Manufacturers G&CC’s Endicott takes Fall Net Championship

  DANIELSVILLE, Pa. — Jack Endicott of Manufacturers G&CC is notably recognized for his role in golf administration. He served as golf chairman at his home club for nine years and is currently Director of the J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust.

  Endicott flexed his competitive chops Wednesday. The Dresher, Pa. resident carded a 4-under-par 68 (net) to take the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Fall Net Championship at a scenic Woodstone CC (par 72, 6,261 yards).

  “It’s great,” a humbled Endicott said. “I haven’t done much in GAP events for quite awhile, so I was pretty happy. Anytime you win a GAP event, even though it’s a net [format], it’s an honor.”

  Endicott, a 13-handicapper, played the par 3s brilliantly. On No. 5 (par 3, 165 yards), he launched a 5-rescue to 20 feet and two-putted for a net birdie. Endicott overcame a poor a six-rescue shot on No. 8 (par 3, 144 yards) by stopping a wedge eight inches from the flagstick.

  “That was probably the turning point,” Endicott, 67, said.

  He knocked a 9-iron to 10 feet on No. 13 (par 3, 118 yards) and two-putted for par. On the par 3, 182-yard 16th hole, Endicott’s 4-wood encountered a howling wind and settled 30 feet below the flagstick. Endicott ran his birdie try five feet past the jar but canned the comebacker. Back-to-back net birdies on Nos. 17 (par 5, 506 yards) and 18 (par 4, 398 yards) hoisted Endicott to the top of the leaderboard. He hit a pitch to three inches on the first after missing the green in regulation. He smashed a 6-iron 155 yards to the front of the 18th green and two-putted.

  “Other than a couple of shots, I kept the ball in play and I chipped and putted pretty well,” he said. “I was pleasantly surprised with the golf course. The conditions were good and the greens were nice. It’s beautiful.”

  Before each Golf Association of Philadelphia tournament, John O’Rourke of McCall G&CC heads over to his home course to play a practice round. It prepares the Cherry Hill, N.J. resident for the task ahead.

  The early riser became a late bloomer Wednesday. He carded a 3-under-par 69 (net) to place second, boasting a 5 under (net) on his back nine.

  “Keeping your mind on the swing and not trying to swing too hard does show results,” O’Rourke, 60, said.

  A ball striking adjustment allowed O’Rourke, the 2009 Francis B. Warner Cup (Net) Champion, to climb into the passenger’s chair.

  “The drives got straightened out,” he said. “And when I went to No. 10, I just ripped a drive that went over the water with the following wind. That kind of started things. The drives seemed to be going really well. That was the difference. It was just a matter of slowing it [my swing] down. It seemed like every time I tried to get a little bit extra, I’d wind up pulling it left. I tried not to think as much as I normally do.”

  On No. 15 (par 4, 291 yards), O’Rourke punched a 5-iron 150 yards to 25 feet and two-putted for a net birdie. O’Rourke stopped a 2-iron at eight feet on the par 3, 182-yard 16th hole and cozied the birdie putt into tap-in territory. After catching the fairway bunker on No. 17 (par 5, 506 yards) with his second shot, O’Rourke, a GAP volunteer of nine years, exploded out with a 7-iron from 144 yards. He nestled a 30-foot chip shot to two feet. O’Rourke capped his superb stretch with an uncanny up-and-down on No. 18 (par 4, 398 yards). His drive settled in a thin patch of rough between a bed of stones and a water hazard. Standing in a miniscule landing area, O’Rourke, a 19-handicapper, hit a low 9-iron 119 yards to seven feet and watched his birdie effort slide a foot past the jar.