VSGA Four-Ball Local Qualifying Complete
April 28, 2016
Local Qualifying for the VSGA regular and senior Four-Ball Stroke Play championships were conducted at Raspberry Falls GC April 19 and Laurel Hill GC April 27. Josh Riggleman and Tag Corrigan led the regular qualifying at Raspberry Falls with six-under 66. Three teams tied at 67 with nine teams qualifying for the championship to be held locally at River Bend next week, May 6-7. The teams of Rich Buckner-Andy Heye and Art Locke-Jeff Hunter were the low in the senior qualifying, also with 66. Nine teams advanced for the senior championship which will be held May 23-24 at Williamsburg GC.
At Laurel Hill, Lane Kite and Alex Karkeek were low in the regular qualifier by three shots with a 7-under 64, where nine spots were available. The teams of John Steele-Tim Krouse and Randall Newsome-Joe Johnson tied for the low round in the senior qualifier with six-under 65, where seven teams advanced. For complete results, see www.VSGA.org
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Raspberry Falls Captures First A-Team Title
April 18, 2016
Six of the players on the current Raspberry Falls roster recalled playing in the club’s first A-Team match over a decade ago, losing 18-0. A few years ago the “”A-Team” became a focus as they added more talent and established an environment with their weekend game that promoted team chemistry, all of which came together this year. Playing in their first A-Team finals against seven-time champion Army Navy, Raspberry Falls won 7 points at home, then waited for the away matches at Army Navy to conclude, where the tee times were 45 minutes later. Front nine wins by the teams of Francesco Romano-Scott Hoover and Mark Rallas-Mark Vandegrift sealed a tie. Each team would go on to sweep all 3 points, leading to a 13.5 to 4.5 victory and their first title. The teams of PGA professional Patrick McGuire-Andrew Brenneman and Mark Fegani-Brandon Burns each secured 2.5 points at home, while Tom Brouse-Greg Brouse won 2. Mike Bieler-Don Hollis – won a half a point away, but it was the deciding half point. PGA Professional Tyler Tucker and Fred Widicus won 2.5 points for Army Navy at home. (For complete results see the A-Team page).
The Northern Sections expresses sincere thanks to Tim Krouse, retiring A-Team chairman, for his many years of dedicated effort in running this championship. Organizer, weather-monitor, Monday morning score chaser, problem solver, and all-around nice guy, Tim has put in many hours each season to build this championship to the success it has become. Is it ironic – or fitting – that he passes the chairmanship over to Mark Vandegrift, who happened to be on the winning team this year? Maybe its just good karma.
Playoffs
Pictured: Raspberry Falls winning team memebrs (and some future team members): Brandon Burns, Greg Brouse, Scott Hoover, Tom Brouse, Mark Vandegrift, Mark Rallas, Patrick McGuire, Willy Lutz, Don Hollis, Francesco Romano, Mark Fegani, Gus Kearney, Andrew Brenneman, Geoff Timmer. Not pictured: Mike Bieler, Duncan Puller, Jeff Kritsberg, Darrin Curtis
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Raspberry Falls vs. Army Navy in Finals Sunday
April 16, 2016
Raspberry Falls GC defeated defending champion The Piedmont Club 9.5 to 8.5 in today’s A-Team semifinal match, sending them totheir first final – looking for their first title. In the other semifinal match, Army Navy CC defeated the number one seed, 2013 champion Springfield CC, 11-7, sending them to their twelfth final and a chance for their eighth title. Raspberry Falls will be the designated home team based upon their seeding in Sunday’s final match.
Playoffs
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Four of Top Five Seeds Advance to Semifinals in A-Team
April 10, 2016
Spingfield defeated Belle Haven and Raspberry Falls defeated Hidden Creek by the identical scores of 13.5 to 4.5 in today’s quarterfinal matches. Top seeded Springfield will next face the fifth seed, Army Navy, in next Saturday’s semifinals, with second-seed Raspberry Falls going against defending champion Piedmont. Piedmont ousted International 10.5 to 7.5 in today’s matches, while Army Navy edged Fauquier Springs 10 to 8.
Playoffs
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Hill/Pool Win Licklider Four-Ball – Harwick/Steele, Storck/Dilli Tie for Seniors
April 9, 2016
Brian Hill and Jason Pool repeated as winners of the Curly Licklider Memorial Four-Ball Championship yesterday with a five-under par 67 at the Winchester CC. While the Northern Virginia A-Team matches traditionally kick-off the area golf season, the Curly Licklider event is the unofficial opener for the area tournament schedule each year. The Hill/Pool 67 was three shots clear of Josh Riggleman and Tag Corrigan who finished first in the Regular Division. Three teams tied for second with 71. Defending champions Larry Stock and Tom Dilli were co-champions this year in the Senior Division, with 2103 Northern Virginia Senior Four-Ball champions Bob Harwick and John Steele, both teams shooting two-under par 70. They edged defending NoVA Senior Four-Ball champions Eddie Walker and Tim Vigotsky by one shot. Brian Bates aced the fourth hole.
