AGA/GAP Spring Stroke Play

Three triumph in AGA/GAP season opener

Bill Ianieri (pictured above, middle) wanted mental revenge. He found it in the form of a trophy.

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The Jack Frost National Golf Club member carded a 1-under-par to take the 12^th AGA/GAP Spring Stroke Play Championship June 15 at a gorgeous Glenmaura National Golf Club (par 71, 6,308 yards). It marked the first AGA/GAP event of 2020; the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start of the season.

In last year’s Spring Stroke Play at Glenmaura National, Ianieri left on a sour note. He carded a triple bogey on the 18^th hole. The error lingered; victory vanquished it.

“I was really determined. It was redemption, I guess we could call it,” Ianieri, 51, of Weatherly, Pa., said. “I played Sunday [in a club event], so that got a little bit of the competitive juices flowing. I went out and played nine holes after that for practice. My hands are bleeding right now.”  

Three good breaks outweighed two bad breaks for Ianieri at Glenmaura National.

On No. 2 (par 3, 171 yards), Ianieri hit a heavy 5-iron that landed on the front of the green, rolled over a ridge and stopped 18 inches from the hole location. He cleaned up the birdie putt. Another par 3 on the front nine — the 173-yard No. 7 — nearly cooled a piping round. Ianieri attempted to steer a 5-iron to the back of the green. Fortunately, a wooden bridge mitigated a loose swing.  

“It hit that bridge and stopped right there, right in play. I was able to chip up and two-putt (for bogey),” Ianieri, who works for a recycling plant, said.

A third good break occurred on No. 12 (par 4, 477 yards), where Ianieri’s “bad drive” ricocheted off rocks to the right yet remained in play. He again managed to save bogey.

“It balances out. A bad shot here, and then a, ‘How the heck did that happen?’ there,” Ianieri said.

Competitive golfers can sympathize with Ianieri’s bad break on No. 10 (par 5, 514 yards). After finishing the front nine in 3 under, Ianieri deemed birdie as a “worst case scenario” on the gettable par 5. His second shot, however, took an unfortunate bounce and plummeted into the pond. Ianieri carded a bogey. On No. 16 (par 4, 412 yards), he attempted to execute a flawless flop shot, only to see his golf ball stick to the fringe.

“I didn’t want to fool with the creek on the left, so I tried to fade the ball. It ended up too short. Then I tried to flop it over the bunker,” Ianieri said. “As long as you hit the top of that bunker, the ball was going to automatically going to roll toward the pin. I literally tapped the ball [on the fringe] with my putter, and the ball rolled down there. I had a tap-in bogey.”

With the victory, Ianieri perhaps elevated his AGA/GAP profile.

“I think I did. I got a couple of offers to play in the Over/Under 50 Tournament [scheduled for June 24] as a partner,” he said.

Senior & Super Senior
A pair of AGA/GAP staples with plenty of Glenmaura National experience also earned hardware Monday.

Elkview Country Club’s Ken Bolcavage (pictured above, left) carded a 3-over-par 74 to take the Senior Division (par 71, 6,120 yards). Nittany Country Club’s Vince Scarpetta, Jr. bested three others en route to the event’s Super-Senior (par 71, 5,506 yards) title.

“I’m glad I won. For the most part, I held it together and got it done,” Bolcavage, 56, of Carbondale, Pa., said. “Glenmaura is a gorgeous place. You really have to focus on every shot there. At most courses you play, you hit a bad shot and you may be hitting it from another fairway back into play. At Glenmaura, every hole is a hole in itself. You can miss a little bit, but if you miss badly, then you’re dead. It’s a place where you have to have both hands of the steering wheel at all times.”

Scarpetta, the reigning AGA/GAP Super-Senior Player of the Year, is a former Glenmaura National member. He spent 15 years there.

“I enjoy playing at Glenmaura. The thing about the course is you can ruin your round in one bad swing there,” Scarpetta, 67, of Moosic, Pa., said. “It’s a very difficult course.”

GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The Association’s 288 Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across the Eastern half of Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey and Delaware. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.