Brown, Wachter fire 8-under 62 to win Four-Ball at Chester Valley

MALVERN, Pa. — You know it’s been a good trip around the golf course when you head to the parking lot with a trophy in hand. Wednesday proved to be one of those memorable days for the duo of Lu Lu Country Club’s Michael R. Brown, Jr. and DuPont Country Club’s Mark Wachter.

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  Brown and Wachter teamed up to fire an 8-under 62 gross score, resulting in a 63 net, en route to the 46th Four-Ball Championship title at Chester Valley Golf Club (par 70, 6,241 yards). The event’s format is better-ball of partners.

  The triumph marks the first overall GAP win for Wachter, and second partner victory for Brown, who took home the 2012 Four-Ball at North Hills Country Club with Bala Golf Club’s Scott McNeil.

  Reigning champions Kevin Sarlo, Jr. of Burlington Country Club and Drew Guarino of Old York Country Club at Chesterfield, who won last year’s title at Laurel Creek Country Club in a playoff, finished at even-par 70.

  This year’s winners, starting on the club’s second nine, began their round in true champion form, birdieing the first four holes.

  On No. 10 (par 3, 189 yards), Brown guided a 5-iron to 15 feet and rolled in the first red number of the day. Wachter joined the birdie train with one of his own on No. 11 (par 4, 356 yards) after blasting driver, followed by a sand wedge approach that led to an eight-foot conversion. Brown followed that up with another 3 on No. 12 (par 4, 373 yards) after driver-gap wedge made way for a 25-foot jarred putt. On No. 13 (par 4, 408 yards), Brown utilized 3-wood before lifting a beautiful 8-iron approach 165 yards, over a tree, leading to another birdie from five feet.

  Although the red-number party ended with a bogey on No. 16 (par 4, 400 yards), the pair got one back on Chester Valley’s finisher (par 4, 418 yards) when Brown went with 3-wood again after the tee, leaving him with just 146 yards in. He chose 9-iron, and it was a good one. His approach nestled up to two feet. The eventual champs made the turn at 4 under.   “Mark was in for par on a few holes that really gave me a chance to go at the hole with my birdie looks. That’s where the better-ball component comes in to play,” said Brown, 44, of Maple Shade, N.J.

  More of that successful teamwork continued. With Wachter already in for par, Brown got his team off to a hot start on No. 1 (par 4, 367 yards) thanks to a 35-foot birdie bomb. Then the day’s deciding factor arrived on No. 2 (par 5, 546 yards). Brown crushed a driver off the tee, followed by a pure 3-wood that ran up to 30 feet. The eagle hit nothing but cup.

  “We didn’t want to stop there. We wanted to keep it going,” said Wachter, 49, of Wilmington, Del. “We said, ‘Let’s bring the hammer down.’”

  Their eighth under-par number was carded on the par 3, 157-yard 7th, where Wachter rolled in a 15-foot birdie putt.

  “One of us should have made our putts on No. 9 (par 4, 375 yards), because we both had good looks from about nine or 10 feet,” said Wachter. “But it’s still a great number for a course like this.”

  “Without a doubt, [Chester Valley’s] greens are the course’s defense. The complexes always keep you guessing if you ask me. You have to be on your toes out here,” said Brown.

  The winning duo was forged through the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Winter Series circuit. Brown and Wachter, both GAP Major regulars, met five years ago while playing in an event, and eventually went on to win a better-ball Winter Series event in 2013 at Sandy Run Country Club and again in 2014 at Back Creek Golf Club.

  “As I’m sure a lot of these guys do, we met through playing in GAP events. We didn’t know each other at all, but now we’ve teamed up and it’s been great,” said Brown.

  Before today, the last time the two teamed up was in this year’s BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship at Philadelphia Cricket Club, where Wachter was on Brown’s bag for his run to the quarterfinals.

  “I’m lucky that’s he’s interested in doing that for me. I don’t really team up well with a lot of caddies, but Mark knows me and knows my game,” said Brown. “We jive well. We’re a great team.”

  “Well, I’m usually asking him if I can carry his bag. [Michael] was pretty much my caddie today. I ended up asking him what yardage he was playing, what club he was hitting,” said Wachter.

  No matter who the caddie ends up being, they’ll always be friends, teammates, and now, champions.

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.