Around The Commonwealth
Mike Krulich , left , and Pete DeTemple .
34th VSGA Senior Four-Ball Championship
Williamsburg Golf Club , Williamsburg | May 24
Pete DeTemple ( Old Hickory GC ) checked his smartphone midway through the second round to peek at the online leaderboard . So DeTemple knew he and partner Mike Krulich ( Ballyhack GC ) needed to go low if they wanted to win . DeTemple closed the round with three straight birdies , and the 11-under 133 held up as the winning score during a marathon day on a soggy course .
Heavy rain forced the postponement of the first round , meaning golfers played 36 holes on the tournament ’ s second day . DeTemple won his first VSGA title . Previously , Krulich was on the winning side along with Charles Green III at the 1994 VSGA Four-Ball Stroke Play Championship .
QUICK FACTS :
Field and format : Six qualifying sites and exemptions produced a field of 48 sides .
First-round leaders : Jack Allara II and Jon Zampedro ( 65 )
It was over when : DeTemple stuffed his approach with a gap wedge on No . 18 within six feet , leading to an easy birdie and the victory .
Quotable : “ I knew we were at 7 ( under ). Then we got to 8 when we birdied the par 5 . I was like , ‘ OK , we need more .’ I didn ’ t think we ’ d go boom , boom .” — DeTemple .
2nd U . S . Amateur Four-Ball Championship
Winged Foot GC , Mamaroneck , N . Y . May 21-25 Format : Stroke-play qualifying , with the top 32 sides advancing to match play
Brandon Cigna , a VSGA member at Laurel Hill GC and three-time Big Ten champion while at Michigan State , teamed with Maryland resident Ben Warnquist to reach the championship match , where they fell 3 and 2 to Southern Methodist University teammates Benjamin Baxter and Andrew Buchanan , who also eliminated VSGA members Scott Shingler and Justin Young in the round of 16 . Adam Horton and Tyler Gulliksen ( Elizabeth Manor G & CC ) also qualified for the event but failed to reach match play .
Quotable : “ This , for me , has been one of the great highlights of my golf career . Working for a living , we ’ re more of just weekend golfers , but our games gelled really well together and we knew we had a chance to compete with anyone . I ’ m really proud of how well we did .” — Cigna
Brandon Cigna .
2nd U . S . Women ’ s Amateur Four-Ball Championship
Streamsong Resort , Streamsong , Fla . | May 21-25 Format : Stroke-play qualifying , with the top 32 sides advancing to match play
Lauren Greenlief , left , and Alex Austin .
Alex Austin ( Springfield G & CC ) and Lauren Greenlief ( International CC ) survived a playoff to reach match play , then ripped off three straight wins before falling to Texas teenagers Hailee Cooper and Kaitlyn Papp 4 and 3 in the semifinals . Cooper and Papp went on to win the championship .
The positive for Austin and Greenlief : Should they remain together as a side for next year ’ s championship in Myrtle Beach , they ’ re exempt from qualifying .
Quotable : “ I ’ ve known Alex for a really long time . It was a natural choice , and Alex played really solid golf last year , so it was a natural pairing .” — Greenlief .
vsga . org J ULY / A UGUST 2016 | V IRGINIA G OLFER 9