Yardley CC’s Glenn Smeraglio becomes oldest Joseph H. Patterson Cup winner since Hyndman

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PAOLI, Pa.–Glenn Smeraglio of Yardley CC finished the 106th Joseph H. Patterson Cup at 5-under-par on Thursday at St. Davids GC (par 70, 6,534 yards) and Waynesborough CC (par 71, 6,990 yards) to become the oldest Joseph H. Patterson Cup champion in 39 years. Smeraglio, 48, carded a 2-under 69 at Waynesborough CC in the morning and a 3-under 67 at St. Davids GC in his second round to become the oldest winner since legendary figure William Hyndman, III, took the 1969 Patterson Cup at age 58.

  “I think we have some of the best players around in the Philadelphia area. I’m just trying to hang with them,” said Smeraglio, who also captured the 1998 Patterson Cup. “We have a lot of young kids at Yardley so I’m used to playing with the young kids. They know how to go low. I think that helps me.

  “Five under for two rounds is good playing out here. It’s solid. So is it surprising? I don’t know. I don’t think of myself as an older guy until I play with the young guys and they hit it 30 yards by me. You know what, you still have to hit greens, you still have to putt and you still have to get the ball in the hole. I think I do that as well as anyone does.”

  Matthew Mattare of Saucon Valley CC finished a shot behind in second place and Geoffrey Cooper of Laurel Creek CC was third at 2 under.

  The victory also secured Smeraglio his third Silver Cross (2000-01), awarded to the player with the lowest aggregate score in the qualifying rounds of the Amateur Championship and the Patterson Cup.

  Smeraglio opened the fourth and final Major of the Golf Association of Philadelphia season at Waynesborough CC and finished at 2 under despite being a bit sloppy at times. On the front side, he carded red numbers on No. 1 (par 4, 368 yards) with a 9-iron to 15 feet; No. 7 (par 5, 547 yards) with a 125-yard wedge to 15 feet and No. 8 (par 4, 373 yards) with a 52-degree wedge to five feet and recorded one bogey, on No. 6 (par 3, 217 yards), when he pushed his drive right. On the back nine, he was a little back-and-forth. He birdied No. 13 (par 4, 403 yards) with a pitching wedge from 125 yards to 10 feet; bogeyed No. 14 (par 3, 175 yards) when he pulled a 7-iron left; birdied No. 15 (par 5, 554 yards) after a short chip to six feet; and bogeyed the lengthy 17^th (par 3, 254 yards) after coming up short of the green.

  Starting his second round on St. Davids GC’s back nine, Smeraglio had a non-descript opening set with a birdie and a bogey. He hit a 5-iron on No. 10 (par 3, 175 yards) into the left bunker and failed to get up-and-down but birdied No. 16 (par 5, 498 yards) from 10 feet to draw even at the turn.

  He then missed short birdie putts on his next two holes before a bolt of lightning, figuratively, struck. “I said to my caddie, I just remembered something about my putting. A little key that I had. I told him I’m going to make putts for the rest of the round. I really did. I putted great the rest of the way in.” Smeraglio would not reveal the key.

  He proceeded to birdie No. 5 (par 4, 426 yards) after knocking an 8-iron from 148 yards to 15 feet despite staring at one of the fastest putts on the golf course, a straight downhill challenge.

  “I gutted it,” said Smeraglio. “It went straight in the hole.”

  He followed that birdie with a 7-iron from 175 yards on the super difficult No. 7 (par 4, 464 yards), the distance was more like 190 considering the uphill, to five feet before making a fantastic pitch-and-putt on No. 8 (par 5, 488 yards) from eight feet to get to 5-under par for the day.

  “I gained at least a stroke with that birdie on No. 7. I know that is a disaster hole,” said Smeraglio.

  Mattare, playing a few groups behind Smeraglio, was the first-round leader after carding a 4-under 67 at Waynesborough CC in the morning.

  In the afternoon, Mattare then stood at 3 under on St. Davids after 15 holes when he rocketed a 3-iron from 219 yards to 15 feet on No. 16 (par 5, 498 yards). His quick downhill eagle try and chance to equal Smeraglio ran eight feet past. His comebacker lipped around the hole.

  Still, Mattare had life.

  A smooth 5-iron on No. 17 (par 3, 182 yards) stopped eight feet short of the hole and he drained the birdie to head to No. 18 (par 4, 392 yards) a shot behind. On the final hole, Mattare ripped a 3-wood on the dog-leg right to 84 yards before playing a smart chip that landed short and rolled to 12 feet right of the hole. Needing the putt, his effort stayed right.

  “It was a double breaker. From where I was standing behind the ball it looked right to left, on the other side it looked left to right. I figured it was inside right or right edge and when I got over the putt I said it has to be more than that,” said Mattare, 22, of Bethlehem, Pa. “I didn’t trust the original line. I pushed it a little bit and ran it by the edge. I should have just gotten up and hit it.”

  Smeraglio’s Silver Cross victory came with a 279 total. He finished six shots clear of Michael McDermott of Merion GC, last year’s winner, and Cole Willcox of Philadelphia CC.

  The Patterson Cup field consisted of 115 players.

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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.