#BrewerCup: West takes Senior medalist honors,  Humphrey earns No. 1 Supers’ seed

WAYNE, Pa.- It isn’t hard to realize red is David West’s favorite color, at least while on the golf course. West, while sporting a fiery golf polo, was the only player to emerge in red numbers Monday at St. Davids Golf Club (par 70, 6,249 yards) – the smooth swinger’s first, and only, assistant professional home.

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  Whitford Country Club’s West fired a sizzling 3-under-round of 67 to earn Brewer Cup presented by Callaway Golf medalist honors in the Senior Division 18-hole stroke play qualifying round. The long-hitting West, still on the road to recovery from a hip replacement in January, topped a field of 84 players vying for a spot in tomorrow’s match-play bracket.

  “A 67? That is the lowest round I’ve shot in a GAP event,” said an ecstatic West, a Downingtown, Pa. resident. “I love this golf course. I’ve built a ton of memories here. I worked here in 1982, and it was my first job out of college. I spent one year as an assistant professional, and although I realized the career wasn’t for me, I still enjoyed it. This is a great place.”

  Steady, swirling winds arrived mid-morning, and befuddled contestants. It remained steady all day, but so did West.

  The happy reunion kicked off early on No. 1 (par 4, 369 yards), when West pummeled a driver down the middle, leaving him with just 104 yards in. He flipped a gap wedge to two feet for a tap-in birdie. His home in the red would not be extinguished from there on out.

  Another birdie arrived on the par-4, 380-yard 5th. West found the left rough off the tee, but his wedge approach from 125 yards out landed safely on the green, leading to a 20-foot putt that dropped. West walloped a drive on No. 11 (par 5, 525 yards) straight down the center leaving him with just 180 yards in. His 7-iron approach came up a little short on the front of the green, but two-putted from 30 feet for another birdie.

  The only blemish on the day surfaced on the par-4, 404-yard 13th in result of a West three putt. He’d erase it on No. 16 (par 5, 485 yards) with another beautiful three. After coming up short, he splashed a bunker shot out to 15 feet and drilled the downhill look to get to 3 under, where he would comfortably finish.

  “It was the best round I’ve played all year,” he said. “I’ve played here many, many times and it’s the best round I’ve ever played here also.”

  Earlier this spring, times were rough and scores were high. West missed the cut at his home club in a GAP Middle-Amateur Championship presented by Callaway Golf by a stroke, and then again in a BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship Qualifier at French Creek Golf Club by five strokes.

  The results show the 57-year-old’s hip replacement took a toll on what is usually a consistently-steady golf game.

  “No excuses, but it wasn’t good in the spring. I started playing eight weeks after the surgery, but I can tell you that it still isn’t 100 percent,” said West. “It feels better now, and today, it didn’t bother me whatsoever. I’ll go home and take some anti-inflammatories, but every week it is getting better.”

  It appears the rehab process took a monumental step forward after today’s low round. West is gaining back the confidence in his beauty of a golf swing.

  “After 40 years of turning and twisting, [the hip damage] happened. Now I’m feeling physically and mentally strong again. I was able to qualify for the [GAP] Philadelphia Open last week, and I’m starting to see those low scores again. I’m excited for the rest of the season, and the rest of this week now.”

  The top-seeded West will face Greg Buliga of Yardley Country Club at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow.

Super-Senior Division

  Divisional newcomer Thomas Humphrey of Wilmington Country Club earned the top Super-Senior flight seed with a 2-over-par 72 at St. Davids Golf Club (par 70, 5,686 yards).

  Humphrey set himself up for qualifying success with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 7 (par 4, 362 yards) and 8 (par 5, 459 yards) that turned his round around.

  Standing at 1-over par, on No. 7 Humphrey knocked a wedge from 120 yards to 20 feet and drained the sliding left to right breaker. On the ensuing hole, Humphrey hit a 5-iron from 185 yards onto the putting surface in two. He tapped in a birdie after missing a 15-foot eagle try.

  “That’s always a good thing,” said Humphrey of taking medal honors. “Now I have to do something after that to be meaningful.”

  Humphrey faces Buck Jones of Philadelphia Publinks GA in a first-round matchup. Jones advanced in a playoff. There was a six-man playoff for three match-play spots. Dan Burton of Lancaster Country Club and Robert Billings of Rolling Green Golf Club also advanced. Humphrey’s match begins at 9 a.m.

  “I hit a few bad shots off the tee, but when I did get off track, I minimized the damage,” said Humphrey, who retired from DuPont in 2002. “I like match play. It should be fun especially on a course like St. Davids.”

  This is Humphrey’s fourth Brewer Cup. He competed in the Senior Division the other three years, twice making Day 2. The farthest he advanced was in the 2014 Brewer. Humphrey made it to the Quarterfinals that summer. James Muller of Manufacturers’ Golf & Country Club defeated him in 19 holes that year.

  Also, advancing into the match-play draw is three-time Brewer Cup Champion Don Donatoni of White Manor Country Club (2013-15). Donatoni, the supernova of the Super-Senior Division, hasn’t been pleased with his game recently, including a tie for 17th in the Chapman Memorial (Gross).

  “I turned the corner in the last week or so. I figured it out. I decided to put the clubs away for a week to 10 days. Sometimes you have to put them in the timeout corner and stay away from the game. I was overthinking, overanalyzing and worrying too much about technique. As a result, I was not hitting solid, crisp shots,” said Donatoni, 69, of Malvern, Pa.

  Donatoni’s game was strong today. He hit 16 of 18 greens in regulation and 12 of 13 fairways. If a couple more putts would have fallen, Donatoni would have earned medalist honors for a third time in this event. He tied for low qualifier in both 2013 and 2015.

  The Brewer Cup is named in honor of O. Gordon Brewer, Jr., the former president of Pine Valley Golf Club. He is a two-time U.S. Senior Amateur Champion and veteran of 42 USGA Championships. He’s captured two Golf Association of Philadelphia Amateur Championship titles (1967, 1976), a GAP Senior Amateur Championship crown (1997) and a Senior Player of the Year (1997) as well as countless invitational titles. Seven years ago he was recognized for his contributions to the game with the USGA’s Bob Jones Award.

Golf Association of Philadelphia
Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 151 Member Clubs and 57,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.