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Date: Monday, April 27
Format: Each club will enter two two-person sides (any combination of open, senior, super senior, professional).
Each side will play an 18-hole four-ball stroke play round. The sum of the two four-ball scores will make up the team score. The lowest team score from either shotgun will be the overall champions.
Shotgun times: 8:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Defending champion: Keswick Club
Host site: The Foundry Golf Club
Hermitage claims 20th Club Championship title
(Hermitage's Charlie Hanson and Jordan Utley chat on the 12th green at The Foundry on Monday. Credit: Chris Lang/VSGA)
Story by Chris Lang | Video by Erin Strickler
POWHATAN -- Led by a stellar 8-under 64 from Jordan Utley and Charlie Hanson, Hermitage Country Club's "A" team posted an 11-under total of 133 to win the 83rd VSGA Club Championship by two strokes on Monday at The Foundry Golf Club.
The victory was Hermitage's second in the last four years and its 20th overall, having won its first title in the event in 1941 just before the sports world shut down for World War II.
The brother combo of Sam and Ben Beach shot a 3-under 69 to round out Hermitage's scoring.
Utley, a past VSGA Mid-Amateur Champion, and Hanson, a mini-tour pro, had a clean scorecard with eight birdies. The Beaches finished with four birdies and a bogey on the par-3 11th, the only blemish on Hermitage's scorecard.
Hermitage posted its score in the morning shotgun and had to sweat out challenges in the afternoon from Richmond's Lakeside Park Club and Fairfax's International CC. Lakeside's side of Drew Brockwell and John Rosenstock finished their round on The Foundry's first two holes, and Brockwell had an 8-iron approach after blasting a drive on the par-5 2nd, but he couldn't take advantage, hitting a wayward approach that led to him making par.
Lakeside's Brandon Ramsuer and Blanton Farmer posted a 5-under 67, with Brockwell and Rosenstock finishing at 4-under 68.
International got a 5-under effort from Mike Howell and Paul Gural and a 4-under showing from Lauren Greenlief and Jason Shin.
NOTABLE
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Utley and Hanson had the best four-ball round of the day, followed by Kevin Olson and Mason McCoy of Virginia Beach National, who shot a 7-under 65.
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Five sides shot four-ball rounds of 6-under 66: Magnolia Green GC's Liam and Noah Maclauchlan; Cavalier G&YC's Kellen Jordan and Jay Serrao; The GC at the Highlands' Troy Thorne and Luke Felker; The Foundry "A" side of Paras Pandya and Ren Schiffman; and Nottoway River's Cameron Yancey and Jay Carr.
- Farmington CC, Nottoway River CC, The Foundry GC's "A" squad, and Virginia Beach National GC all tied for fourth at 8-under.
- Last year's champion, Keswick Club, finished alone in eighth at 7-under.
QUOTABLE
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"Honestly, we both played a steady round, nothing crazy. We just ham and egged well. I played the par 3s pretty poorly, but he hit a great shot on every par 3. We only doubled up on two holes. It was just timing with our birdies." -- Charlie Hanson
- "I think it helps when you have someone like Charlie who is playing a lot these days. He's sharp throughout. For me, it gives me a bunch of confidence to do my own thing, because I know I have him as my backstop. He was great. He makes it easy on me." -- Jordan Utley
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"Last year was kind of starting and stopping a lot. This year, I feel pretty good heading into the season. So I'm trying to gear up. I played well 10 days ago and I played well again today. So hopefully I can keep it going this spring." -- Utley
- "I think there's a huge pride factor for us. For one, we had a second team here, so we wanted to kick their tails. But anyway, we feel like we have a history and a reputation of playing well in these team events. We always want to show up with our best." -- Utley