BUCKINGHAM — One of those old-time golf adages is that you can”t win a golf tournament during round one, but you sure can lose it during opening-round play. Yet Brad Pendleton of Lakeport turned that philosophy upside down this past weekend as he ran away with the 22nd annual Lake County Open golf championship contested at Buckingham Golf and Country Club. Pendleton”s win was completely tied to his brilliant play during first-round action Saturday.
Pendleton opened play Saturday morning and caught fire from the start. When the round had concluded, he had recorded five birdies and two eagles to card a 5-under-par 67 and jump out to a 14-stroke lead over playing partners Juan Lopez of Finley and Hipolito Perez Jr. of Kelseyville. In fact, on a day when the scoring was tough, the only golfers in the entire field to shoot in the 70s were senior flight golfers Leonard Lea, who shot 77, and Hipolito Perez Sr, the greenskeeper at Buckingham, who shot 78.
On Sunday, Pendleton shot a routine 74 to record a two-day total of 3-under-par 141. He was never pressured for his place atop the tournament leader board and he ended up beating Lopez by a whopping 17 strokes. Lopez shot a 77 during second-round play for a 158 total. Perez Jr. was next with scores of 81-84 for a 165 total.
Net flight
In the net flight for golfers with handicaps of 10 and higher, Dr. Keith Long of Buckingham made a big move during Sunday”s final round to go from four shots out of the lead to four shots ahead of the field. Long opened play Saturday and shot a net 74, four shots behind Joe Del Prete of Kelseyville and three shots away from runner-up Rick Easter of Lakeport. On Sunday, while the scores of his fellow competitors hovered at net par and above, Long ran off an array of net pars and net birdies to record a net score of 67, seven shots better than anyone else in the field. Long”s net total of 141 bested Easter, who came in at 71-74 (145), and Del Prete, who finished third at 70-77 (147). Jack Lucich of Clearlake finished fourth with 154 (78-76). Locked in a tie for fifth place were Sean Lyon of Clear Lake Riviera and John Flynn of Cobb. Lyon posted rounds of 78 and 77 for a 155 total. Flynn shot 79-76 (155). Darren Hostetler of Lakeport was on shot back in sixth place at 156 and Jim DeCristofaro of Lakeport came in at 157.
Senior flight
In the senior flight for golfers ages 50 and older, Hipolito Perez Sr. ran away from the rest of his division, firing a 152 (78-74) for a six-stroke margin of victory. Perez Sr. is the longest driver of the golf ball among the senior set and he was able to dominate the par-5s throughout the weekend. In second place was Manny Mendoza of Buckingham with a 158 (81-77). In third place was Craig Kinser of Lakeport at 162 (84-78). Leonard Lea of Clear Lake Riviera shot 165 (77-88) and Kelseyville High School golf coach John Berry rounded out the top five with 171 (86-85).
The next event on the Lake County Amateur Golf Circuit calendar is the Three Man Scramble, which is scheduled to be held May 18-19 at Buckingham.
Entry forms are available at area golf course or by calling the Buckingham pro shop at 279-4863.
