Beautiful Weather Highlights The Classic @ The Creek - Recap

Scott R Chilcutt, Carrollton, TX (March 24, 2012)  Calm, Sunny, Warm ...... "what do we do now", asked most of the field as they approached the first tee.  A slow moving low pressure system over Oklahoma deposited multiple inches of rain and was accompanied by wind gusts up to 50 mph earlier in the week. It seemed to indicate we were in for just another bad weather Saturday, similar to the earlier Grand Prairie Classic.  But as the system moved out of the area it left behind a perfect golf weather day on Saturday.  


Indian Creek Golf Club, located due east of the intersection of the Sam Rayburn Tollway and I-35E in Carrollton, TX lies in a low area bordered to the west by the Elm Fork of the Trinity River below Lake Lewisville Dam.  While the Trinity River stayed in it's banks, the creeks and lakes on the property of Indian Creek overflowed to make the golf course much smaller, requiring much more precision off the tees.


Darrin Howard from Longview, TX has been in the Tournament Champion Trophy, presented by Labor Finders, running on many occasions  only to lose out in a scorecard playoff.  This time the playoff went his way over Midlothian, TX player Joe Torrez.


RESULTS:

Championship Flight:  Twenty players made the call for the Championship flight and with just one group left to tally, it looked like 25% of the field might end up in a playoff with five players tied at +7 - 79.  Then came Midland, TX player Terry Rice to dash those aspirations.  Rice played the back nine +1 -37 to win the flight with a 76.    Andrew Braun from Trophy Club, TX, Dallas member Enrique Fuhlage, Chad Johnson from Cleburne, TX,  Plano, TX resident Dheeraj Jangalwa and Rachel Smith from Mansfield, TX all finished in the second place knot.

Palmer Flight:  Tim Williams from McKinney, TX has not let up since winning the 2011 National Championship.  Promoted to the Palmer flight, Williams has two wins in three attempts.  Lake Worth, TX player John Anderson had his best finish of the year in the second spot four strokes ahead of Adrian DelaGarza of Coppell, TX.

Senior Palmer Flight:  Two wins in as many attempts for Michael Morgan from Shreveport, LA.  Morgan who last played the Winter Classic - Hill Country Tour, returns to the tour tying the low round of the day with a +4 - 76 to win by five strokes.  Coming off his second place National Championship qualification at the Texas Open at Horseshoe Bay, Sean Fenton from Fort Worth, finished three strokes ahead of third place finishers  Steve Redding from Plano, TX and Mansfield, TX member Michael Fee.

Hogan Flight:  Birdie on the first hole kept the wheels rolling for the Texas Open at Horseshoe Bay champion, Brack Blackwood from Grandbury, TX.  Blackwood with three wins on the season finished with a career low +5 - 77, five strokes ahead of Marina Del Rey, CA traveler Tony Anderson.  Anderson secured his second place spot two strokes ahead of local Carrollton, TX newcomer Mike Davis.

Senior Hogan Flight:  Jalil DaneshFar of Trophy Club, TX picked up his second win of the season over Coppell, TX resident Todd Landrum.  Landrum with his second runner up spot in as many tries finished one stroke ahead of Terrell, TX first time player Barry Hendricks.

Sarazen Flight:  Darrin Howard from Longview, TX finished two strokes ahead of Dallas, TX tour rookie Jimi Clark.  Howard, who has been promoted twice since joining the tour just under a year ago made it two in a row and sixth of his career.  Nancy Geihl from Grand Prairie, TX had three birdies to finish in the third place spot ahead of The Colony, TX member Richard Marr.

Senior Sarazen Flight: Former Player Advisory Board Member, Mansfield, TX player John Cox picked up his second win on tour and first since the 2009 Riverside Open over Houston Tour member Jim Craig of San Felipe, TX. Craig kept a one shot second place edge over Ken Benjamin from Grand Prairie, TX after Benjamin finished the back nine in one over par.

Jones Flight: Brandon Litzner from Coppell, TX and Dallas, TX rookie Melvin Wilson III had to battle out a playoff on the scorecard after darkness made an on course match up unplayable.  The pair both finished with 89's but Litzner would prevail with the help of a birdie four on the par 5 sixteenth hole.  Jose Aceves from Lantana, TX finished just one stroke back to finish in the third spot.

Senior Jones Flight:  Mesquite, TX resident Paul Vessels grabbed his second win on tour by two strokes over the pair of Phillip White from Justin, TX and Garland, TX member Bob Eustice.  T-2 finisher at the Texas Open at Horseshoe Bay, Eustice made a birdie on the thirteenth hole to stay even with White.

Snead Flight:  First year player Joe Torrez of Midlothian, TX snatched his first win on tour by four strokes over Richardson, TX resident Bolaji Harris.  Francisco Vazquez of  Waco, TX finished in the third spot just one stroke back of Harris.

Senior Snead Flight:  Just barely finishing before darkness made the course unplayable, Oklahoma Tour traveler Rick Henthorn of Yukon, OK picked up his third win of the season over Haslet, TX first year member Doyle Fleming.  Juan-Paz Pena of Plano, TX, a winner at the rain soaked Grand Prairie Classic @ Tangle Ridge finished in the third spot.      
  




SKINS:

Championship:  1 -- Ken Dyke, Keller, TX, The Golf Channel Players Club - Dallas; Enrique Fuhlage, Dallas, TX, The Golf Channel Players Club - Dallas; Terry Rice, Midland, TX.

Palmer/Senior Palmer:  3 -- Tim Williams, McKinney, TX.  1 -- John Anderson, Lake Worth, TX.

Hogan/Senior Hogan:  1 -- Lloyd Herbert, Killeen, TX; Barry Hendricks, Terrell, TX; Greg Sheppard, Carrollton, TX; Gregory Stairs, Mansfield, TX.

Sarazen/Senior Sarazen:  1 -- Gabriel Brisco, Mesquite, TX; Nancy Geihl, Grand Prairie, TX; Art Talamantes Jr, Edgewood, TX; Walter White, Monroe, LA, Southern Pines GC-Calvert.

Jones/Senior Jones:  1 -- Jose Aceves, Lantana, TX; Don Freitag, Arlington, TX; Ron Hardy, Lewisville, TX; Douglas Pritchett, Ft Worth, TX.

Snead/Senior Snead:  3 -- Mike Adcock, Saginaw, TX.  2 -- Kendrae Washington, Irving, TX, Battle Lake GC.  1 -- Bolaji Harris, Richardson, TX, The Golf Channel Players Club - Dallas; Rick Henthorn, Yukon, OK; Doyle Fleming, Haslet, TX; Larry Tolson, McKinney, TX.

Next Up - Dallas Tour is at The Golf Club at Frisco Lakes for the Frisco Lakes Challenge on April 7th.  Hill Country is back in action after The Nelson open (registration closed) for The Legends of Golf Classic at Onion Creek Golf Club on April 1th.   Oklahoma Tour visits the Cherokee HIlls Golf Club for the Hard Rock Open on April 28th.

For more information:

Scott R Chilcutt
Tour Director
Dallas / Fort Worth - Hill Country - Oklahoma
Golf Channel Amateur Tour
405.513.1467 - 972.201.9478
schilcutt@gcamtour.com
www.gcamtour.com