BUCKINGHAM — Juan Lopez of Finley and Brels Solomon of Upper Lake won the 18th annual Lake County Two Man Scramble held Saturday and Sunday at Buckingham Golf and Country Club.
The scramble format entails a two-person team continuously playing the better shot of the pair as they work their way around the golf course. If one partner hits the ball into the trees and the other knocks it up the middle, the team plays the next shot from the center of the fairway and picks up the ball that was in the trees.
Lopez and Solomon opened play Saturday with a 9-under-par 63 for a one-stroke lead over the Ukiah twosome of Brett Lunde and Graham Beard. Lopez and Solomon jumped out to a three-shot lead after five holes on Sunday morning and never looked back. They carded an identical 63 during second-round play for a 126 total and a three-shot margin of victory. Lopez and Solomon also won the Two Man Scramble in 1997 and 1999, prior to Solomon playing college golf and turning professional. He is now a reinstated amateur.
In addition to three wins with Solomon as his partner, Lopez has found the winner”s circle in this event five other times, coming in first four times with Craig Kinser of Lakpeort and winning it another time with John Seed of Sea Ranch.
Beard and Lunde played solid golf on Sunday but couldn”t gain ground on the Lopez-Solomon team during the course of the final nine. They recorded a second-day score of 65 and finished in solo second with a 129 total. In third place was the team of Hipolito Perez Jr. of Kelseyville and Brad Pendleton of Lakeport. Perez Jr. and Pendleton carded scores of 69 and 64 for a 133 aggregate.
Net flight
In a tightly contested net flight for golfers with handicaps of 10 and higher, Norm Rentsch of Lakeport and Javier Castaneda of Kelseyville recorded net rounds of 60 and 63 to record a 123 total and a one-stroke margin of victory over three teams. One stroke back after play on Saturday, Rentsch and Castaneda played steady golf on Sunday and were able to hold off all of their challengers.
Defending net champions Jack Lucich of Clearlake and his son, Jon Lucich of Pacifica, were among the trio of runner-ups with net scores of 63-61 for a 124 total. Jack Buell and Pat Chambers, both of Kelseyville, made the biggest move up the net leader board but came up just short as they shot rounds of 64-60 for a 124 aggregate. Peter Wotherspoon of Buckingham and Darren Hostetler of Finley matched the 124 total with scores of 60-64. First-round leaders Rick Easter of Lakeport and Todd Colbrandt of Middletown rounded out the top five with scores of 59-68 for a 127 aggregate.
Other net teams included seventh-grader Matt Wotherspoon of Buckingham and partner Evan Allen. They finished sixth with net scores of 62-66 for a 128 total. Craig Werner of Kelseyville and his uncle, Mike Smith of Susanville, came in seven with 131 (64-67); John Flynn of Cobb and Armond Urbano of Middletown were eighth with 138 (71-67); and Tom Salie of Kelseyville and Don Joseph of Buckingham were ninth with 141 (71-70).
Senior flight
Craig Kinser and Alan Mathews, both of Lakeport, won the senior flight for golfers ages 50 and older. Kinser and Mathews shot a senior division-leading 68 on Saturday to jump out to a two-stroke lead. They built on that lead Sunday with a second-round 70 for a 6-under-par 138 total. Four strokes back in second place were the defending senior champs, Kelseyville High School golf coach John Berry and Jerry Pangle of Lakeport, with a 142 total (70-72).
Hidden Valley Lake golfers Jack Streeter and Jeff Martin finished third with scores of 70-73 for a 143 total. Burlingame residents Steve Spina and Bill Gilmartin were fourth with 145 (74-71).
Senior net flight
In the senior net division, Frank Kosta and Ted Knowles of Kelseyville recorded net scores of 61-66 for a 127 winning total. One shot back was the twosome of Jesse Santana of Kelseyville and Dr. Bob Jolin of Lakeport with 128 (64-64).
A total of 20 two-man teams competed in this year”s Two Man Scramble, which was played under sunny skies and with almost no wind. Following completion of play Sunday, tournament director and Buckingham PGA professional Mark Wotherspoon recognized the four golfers who were On The Links golfers of the year for 2012. They were Lopez, senior golfer of the year Berry, net golfer of the year Castaneda, and senior net golfer of the year Leonard Lea.
The next event on the Lake County Amateur Golf Circuit calendar is the Lake County Match Play on April 6-7 at Buckingham.
