#PattersonCup Qualifying: Green Valley

Mandel’s sizzling summer continues, shoots 65 for #PattersonCup Qual. medal

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LAFAYETTE HILL, Pa. – Philadelphia Cricket Club’s Marc Mandel’s golf game has started to mandate red numbers each time out.

Wednesday at Green Valley Country Club (par 71, 6,632 yards), Mandel continued his sizzling summer run, firing a 6-under 65 to earn medalist honors in Joseph H. Patterson Cup Qualifying presented by Provident Bank.

The day’s cut line stopped at 5-over 76.

The 119th #PattersonCup tees off Aug. 4-5 at Manufacturers’ Golf & Country Club. It is the second oldest championship in GAP at 119 years old and serves as the Association’s stroke-play championship.

Today marked the first of three Patterson Cup Qualifying events on the schedule. The next will be conducted July 20 at Frosty Valley, followed by July 22 at White Clay Creek Country Club.

Mandel, Cricket’s Stroke-Play Club Champion and recent GAP Open Championship Qualifying medalist at Trenton Country Club, began with a bang, making three birdies in a row early on. On No. 2 (par 4, 378 yards), a sand wedge from 117 yards landed within a foot for the tap-in 3. The par-5, 522-yard 3rd hosted the second after Mandel chipped up to five feet and jarred the birdie 4. The third in a row dropped on No. 4 (par 3, 192 yards) after a 7-iron came to rest 15 feet away and the birdie putt was converted. Five pars coming in on Green Valley’s first side equaled a 3-under 33. Pretty good start.

“I felt pretty good about Qualifying at that point. I just wanted to keep it going and see where [the round] would go,” said Mandel, 39, of Plymouth Meeting, Pa.

Another hot streak surfaced beginning on No. 12 (par 4, 367 yards) with a left-to-right 15 footer that crept over the front lip for birdie. A 20 footer on No. 13 (par 4, 405 yards) for 3 kept that momentum going. After missing a 30-foot birdie look on No. 14 (par 4, 382 yards), Mandel’s trusty 3-iron got him going again on No. 15 (par 3, 215 yards), which he placed to 12 feet and made the sliding putt for a red 2. Coming in, three more pars, including a clutch two-putt from 50 feet on No. 18 (par 4, 399 yards), completed the eye-opening 65. He bettered the rest of the field by four shots.

Today’s number marks a career low in GAP competition for Mandel, matching his 7-under 65 in the 2011 GAP Open Championship Qualifier at Radley Run Country Club.

“It feels awesome knowing my game is peaking at the right time. It feels like I am playing like I did back then. This is the lowest my handicap has ever been, too” said Mandel, currently playing as a +2.2 Index.

Mandel says his confidence in his putter this year, which includes a claw grip experiment, has made remarkable difference. Three putts have started to be more rare than ever. Birdies from mid-range are dropping — just like his scores.

Now with two Major Qualifying medals in tow, Mandel will get a pair of cracks at the ultimate GAP prize to finish the summer. Besides the Patterson, he’ll try his hand at vying for a GAP Major title in the Open Championship at Country Club of York. Sprinkle in a few USGA Qualifying events, and Mandel is ready to cash in on his game peaking at the prime moment.

“It really comes down to combining my swing, which I’ve been feeling really good about all year, with my putter,” said Mandel. “I hope to keep it going. It’d be great to win one of these [GAP Majors], maybe make a USGA event, and also earn some exemptions. I just have to keep doing what I’m doing.”

GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The Association’s 274 Full Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across the Eastern half of Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey and Delaware. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.

About Provident Bank

Provident Bank, a community-oriented financial institution offering “Commitment you can count on” since 1839, is the wholly owned subsidiary of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS), which reported assets of $12.92 billion as of December 31, 2020. With $9.84 billion in deposits, Provident Bank provides a comprehensive suite of financial products and services through its network of branches throughout northern and central New Jersey, as well as Bucks, Lehigh and Northampton counties in Pennsylvania and Queens County in New York. The Bank also provides fiduciary and wealth management services through its wholly owned subsidiary, Beacon Trust Company and insurance services through its wholly owned subsidiary, SB One Insurance Agency, Inc. For more information about Provident Bank, visit www.provident.bank or join the conversations on Facebook (ProvidentBank) and Twitter (@ProvidentBank).