Results
Pictured (L to R): Hill, Terry Licklider, Pool
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A-Team Playoffs Set Update – Schedule Revised
April 8, 2016
Update – The playoffs will now start on Sunday, April 10
All seven Divisions had an undefeated team which advanced to next weekend’s playoffs, with Belle Haven capturing the wild card slot after a close loss Sunday to International 9.5 to 8.5. Belle Haven, the 2014 champion will face the number one seed, 2013 champion Springfield, whose closest match was six points. International will face off against defending champion Piedmont. Raspberry Falls is the #2 seed, and will face Hidden Creek. The final matchup in Saturday’s quarterfinals has Fauquier Springs playing Army Navy. The semifinals are scheduled for next Sunday followed by the finals on Saturday, April 16. If your web page is showing any “Updated” date prior to April 4, please hit Ctrl-F5 to refresh the page (applies to all results/Standings page). A-Team Results
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A-Team Matches Get Off to Flaky Start – Weather Plays Havoc with Schedule
March 22, 2016
The picture kinda says it all for the opening weekend of the Northern Virginia A-Team matches. Conditions at Winchester resulted in their match with Loudoun being suspended, with the last group still having to play the final three holes and the overall match deadlocked. In all, scores were received from 14 of the 20 matches scheduled with defending champion Piedmont winning big on Saturday 17.5 to .5 over Dominion Valley. Other winners were Raspberry Falls (twice), International, Springfield (twice), Augustine, South Riding, Army Navy (twice), Evergreen, Fauquier Springs, Chantilly and Hidden Creek.Please send those results to all of the contacts listed in the instructions from the A-Team Coordinator. A-Team Results
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Northern Virginia Championship Schedule Announced – First-Time Venues for All Events
March 7, 2016
The 2016 Northern Virginia Championships will be hosted in three of the four Northern Sections, with the Northern Virginia Senior Amateur kicking off the championship schedule in the Northern East section by making its first visit to the Laurel Hill GC in Lorton. Laurel Hill, the site of the 2013 US Amateur Public Links and 2007 Northern Virginia Amateur, will host the Senior Amateur on June 27-28. Harry Thomas (Washington GCC) is the defending champion. The schedule then moves to the Fredericksburg section where Fauquier Springs CC, in Warrenton, will host the Northern Virginia Amateur on July 8-10. Hosts of two previous Four-Ball championships, this will be Fauquier Springs’ first time as the site for the Amateur. Ryan Douglas (The River Creek Club) is the defending champion. The Northern Central section hosts the final two championships, with the International CC, in Fairfax, first hosting the Northern Virginia Senior Four-Ball on August 1, followed by the Belmont CC, in Ashburn, hosting the regular Four-Ball on August 12 and 14. This will be the seventh championship hosted by International, but the first since the 2002 regular Four-Ball. Tim Vigotsky (Robert Trent Jones Club) and Eddie Walker (Laurel Hill) are the defending senior Four-Ball champions. Belmont was the site of the 2012 Senior Amateur and 2008 Potomac Challenge, but this will be the first time hosting the regular Four-Ball. Westwood’s Rick Pell and Evergreen’s Scott Shingler are the defending Four-Ball champions.
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A-Team Schedule Posted – Record Field Begins Matches on March 19
March 5, 2016
The 2016 Northern Virginia A-Team matches begin two weeks from today with a record 30 teams entered, including newcomer Creighton Farms and the return of Montclair after a lengthy absence. Several questions await to be answered during the five-week duration of the annual competition – Will defending champion Piedmont be the first to repeat since the River Creek Club won back-to-back in 2004-2005 – or will another club continue the string of non-consecutive winners for the 10th straight year? Will either Chantilly National or Army Navy win for the eighth time, breaking their tie for the most A-Team titles since the event began in 1971? Will the weather be the cold and snow of yesterday or the 70 degrees forecast 3 days from now – or a combination of both? In any event, over 360 area golfers will brave all conditions to kick off the 2016 Northern Virginia golf season on March 19-20 with a full slate of matches, including defending champion Piedmont playing Dominion Valley. For the full schedule see the “A-Team” tab above.
Division play is scheduled for March 19, 20, 26, April 2, and 3. Assuming no weather postponements, the playoffs are scheduled for April 9 (quarterfinals), April 10 (semifinals) and April 16 (finals). Tim Krouse, longtime Northern Virginia A-Team Coordinator, has announced that this will be his final year in that role. Mark Vandergrift, the new Northern Virginia Tournament Director, will join the A-Team committee this year and assume the duties as the A-Team Coordinator in 2017. The competition is open to all clubs in the VSGA Northern Sections (Northern Virginia East-Central-West, Fredericksburg).
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Wessman Runner-up in Golfweek Senior National Championship (SS) – January Florida Swing Results
January 30, 2016
Lynn Wessman (Army Navy CCC) tied for second in the Super Senior division of the Golfweek Senior National Championship held Jan 16-18 at the Adena GCC in Ocala, FL. The last event of the annual senior Florida golf swing, Wessman shot rounds of 73-80-71 (224) to finish one shot back of winner Robert Hess. Wessman’s 71 in the final round was the only sub-par round in the event. Fellow Army Navy member Bill Engel tied for tenth with 233, while Don Jeanes (Heritage Hunt) tied for twelfth.
In the first event of the FL swing, the Old Corkscrew Senior Championship Jan 4-6, Ben Hargis (Alexandria, VA) tied for 5th in the Senior division. At the Kingsway Senior Invitational Jan 12-14, Tom Grady (Marshal, VA) finished seventh, with Engel and Wessman finishing eleventh and eighteenth respectively.