lindwall -5 67
4. Nate Vance -4 68
T5. J.D. Anderson -3 69
T5. Cody Holck -3 69
T5. Willis Gaer -3 69
T5. Connor Peck -3 69
T5. Jon Brown -3 69
T5. Andrew Huseman -3 69

Anita’s Brooke Newell earned medalist honors at the 10th IGA Women’s Match Play at Talons Golf in Ankeny after posting a round of 75.

Newell recorded a 37 on the front-nine and a 38 on her back-nine to win by one shot over Hannah Bermel, of Cedar Falls.

Bermel carded a four-over round of 76 and finished in second place by one shot over the defending champion, Leanne Smith, of Indianola and Anna Jensen, of Dubuque.

Smith and Jensen recorded rounds of 77 and Tabitha Schumacher, of Pella, earned fifth place honors with a seven-over 79. Smith received the #2 seed into match play as the defending champion.

Stroke Play Qualifying
1. Brooke Newell +3 75
2. Hannah Bermel +4 76
T3. Leanne Smith +5 77
T3. Anna Jensen +5 77
5. Tabitha Schumacher +7 79

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