Staying The Course
FRANKLIN TWP — The third time was not a charm for Jeremy Plaisted.
Instead, it worked out well for Geoff Patterson.
Both from Butler and both members of the Slippery Rock Golf Club, Patterson parred the No. 10 hole in a playoff Sunday, winning the 26th annual Butler Eagle County Amateur golf tournament at Lake Arthur Golf Club.
Mars resident Casey Morrow, entering her senior year at Bucknell University and a member of the golf team there, shot a 1-under-par 71 to win the Women's Division for the second consecutive year.Both Patterson and Plaisted shot a 4-under-par 68 for 18 holes, necessitating the first championship playoff in Eagle Amateur history.No. 10 served as the first — and only, as it turned out — playoff hole.Plaisted, 39, hit off the tee first, his ball slicing slightly right and coming to rest at the edge of the water.“Half the ball was sticking out of the water, but I couldn't hit from there,” Plaisted said in taking the one-stroke penalty.“I used a 3-wood on this hole when I played here yesterday (Saturday) and earlier today. I put it on the green both times, once for an eagle, once for a birdie.“This time, the shot didn't go too well,” he added.Patterson, 50, used an iron on his tee shot and kept the ball in the middle of the green. He chipped on from there, then had a two-putt to secure a par.“Seeing Jeremy's shot go in the water, I just wanted to play it safe, keep the ball down the middle,” Patterson admitted. “Had his drive stayed in play, I would have had to have been more aggressive.”Plaisted understood the strategy.“Absolutely. I'd have the done the same thing,” he said.Plaisted was able to chip on to the green, setting himself up for an approximate 25-foot putt to force a second playoff hole. He rolled the shot just left of the cup and Patterson had the win.
Neither Patterson nor Plaisted had won the Eagle Amateur before. Patterson became the 19th different champion in the tourney's history.Patterson had six birdies and two bogies during his regular round.“I had one putt from 25 feet. Besides that, my putts were fairly close,” Patterson said. “I hit every shot I should have gotten.“I finished second in this tournament once before. I've played it from time to time. Usually, I'm taking my son to a baseball tournament somewhere and I'm unable to play.”The pair will be playing in the Slippery Rock Golf Club championship in two weeks.“Maybe we'll go through something like this again,” Plaisted said.Trey Bartony, Bill Byerly and Kris Simmons all shot 72 during the afternoon round. Patterson and Plaisted both played in the afternoon round as well.None of the morning golfers made par. Rob Voltz, Nathan Hoshak and Bob Shakely all shot 1-over-par 73 in the morning.“The course was firm and the greens were in excellent shape,” Voltz said. If your shot was off-line, you were looking at a bogey or double bogey. You paid for it.”Putting woes hurt Shakely late in his round. He three-putted on his final two holes.“That definitely wound up costing me,” Shakely said. “I was hoping I'd be in the running for the Seniors trophy, though.”That award went to Patterson, however. The Seniors Division is age 50 and older.Morrow only had two bogies all day in defending her women's title. Paige Scott, an incoming Butler High School junior, finished three strokes behind.“The ball was really running today, it's been so dry without rain,” Morrow said. “I just wanted to keep my ball in play, hit it straight and play a steady round.”Morrow has won the Women's Division of the Eagle County Amateur in the only two years she's played in the event.“I had a lot of fun playing last year and I won, so why not come back and do it again?,” she said.Scott had five birdies on the day and was plagued by a triple-bogey on the 18th hole. She began her round on No. 16.“No. 18 is the toughest hole on this course,” Scott said. “All I wanted to do was keep the ball out of the water. I hit it and it just kept rolling.“It didn't go in the water, but it was right next to it. I decided to play from there and my next shot went in the water. That hole killed me.”But she did bounce back.“I've been working on my game mentally and it meant a lot to me to recover from that and play well,” Scott said.Defending overall champion Brent Rodgers of Cranberry Township did not enter the Eagle County Amateur until Saturday afternoon. He was the last official entrant and shot a 74, finishing six strokes back.Troy Loughry and Matt Malloy led the first flight with a 75. Cory Birckbichler and Jon Holtz topped the second flight with an 81. Art Raushenberger captured the third flight with an 85.There were 160 golfers registered for the event — most since the 2016 Eagle County Amateur at Cranberry Highlands.
