LedgeRock’s Lutz, Philly CC’s Smith earn wins in Chapman (Gross)

  MT. HOLLY, N.J. – Sudden-death playoffs decided both the Senior and Super-Senior victors in Thursday’s Frank H. Chapman Memorial (Gross) at Burlington CC (par 70, 6,043 yards).

  Michael Domenick of Phoenixville CC and Chip Lutz of LedgeRock GC each carded 1-under-par 69s to top the Senior Division. Jay Howson, Jr. of St. Davids GC and Richard Smith of Philadelphia CC finished tied atop the Super-Senior Division after registering respective 1-over-par 71s.

  And the similarities don’t end there. Lutz and Smith earned dramatic victories on the first playoff hole.

  Senior Division

  “It’s always great to have your name on a GAP event,” Lutz, of Reading, Pa., said. “I’m thrilled to get on the map on the senior schedule here in Philadelphia. It’s my first senior win officially here. I’m excited. Unfortunately, I may end up missing the Senior Amateur because of some other events I have lined up. I’m disappointed, but I’m sure I’ll be back. It’s a good start to my name here on the senior schedule. For me, it’s a wonderful accomplishment.”

  On the decisive par 4, 410-yard No. 1, Lutz drilled his pitching wedge 125 yards into the left fringe, directly parallel to the flagstick. Domenick’s approach came to rest 15-feet below the flagstick. Lutz played his shot first and dunked a trying left-to-right breaker for birdie.

  “I just got very fortunate to get it on the right line and hit it at the right speed. It was a very difficult putt,” he said. “I was just pleased that I hit it perfectly.”

  Domenick’s valiant red figure effort breezed by the cup, and a handshake followed.

  “I’m definitely proud of the way I played,” Domenick said. “Everybody thinks you’re going to come into the Senior Division, and since you’ve been playing well in the Middlle-Amateurs, that you’re going to be a star. There are a lot of stars already here. There’s only room for so many. You still have a lot of good players in this division. The competition is great out here.”

  In regulation, Domenick, of Phoenixville, Pa., shined like a star. He tallied four straight pars to start, one of which proved highly vital. He nuked his 6-iron over the No. 3 (par 4, 382 yards) green, but came back and converted a left-to-right breaking 30-footer to save par. Domenick, 55, posted his first red figure on the par 3, 148-yard No. 5 after sticking his 6-iron to within inches of the hole location. He completed his outward tour at 1 under.

  Domenick’s flatstick then caught fire. He cleared the water hazard on No. 11 (par 4, 338 yards) with a sand wedge from 110 yards out and sunk a 10-footer for birdie. Domenick drilled his 5-hybrid to 10 feet on No. 12 (par 3, 169 yards) and cleaned up the under-par chance. He had two prime opportunities to dig deeper on Nos. 14 (par 5, 548 yards) and 15 (par 4, 421 yards). Domenick bumped his 54-degree wedge 97 yards to six-feet on the first, but watched his birdie try merely flirt with the left edge. His approach settled in front of the No. 15 green, and Domenick cozied his under-par putt to within inches of the cup. Domenick also missed a 12-footer for birdie on No. 16 (par 4, 421 yards).

  Nevertheless, the tournament remained his for the taking. Domenick, who spends his winters working in the bag room at The Vineyards in Naples, Fla., maintained a 3 under on his scorecard with two holes to play. Lutz, his nearest rival, stood at 2 under playing two groups behind. Nerves and pressure quickly overcame Domenick’s body. On No. 17 (par 4, 411 yards), he cranked his drive onto the adjacent 16th fairway, punched with a 6-iron and overpowered his lob wedge 70 yards to the rear of the green. His downhill chip to save par barely missed the cup right. Domenick nearly pushed his hybrid out-of-bounds on No. 18 (par 4, 316 yards). He attempted to climb onto the green with a 9-iron from 120 yards out, but it landed on the uphill slope.

  “The ball was a little above my feet. You can’t hit it long, and you can’t be short,” Domenick said. “So I tried to muscle a 9-iron. I just hit it a little heavy.”

  Domenick’s chip shot stopped six-feet shy. His par putt burnt the right edge.

  “When I made those two birdies on the back nine, that’s when I started to feel the nerves,” Domenick said. “I started to feel the pressure, and it caught up to me in the end. I’m not used to being in that position. I made a lot of the putts in the beginning of the round and kept it going. It was just one of those days when things went my way until the end.”

  Meanwhile, Lutz, too, struggled coming in. Showing a 2 under on the scorecard with three holes remaining in regulation, he “came on top” of his 6-iron from 167 yards away and poked it left of the green. His pitch ran out, and Lutz, of Reading, Pa., failed to convert a 12-footer for par, which pushed him into a deadlock with Domenick. Lutz, 55, couldn’t break the chains on his final two holes.

  Lutz, who’s ranked the No. 1 Senior Amateur by Golfweek, began his title journey by blasting his 4-rescue to three feet on No. 2 (par 3, 207 yards) and executing the under-par chance. An incorrect club selection on No. 5 (par 3, 148 yards) led to his first bogey of the day. He pulverized his 8-iron over the green and couldn’t recover. Lutz snaked in a 20-footer for birdie on No. 6 (par 4, 413 yards), and followed it up shortly with a left-to-right 15-footer on No. 8 (par 4, 407 yards) courtesy of a 135-yard, 9-iron set-up.

  Lutz couldn’t convert a five-footer to save par on No. 13 (par 4, 437 yards). His 7-iron sailed 157 yards and set up camp right of the green. However, on the challenging 14th hole, Lutz’s knocked his sand wedge 110 yards to three-feet and wiped up the birdie putt.

Super-Senior

  Like Lutz, Smith, of Villanova, Pa., triumphed on the first hole (par 4, 389 yards). His 9-iron approach from 130 yards out hooked left of the green. Howson, of Malvern, Pa., also pushed his 5-iron 170 yards to the left. His chip ran seven feet past the jar. Smith then removed the flagstick and placed his chip to within two feet. Howson’s par putt skirted the left edge, opening the door for a Smith tap-in-and-win.

  “It feels great,” Smith said. “I was very pleased with how I played. It’s nice to have a win today.”

  “I played pretty well to the end,” Howson, the Super-Senior victor in last year’s Chapman (Gross) at Philadelphia CC, said. “I would’ve liked to repeat. Congratulations to Smitty on the win.” Howson and Smith also dueled in last year’s Brewer Cup, which saw Howson attaining victory in extra holes at Old York Road CC.

  In regulation Thursday, Smith, 73, carded three birdies and four bogeys in regulation. On No. 2 (par 3, 181 yards), his 4-iron stopped four-feet from the flagstick, and Smith finished off the hole with a birdie. He went back-to-back on Nos. 4 (par 5, 474 yards) and 5 (par 3, 135 yards). On the first, he rolled in a tricky 15-footer, and on the latter, Smith halted his 8-iron at seven feet.

  Howson, 72, held the Super-Senior lead after firing a 25-footer for birdie on No. 15 (par 4, 380 yards), which put the 2009 Super-Senior Player of the Year at 2 under. However, he bogeyed his final three holes to finish tied with Smith for the title. A poor chip and two-putt from 25-feet on No. 16 (par 4, 388 yards) inflicted damage to Howson’s scorecard. He powered his 8-iron 142 yards into the bunker on No. 17 (par 4, 398 yards) and couldn’t get up-and-down. Howson’s approach on No. 18 (par 4, 308 yards) dropped short of the green. He reached it with a wedge from 60 yards away, but two-putted for bogey.