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By Chris Lang
VIRGINIA BEACH — On a windswept Tuesday at Cavalier Golf & Yacht Club, Midlothian’s Scott Bemberis posted a 1-under-par 68 for a two-day aggregate total of 4-under 134 to earn stroke-play qualifying medalist honors at the 75th Virginia State Golf Association Senior Amateur Championship.
Low scores were hard to find on Tuesday, as only Bemberis, Midlothian’s Steve Serrao and Montpelier’s David Jordan managed to shoot under-par rounds—all posted 1-under 68s. Not coincidentally, those are the top three seeds heading into the match-play portion of the event, which begins on Wednesday morning with the round of 32. The round of 16 is slated for Wednesday afternoon.
The quarterfinals and semifinals are scheduled for Thursday, with the 18-hole championship match slated for Friday morning.
Serrao shot 68-68—136 and finished two shots behind Bemberis. Jordan posted rounds of 69 and 68 for a 1-under 137 to finish alone in third.
THE STORY
Bemberis (Independence GC) sat down at scoring after Tuesday’s round and said it was a stressful two days of qualifying. It wasn’t just the wind, which whipped continually on Tuesday, keeping scores on the higher end. As Serrao (Willow Oaks CC) noted, “there’s a disaster ready for you on every hole, especially with out of bounds on both sides. That’s the thing, in qualifying, you just have to avoid disaster.”
Bemberis navigated the conditions as well as anyone over the two days of qualifying. Cavalier is not long, checking in at less than 6,000 yards for this championship. The challenge is in the shotmaking and the ability to stay out of trouble. Bemberis said that iron play is a strength of his, and he was able to keep the ball in the fairway for the most part and leave himself reasonable iron distances into Cavalier’s greens.
Bemberis made four birdies and three bogeys on Tuesday and closed his round with five straight pars.
Bemberis will open match play against Robert Nussey, one of two players to survive a five-man playoff for the final two spots. The other was Steve Williams, who will open match play against Serrao.
“I think this is going to be a great match-play course,” Bemberis said. “There’s a lot of thinking that goes on, just playing medal play. But then you add the layer of match play and you’re thinking about what your opponent has done and how it affects you, I think there’s going to be a lot of thinking. It’s a short course, but it’s challenging.”
Serrao, the 2019 Senior Amateur champion and 2022 VSGA Senior Stroke Play winner, also finished with four birdies and three bogeys. He was a finalist at last year’s Senior Amateur.
“Hopefully, I can relax and just be more aggressive off the tee tomorrow,” Serrao said. “That’s the thing in match play, as long as I’m playing well, and I’m confident enough to be aggressive, then I can shoot a good score and make someone do something special to beat me. That’s all I ever really try to do.”
Jordan (Willow Oaks CC) has plenty of good memories of Cavalier, having won the VSGA Senior Stroke Play here in 2019. Jordan was 4-under for the day Tuesday through 14 holes before leaking oil down the stretch, making three straight bogeys before settling down for a par on 18.
“I’ve been playing pretty good coming in, and I putted pretty good today, until I three-putted three of the last four holes,” said Jordan, who advanced to the semifinals in last year’s championship. “I love this course. It’s in fantastic shape. The goal is accomplished—to get into match play. Now the fun begins.”
Among those who qualified for match play after tough starts on Monday were two-time defending champion Buck Brittain (The Virginian GC) and VSGA Senior Player Rankings points leader Jon Hurst (Fredericksburg CC). Brittain was one of five players tied for sixth at 3-over 141 after shooting 70-71. Hurst rallied from an opening-round 73 to shoot an even-par 69 and tie for 11th to comfortably qualify for match play.
Brittain hasn’t lost in this event since earning medalist honors in 2019 at The Homestead’s Cascades Course before falling to Philip Mahone in the round of 32. He’ll look to keep his eight-match winning streak rolling on Wednesday against past VSGA Amateur champion David Passerell.
“I think I’m a good grinder,” Brittain said. “I don’t hit it out of play a lot. I keep it in play, and usually, I can save myself with the putter. The last two days, it hasn’t been working, but maybe it will start tomorrow.”
NOTES
- Bemberis on earning medalist honors: “I’m proud. In fact, I think I’m going to pick up the phone and call Glenn Mullian (past Senior Amateur champion) and give him a pat on the back. Twenty years ago, when I started playing tournament golf, he was a mentor of sorts. He was a competitor, but he taught me a lot about playing tournaments. And I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t play all those rounds with him way back when.”
- Along with Brittain and Serrao, two other past champions reached match play. David Partridge, who won this event here in 2015 and Rich Buckner, the 2017 champ, are still alive. Partridge will face Steven Galing and Buckner will meet Mark Alonzi.
- Serrao is on the same side of the bracket as his brother Jay, though the earliest they could meet is in the quarterfinals.
- Cavalier members Jay Serrao, Jeffrey Flax and Bill Williard all advanced.
- Among those who missed match play were 2018 champion Cam Young, 2017 finalist Duncan Hardcastle and 2019 finalist Dave Pulk, a two-time Senior Open of Virginia winner.
Lang is the VSGA’s manager of media and communications.