PHOENIXVILLE, Pa.– Zachary Herr of Jericho National apparently likes the view from the top.
Herr, the qualifying round’s medallist and No. 1 seed at the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s 60th Junior-Junior Boys’ Championship, beat out Brendan Papariello of White Manor CC, 5&4, Thursday to take the Junior-Junior Boys’ title at Phoenixville CC (par 70, 5,454 yards) in commanding fashion.
The 13-year-old completed a dominating stretch of golf that included besting the field in qualifying by three stokes, carding a hole-in-one during his second-round match and holding at least a share of the lead in each of his matches dating back to the 5th hole of his first-round match.
“Momentum was huge for me,” said an ecstatic Herr of the week that was. “[Momentum] would probably be the key word for me this week. It was huge.”
In Herr’s final-round match against Papariello, the incoming eighth grader at Newtown Middle School got out to an early lead yet again after a routine par on the second hole (par 3, 145 yards) gave him a 1-up lead.
But it was a remarkable par save on the par 3 7th hole (205 yards) that Herr said spurred him onto victory.
After chipping up onto the green some 30 feet from the hole, Herr proceeded to make the long snaking putt for par to win the hole and go to 4-up on Papariello.
“That was a little bit of a giddyup for me,” he said of sinking the 30-footer. “I think that it got it going for me and I put it in cruise control from there.”
And although Herr won the 9th hole (par 4, 313 yards) to go to 5-up with nine holes to play, Papariello hung in there playing solid golf until the end.
“I was happy with the way I was hitting my iron shots all week,” said Papariello of his best finish in a GAP event. “It was fun. I felt like I played pretty well.”
For Herr, who has yet decided on where he will attend high school in the coming years, his play at the Junior-Junior Boys’ caps off his Junior-Junior career as turns 14 in the coming weeks.
“It was a nice way to go out,” he said. “I just hope this gives me some momentum heading into [the junior ranks].”
In the first flight finals, Reilly Erhardt of Trenton CC defeated Alex Dupre of Rolling Green GC, 2-up, while Andrew Willner of White Manor CC took down W. Evan Thornton of Berkshire CC, 5&4, to take the second flight final.
Robert Firth, Jr., of Commonwealth National GC also beat out Matthew Bastian, Jr., of Rolling Green GC, 5&3, to become the third flight champion.
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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.
Results
Championship Flight
1. Zachary Herr, Jericho National GC def. 5. Jack Gregor, Huntingdon Valley CC, 3&2.
6. Brendan Papariello, White Manor CC def. 7. Jonathan Liu, Commonwealth National GC, 2&1.
Final
1. Zachary Herr, Jericho National GC def. 6. Brendan Papariello, White Manor CC, 5&4.
First Flight
Semifinals
1. Alex Dupre, Rolling Green GC def. 5.Steven Altieri, Hopewell Valley GC, 1-up.
7. Reilly Erhardt, Trenton CC def. 6. Harry Rosenberg, Jr., Waynesborough CC, 2&1.
Final
7. Reilly Erhardt, Trenton CC def. 1. Alex Dupre, Rolling Green GC, 2-up.
Second Flight
Semifinals
5. Andrew Willner, White Manor CC def. 1. Joseph Rueter, Jr., Torresdale-Frankford CC, 4&3.
7. W. Evan Thornton, Berkshire CC def. 6. Matthew Ade, Riverton CC, 3&2.
Final
5. Andrew Willner, White Manor CC def. 7. W. Evan Thornton, Berkshire CC, 5&4.
Third Flight
Semifinals
1. Robert Firth, Jr., Commonwealth National def. 4. Daniel Altieri, Hopewell Valley GC, 10-holes.
7. Matthew Bastian, Jr., Rolling Green GC def. 6. Kevin Kramarski, Riverton CC, 1-up.
Final
1. Robert Firth, Jr., Commonwealth def. 7. Matthew Bastian, Jr., Rolling Green GC, 5&3.
