Merion Golf Club defended its Senior Club Team Challenge title once again in dramatic fashion. It edged Little Mill Country Club by 1.5 points in the Playoff Oct. 27.
“It’s quite satisfying,” said Everett, 71, of Harleysville, Pa. “We had good support from the guys in the appropriate age bracket to compete, so there was a lot of interest this year. Winning in consecutive years is nice. A three-peat would be cool also but we will take it as it comes.”
Merion used a 15-point performance from Bill Charpek and Everett at Little Mill to seize control of the lead. Robert Harrington and Donald Dissinger kept that lead with a 13.5-point total at DuPont Country Club.
“We have two really good top players in (J. Kirk) Luntey and Charpek,” said Everett, Merion’s captain. “Then we have a contingent of guys behind that are solid players as well. We can show up with eight guys that play pretty well. We have really good depth. That is what separates us from the competition.”
That depth was evident. Schedule conflicts prompted Everett to dig a tad deeper on his chart. With the prospects of a three-peat on the line next year, Everett hopes he can solidify his team earlier than usual.
“The key for next year will be scheduling,” said Everett. “This year we had guys who couldn’t play because of other commitments. Some guys leave the area at this time of the year. There are many different forces that make it tough to schedule guys in advance but if we can work that out we can be competitive next year.”
Open to Golf Association of Philadelphia Member Clubs, the Senior Club Team Challenge features teams of eight; format is singles match play (gross only). Matches are scored as a Nassau with one point awarded for each of the nines. Participating clubs each host a pair of foursomes on Saturdays in October. Those foursomes are slotted in a four-team bracket, with the winners of each section competing in the Senior Club Team Challenge Playoff. Brackets are regionalized.
Golf Association of Philadelphia
Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) 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 260 Full Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across Eastern Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey and Delaware. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
