DeLuca overcomes late mistakes to grab Jock MacKenzie title

  ORELAND, Pa.– Christopher DeLuca of Lookaway GC hung on to take the 24th Jock MacKenzie Memorial by a stroke on Monday at Sandy Run CC (par 72, 6,525 yards) with a 1-under-par 71.

  DeLuca, a soon-to-be senior at Holy Ghost Preparatory School, got off to a fast start carding birdies on hole Nos. 2 (par 3, 193 yards), 3 (par 4, 411 yards), 5 (par 4, 410 yards) and 7(par 4, 322 yards). An electric start that was mainly due to the 17-year-old’s the flatstick.

  “I was putting really well and made a bunch of putts on the front side,” he said.

  One of those included a spectacular, left-to-right breaking, 35-footer on No. 2 that he made for his first birdie of the day.

  “That was a great start for me,” DeLuca said. “I felt like it gave me some momentum.”

  And although the birdie barrage ended once DeLuca reached the backside, the Langhorne, Pa., resident kept his score at 3-under-par through 14 holes. But some rare putting miscues made things closer than he would have liked and almost caused him to give the tournament away. His 3-under-par 33 on the front side was nearly eclipsed by his 2-over par 38 on the back nine.

  “I got a little nervous on the back nine and missed a couple short putts,” said DeLuca, who knew that Andrew Zoeller of Waynesborough CC was already in the club house win an even-par 72. “But once I started making some putts again, I got comfortable and held it together.”

  DeLuca indeed kept things intact finishing with a pair of pars on No. 17 (par 4, 385 yards) and 18 (par 4, 324 yards) after back-to-back bogies on hole Nos. 15 (par 5, 487 yards) and 16 (par 4, 375 yards).

  “I’m just excited and happy that I played a good round of golf,” he said of winning the event. “I finally strung together some good shots and it paid off.”

  Zoeller, who finished a close second, attributed his strong play to some momentum of his own from a solid fourth place finish at the 2008 Christman Cup.

  “It really has helped me with my confidence,” said the Malvern Preparatory golfer of his experiences on the GAP Junior circuit. “I’ve been striking the ball pretty well as of late and today just helps keep a good summer going. Hopefully this leads into the fall.”

  Aliza Shatzman of the Meadowlands CC carded a 6-over-par 78 to top the girls division of the Jock MacKenzie Memorial.

  The 16-year-old from Ambler, Pa., carded a birdie on each side (No. 7, par 4 307 yards; No 15, par 5, 451 yards) on the way to her division-low round.

  Junior-Junior Divisions (par 36, 2,909 yards)
  Michael Davis of Merion GC won the Junior-Junior Boys’ Division of the Jock MacKenzie Memorial with a 2-over-par 38. Davis registered a birdie on his first hole (No. 10, par 3, 114 yards) en route to his win over the 32-player field.

  In the Junior-Junior Girls Division, Jackie Rogowicz of Yardley CC fired an 8-over-par 44 to win her flight.

  All Junior-Junior divisions competed over the back nine holes at Sandy Run CC.

  Notes:
  Michael Kania of Overbrook GC sealed his first Harry Hammond Award Monday with a final round score of 3-over-par 75 at the Jock MacKenzie Memorial.

  “It’s been a goal of mine all year,” said Kania of winning the Harry Hammond Award. “I’m just happy to have played consistent golf throughout the year.”

  The Harry Hammond Award is given to the player with the lowest aggregate score in the qualifying round of the Junior Boys’ Championship, the Christman Cup and the Jock MacKenzie Memorial.

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  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 136 Member Clubs and 56,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. The purpose of the Association is simple: To promote, protect and preserve the game of golf in the region.