BUCKINGHAM — Hidden Valley Lake Golf Course superintendent Billy Witt staged a classic comeback over the course of the final nine holes Saturday to capture the 30th annual Lake County Open Golf Championship at Buckingham Golf and Country Club.
Witt carded a 6-over-par 78 to win his fourth Lake County Open title. He prevailed by one stroke over Matt Wotherspoon of Cypress College and by three strokes over Finley resident Juan Lopez.
Witt shot an uneven 7-over-par 43 on his front nine in rainy and windy conditions. He trailed Wotherspoon by three strokes and Lopez by one going into the final nine. As the rain subsided and the conditions became more pleasant, Witt played great golf to catch the twosome ahead of him on the leader board. Paired with Lopez but playing in the group ahead of Wotherspoon, Witt was unaware of where he stood once he completed his round. However, his 1-over-par 35 on the final nine was just enough to prevail and vault him into victory lane.
On the par-412th hole, Witt made a birdie-three to pick up two strokes on Wotherspoon, who made a bogey-five. On the back-to-back par-3 14th and 15th holes located at Buckingham’s far corner, Wotherspoon went bogey/double-bogey while Witt went par-bogey to jump out to a one-stroke lead. Both golfers made birdies on the par-5 16th hole.
Witt’s lead increased to two shots when he made par on the watery 17th hole while Wotherspoon made bogey. Wotherspoon birdied the difficult par-4 18th hole, but Witt was already in the clubhouse having made par on the last hole to secure his one stroke victory. Witt has won previous Lake County Opens in 2010, 2014 and 2019.
Wotherspoon shot a 3-over-par 39 on the back nine for a 79 total. Lopez shot 42-39 for an 81 to finish third. Wyatt Ferrell of Kelseyville was a distant fourth with 87 while Dylan Harrison of Mount Hannah rounded out the top five with a 88.
Witt and Lopez also finished first and second, respectively, in the senior flight for golfers age 50 and older. Rick Easter of Lakeport and Jesse Santana of Kelseyville tied for third place with rounds of 88.
Net division
The most competitive flight of the day was the net division as Enrique Monsante of Kelseyville, Dr. Bob Jolin of Lakeport and Clear Lake High School’s top golfer, Nathon Lopez, finished in a three-way tie atop the leader board after posting scores of 2-under-par net 70.
In the ensuing playoff, Monsante and Lopez recorded net birdies on the first playoff hole to eliminate Jolin. Monsante then made a difficult up-and-down on the second playoff hole to card a net birdie and beat Lopez by one stroke. It was Monsante’s first stroke-play victory on the Lake County Amateur Golf Circuit.
Tim Brown of Lakeport finished two strokes out of the playoff. His net 72 was good enough for fourth place. Kelseyville High School varsity baseball head coach Billy Shaul came in fifth with 74.
Senior net flight
In the senior net flight for golfers age 50 and older with handicaps of 10 or greater, Dr. Bob Jolin’s net 70 was more than enough to win this division. Rick Easter was second with 75, Mel O’Meara of Upper Lake finished third with 76 while Jesse Santana’s 77 was good enough for fourth place.
It was Dr. Jolin’s fourth Lake County Open senior net title. He also won in 2011, 2014 and 2017.
Schedule
The next tournament on the season-long Lake County Amateur Circuit is the Lake County Three Person Championship May 15 at Buckingham. The Three Person is contested under the scramble format and it can be a proverbial birdie-fest as golfers get to pick the best shot of the three-person team. Entries for this event are available from the Buckingham Pro Shop.
