BUCKINGHAM >> Brad Pendleton of Lakeport captured the 24th annual Lake County Tournament of Champions Golf Tournament on Saturday at Buckingham Golf and Country Club. Played under idyllic conditions at the base of Mount Konocti, the tournament featured a front-nine shootout between Pendleton and Lake County Junior champ Matt Wotherspoon, the likes of which have never been seen in the history of the Lake County Amateur Golf Circuit.
Pendleton birdied the par-3 second hole and Wotherspoon birdied the par-4 fifth hole. Both golfers stood at 1-under par through six holes and were tied atop the leader board. Wotherspoon birdied the seventh and ninth holes to make the turn at 3-under-par 33. However, you can’t play defense in golf and as outstanding as Wotherspoon’s performance was during the opening nine holes, he found himself three strokes out of the lead as Pendleton eagled the par-5 seventh hole, birdied the par-4 eighth hole, and then eagled the par-5 ninth hole to make the outward turn at 6-under-par 30. Neither Pendleton nor Wotherspoon could maintain their blistering pace as Wotherspoon carded a 38 on the back nine to shoot a 1-under-par 71 while Pendleton shot a 37 on the inward nine for a 5-under-par 67 and a four-stroke margin of victory.
Juan Lopez of Finley finished in third place with a score of 79. Two tournament records fell on Saturday as Pendleton’s 67 is the lowest recorded round in the history of the TOC. Wotherspoon’s runner-up 71 is the best round of golf for a TOC runner-up (most years it would have been more than good enough to get him into the winner’s circle).
Senior flight
In the senior division for golfers age 50 and older, Kelseyville High School golf coach John Berry prevailed in overtime to win the Senior TOC. Berry started slowly and found himself at 7-over-par through the first four holes. Through nine holes he was five strokes off the pace set by Clearlake’s Todd Colbrandt, who carded a front-nine 39. Berry righted the ship on the back nine, got his short game in gear, and carded an 84 for a 12-over-par finish. Rick Easter of Lakeport used his power game to shoot matching nines of 42-42 to tie Berry at 84.
On the first playoff hole, Berry hit a 5-wood second shot to the left of the first green and then chipped from there to 4 feet from the cup for par. Easter hit a big tee shot, but fanned his short iron to the green and ended up embedded in the corner of the first-hole hazard. It took Easter two more shots to get near the green and he conceded the sudden-death playoff at that point.
Dr. Bob Jolin of Lakeport finished in third place with 86, two strokes out of the senior playoff. Leonard Lea of Clear Lake Riviera and Colbrandt finished tied for fourth place with 18-hole totals of 87.
Net, senior net flights
In the net and senior net divisions for golfers with handicaps of 10 and greater, Colbrandt parlayed his excellent front nine to a net total of 4-under-par 68 to win both divisions. Jolin was three shots back with a 71 while Easter carded a 72. Joe Del Prete of Kelseyville finished in fourth place with a 73.
Top golfers
The season-ending TOC also marked the finality of the four races for On The Links Lake County Golfer of the Year honors. With his win in Saturday’s TOC, Pendleton eclipsed Billy Witt to win the overall golfer of the year title. He also was golfer of the year in 2011 and 2015. Easter won the senior golfer of the year race by a runaway margin while Colbrandt prevailed in both the net and the senior net races, which is a first for the Lake County circuit. Colbrandt was the net golfer of the year in 2008 and is a repeat senior net golfer of the year, having won that title last year.
Schedule
The Tournament of Champions concludes the 24th season of operation for the Lake County Amateur Golf Circuit. The local circuit hosts nine open tournaments for amateur golfers, one senior event and two junior tourneys.
The Lake County Amateur Golf Circuit begins its 25th season of operation in February with the playing of the One Man Scramble.
