Sunnehanna Amateur

source; sunnehanna.com

The 61^st Sunnehanna Amateur Golf Championship will be held June 11^th-14^th at Sunnehanna country Club in Johnstown, PA.  This tournament hold a special place in my heart because it is held in my hometown and on a fabulous A.W.Tillinghast designed golf course.  I have played Sunnehanna Country Club many times in my life going back to my junior golf days and it is still one of my favorite golf courses in the country.  Not only is Sunnehanna a visually stunning property it is always in amazing condition.  So, if you have the chance to play this storied layout I highly recommend you take that opportunity. 

Over the years as I have traveled I have asked people if they ever heard of the Sunnehanna Amateur.  Most people say that they have not.  When I tell them it is one of the top amateur events in the country they are surprised that they have never heard of it.  It may be a well-kept secret but I would like to play a small part in changing that.  Here is a recent fact I found this week on Facebook regarding the Sunnehanna Amateur.  There are only two amateur golf tournaments that Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger woods and Phil Mickelson have played in: the Sunnehanna Amateur and the United States Amateur.  This pretty much proves my point that it is one of the most prestigious amateur golf events in the country.

I had the opportunity to watch Phil Mickelson play in the Sunnehanna Amateur when he was a junior at ASU.  I still remember him hitting his three wood off of the first tee and being amazed at how long he hit the ball.  I also remember him carrying doglegs and hitting shots that I just did not see.  You could tell even back then he was going to be an amazing player in the professional ranks.

Another neat part about attending the Sunnehanna Amateur is walking through the clubhouse.  There are pictures, trophies and memorabilia through the facility and it is really neat to see pictures of the great players who have played in the championship over the years. 

If you want to watch some of the future stars of the PGA tour, on a storied golf course, in a beautiful part of the country, you must attended this event at least once.  I promise you, that you will not be disappointed.  While in the area bring your golf clubs and play some of the great public course nearby.

Please visit their website for more information, www.sunnehanna.com

If you make it to Sunnehanna post your comments, we would love to hear what you think about the property and the championship. 

Sucking it up in a Stroke Play Tournament

I recently tried to qualify for the Pennsylvania State Mid Amateur Championship which is being held later this month in Williamsport, PA.  The Mid AM is for players over the age of 25 and that have a handicap index less than 7.4.  I chose to enter the qualifier this year for three reasons.  First, I prefer to play competitive golf over social golf.  Second, the qualifier was held at Sunnehanna Country Club in my hometown.  Third, I wanted to test my game under pressure to see what I need to work on for the remainder of this year and next.  There is no better way to test your game and nerves than by playing competitive stroke play golf.  Unlike team sports you are out there on your own with no one else to blame and nowhere to hide.

The start of the event was delayed by two hours due to heavy fog.  So, after we warmed up we had a nice long wait before we teed off.   Any time I play stroke play in qualifiers I try and handicap the field to know what I need to shoot to make the cut.  In this case I was thinking 78 or 79 would make the cut and advance to Williamsport.  So, all I had to do is play reasonable well and I would get through.

Well, my plans were altered on the first hole as I had “one of those starts”.  Without reliving the events of the entire hole (in an effort to keep my sanity) lets pick up the action on my fourth shot from the greenside bunker.  The first hole is a par four and yes, I was laying four in the greenside bunker, not good.  The sand conditions at the course that day were heavy and wet due to the morning fog.  So, I tried to pick the ball a little cleaner than normal (hit closer to the ball) and harder since the ball was about sixty feet to the hole.  This is where the terror began, as I bladed the ball over the green, down the hill and into the woods.  I found myself with my ball against a rock, in thick trees on an uphill slope.  After a few whacks in the woods, a poor chip shot and two putts I walked off the green with a double digit score.  It was the highest score I have made on a golf hole since I was eight or ten years old.  Needless to say I was very disappointed and just a little angry at myself.

After that debacle I knew I was going to have to grind to post a respectable score and not embarrass myself any further.  I could have easily threw in the towel and gave up or not posted my score.  However, neither is my style.  So, I buckled down and fought all day to shoot in the mid eighties.  That was certainly not my plan at the start of the round.  However, I was proud of my effort, patience and stick to it ness.  I kept telling myself all day that every one that plays the game competitively has one of “those moments” at some point.

In the end, I hung in there, played my hardest on every shot and never gave up.  It was not my best performance by any means but I am proud of the effort I gave.  In stroke play golf every shot counts so whether you play well or poorly the scorecard does not lie.

What do you do to stay focused and positive in stroke play tournaments?

2011 Sunnehanna Amateur

                                                          source; sunnehanna.com


The 2011 Sunnehanna Amateur begins this week in Johnstown, PA. The Sunnehanna Country Club is a hidden gem in this part of the country. The club opened in 1923 and was originally design by famed architect A.W. Tillinghast. Tillinghast designed many famous golf courses including current US Open Sites; Bethpage Black on Long Island, Baltusrol Golf Club (Lower and Upper Courses), and Winged Foot (East and West Course).

The Sunnehanna Amateur, which has been held annually since the mid 1950s, is one of the Premiere Amateur Golf events in the United States today. However, most people have never heard of the event because it does not get national attention such as the US Amateur or US Public Links Championships, both USGA events. Instead, the Sunnehanna Amateur is an invitational that attracts the top amateurs from around the country. The event is played over three days for 72 holes. The guys play 18, 36, 18 from Friday to Sunday.

I attended the event on several occasions, as Johnstown is my hometown. I had the opportunity to watch Phil Mickelson play there when he was a junior at ASU. Back then he had the flipped-up collar and was much thinner. I remember two things about that round. First, Phil was extremely long as an amateur, using the old Yonex Composite Woods. Second, he carried doglegs and trees that I did not think were humanly possible. In the early 90s, I also had the opportunity to watch Allen Doyle make eagle on the par 4 8th hole. My dad and I had just arrived at the course when we stopped to watch Allen hit his approach. The ball hit pin high, spun left down the hill and into the jar. Allen won the event four times then went on to win on the Champions Tour. Another notable amateur from Pennsylvania that won the event several times was Jay Siegel.

Other winners of the event over the years were Don Cherry, Tommy Aaron, Leonard Thompson, Howard Twitty, Ben Crenshaw, John Cook, Bobby Clampett, Brad Faxon, Scott Verplank, Billy Andrade, Lucas Glover, Web Simpson, and most recently Ricky Fowler who won in back to back years.

In case you are wondering if Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods played in the event, the answer is yes. Other popular players included Fred Couples, Jim Furyk, Hal Sutton, Bob Tway and so on.

If you ever have the chance to watch the Sunnehanna Amateur, I recommend it. If history holds true, you will likely see some future tour winners and major champions. The event is always held in early to mid June. Another interesting thing to do is walk around the historic clubhouse and see all the photos and memorabilia and take in the rich, deep history this special club.

I’ve played the course several times and it’s fantastic. The greens are perfectly manicured and fast, and the course design is challenging. It’s been a few years since I’ve last played there, but I’ll have the chance again in a few weeks when Sunnehanna hosts the qualifier for the Pennsylvania Mid Amateur.

http://www.sunnehanna.com/default.aspx