Concord CC crew clinches Four-Man Team

EXTON, Pa. – Concord CC’s Larry Benedetto, Jeff DellaFranco, Conrad Von Borsig and David Woods clawed a 9-under-par 135 to claim the 15th Annual Four-Man Team Thursday at Whitford CC (par 72, 6,396 yards).

   They edged the team of Joe Dellicarpini and Bryan Winsko of Philadelphia Cricket Club and John Marshalek and Matt Smith of Whitford CC, who also registered a 9-under-par 135, by one stroke in a match of cards. The Concord CC foursome stayed out of trouble for the majority of their round.

   “On mostly every hole, we were all in play,” DellaFranco said. “We had pretty short irons in on most of the par 4’s. We attacked pretty good. We didn’t hit anything super close, and we probably left a handful of shots out there.”

  “The idea was to just get four guys putting for birdie,” Woods added.

   Benedetto ignited the team with an eagle on No. 16 (par 5, 517 yards) after drilling his 3-wood to about three feet.

   “That kind of jumpstarted our round,” DellaFranco said.

   “We were kind of milling around until then,” Woods added. “That got us going.”

   Bendetto then fired a birdie on No. 17 (par 3, 178 yards) to put his team at 6-under-par through a six-hole stretch. The team’s lone bogey came on No. 6 (par 4, 378 yards).

   “We were all crooked off the tee,” Von Borsig, the reigning Amateur Champion, said. “We were trying to salvage something, but that’s a tough hole when you’re in the woods. There’s a creek there, and you can’t really run it up like the other holes.”

   The team didn’t initially intend to participate in Thursday’s event because it was originally scheduled for last month.

   “It was cancelled because of the rain, and the date was moved,” Woods said. “We were able to get back in the field when it was re-opened. Conrad was back in town, and we kind of saw each other on the range and said ‘let’s do it.’”

   Dellicarpini, Winsko, Marshalek and Smith each felt proud of the way they played as a team. Starting their round together on the backside worked in their favor, according to Marshalek.

   “I think that’s the easier side,” he said. “We were 6-under at the turn.”

   Familiarity with the course also proved vital.

   “Having two (Whitford) members in the group helped a lot,” Dellicarpini said.

   The team’s tee time made a difference as well.

   “It was very pleasant being the first group out. We had nobody in front of us, and the greens were great,” Marshalek said.

   The team posted back-to-back double birdies on Nos. 16 (par 5, 517 yards) and 17 (par 3, 138 yards), courtesy of Dellicarpini and Winsko. The squad’s only blemish came on No. 7 (par 4, 370 yards) when they registered their lone bogey on the day.

   “That’s because all of these guys did not hit driver,” Winsko said jokingly. “Only one person in the group – I’m not going to say who – hit driver and made par.”

   This marks the group’s first appearance in the Four-Man Team.

   “It won’t be the last, though,” Winsko said.

   Sandy Run CC’s James Lyons, Jr., David Koons, Gerald Mullin, Jr. and Robert Zowney carded a 20-under-par 124 to win the net division of the Four-Man Team.