Stunning comeback victory at Member-Guest
NORWICH – Tom Ryan and his nephew Matt were hiding far down on the leaderboard Saturday at the Canasawacta Country Club member-guest tournament. They came out seeking on Saturday...seeking birdies.
The Ryans, buried near the bottom of the 12-team Masters Flight, completed the greatest comeback victory since the inception of stroke play to capture the 48th annual event.
“We were thinking about new blood winning this tournament, and these two were not a part of that new blood we were thinking about,” admitted C.C.C. head professional David Branham. “This was about as popular win as any team in this tournament.”
Languishing at even par after two rounds and tied for eighth out of championship dozen, all eyes were fixed on leaders Mike Branham and Bob Branham, who were bidding for a second title in three years. Also, the pairing of Tim Carson and Scott Seiler appeared a strong favorite just one shot behind the Branhams, while 2004 champions Doug Wilson-Joe Gutosky, and up-and-comers Tom Muserilli-Mike Conklin had realistic shots at a title with only three strokes to make up.
None of the aforementioned teams made a real dent in their scorecards, and only Wilson-Gutosky managed to hold at even par through the first nine holes.
Meanwhile, several groups ahead, the Ryans were collecting birdies like a squirrel collects nuts. After scrambling for par on the first hole, Matt stuck his wedge to 30 inches on the par-three second for the first of the team’s nine birdies on the day. Birdies followed on the third, fifth, and six holes until a slip-up bogey on seven. Still, the team regrouped quickly as Tom birdied the eighth hole. It was the type of beginning to the final round they could only have dreamed about.
“We’re were talking the night before with Kenny Stewart, and said, ‘what do we have to lose?’ Let’s go out and shoot a low number; you never know what will happen.” Tom Ryan said.
The progress this pairing made in just three years together is startling to say the least. The first season the duo fell short of the Masters flight. Last year, after an opening-round 66, the two shared the first-round lead and went on to finish fifth. Saturday completed the upswing.
“I didn’t think we had a prayer before the round,” Matt said. “Even if we went low, like a 64, we thought the groups ahead of us would be under par. “The 63 still hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
It wasn’t until the 15th hole, when the duo was already at 7-under-par for the tournament, that they caught wind of their contender status. The two promptly bogeyed the number two handicap hole on the course to fall back to 6-under-par for the tournament.
Behind them, the Branhams had failed to make a run and were at 4-under-par after 12 holes, while Carson and Seiler shared the Branhams’ four-under status. Seiler had an opportunity at an eagle putt on the par-five 13th hole for a share of the lead. He ran the putt by about six feet, and ending up three-putting for par. “That was the story of our tournament,” Seiler said afterward.
The usually unflappable Branham duo never made it easy on themselves, and even a birdie-four on 13 that put them one shot off the lead needed a full circle around the cup before dropping in. Over the last five holes, the Branhams failed to birdie a hole. “We didn’t have a real good day putting the ball,” Bob Branham said. “Good for them (The Ryans).”
Ahead, Matt and Tom Ryan both had good runs at birdie on 16, that after an admonition on the tee by Matt. “I just told Tom that we needed it to hold it together the last three holes and par out,” Matt recalled.
On 17, the difficult par-three and site of many a final-round calamity, both Ryans found themselves in trouble off the tee. Matt pulled his tee shot slightly left of the green. The ball tumbled down the hill through the sand trap and onto the cart part. The ball was headed toward the thickets, but the four-inch post that secured the railing running along side the cart path deflected the ball back onto the path. Matt received a free drop, pitched to within three feet, to salvage par. “The four inches (of the post) saved us,” Matt said, who conceded that the team most likely would have bogeyed the hole if not for the stroke of fortune.
Tom put the finishing touches on a 63 driving the ball to the right fringe pin-high to the par-four 18th flag, then he chipped to within 18 inches to set up an easy birdie. On the day, he had five birdies and his nephew totaled four. “Tom is the real horse of this group and I’m usually good for a birdie or two,” Matt said. “Today I made four, and it seemed like everything I putted looked like it was going in.”
Carson and Seiler improved one spot on their third-place showing a year ago with a birdie on the 18th hole for sole possession of second. The Branhams and Wilson-Gutosky tied for third at 4-under-par.
Other flight results
Joe McBride and his partner Collin Fraser of Australia, shot a final-round 73 to finish 4-over-par to claim a two-shot win in the Heritage Flight over runners-up Hal Skillin and Bob Berry. The McBride-Fraser team’s eagle-two on the par-four ninth hole kept the club at level par after the first nine holes. ...In the Doral Flight, Brad Hall and Bruce Balderston won a two-hole playoff over Doug Costin and Ted Provost. ...In the tightly contested Memorial Flight, one in which three teams shared the lead entering the final round, Joe Loftus and Brad Hagen had the low round of the bunch to grab the hardware. ...Eric Burrell and Rick Roswick, tied with brothers Aiden and Brendan Hannan after two rounds, shot a final-round 75 for the victory in the Colonial. ...In the Westchester Flight, Roger Clarkson and Dan Tacinelli had the lone sub-80 round in their flight to win by four shots over Corey-Hawkins. ...Mike McCormack and Kevin Perez earned a one-shot win in the International shooting a 78 to edge Barney Natoli and Tom Sommer. ...Lou DeMott and Matt Moore had the widest margin of victory winning the Bay Hill by six shots over Sergio-Stanton.
Scoring by Flight
Masters
Ryan-Ryan 70-70-63-203
Carson-Seiler 68-67-70-205
Branham-Branham 64-70-72-206
Wilson-Gutosky 70-68-68-206
Porack-Harmon 71-68-68-207
Muserilli-Conklin 69-68-71-208
Mirabito-Stewart 70-71-68-209
DeMellier-Gelsomin 69-71-71-211
Trojan-Trojan 69-70-73-212
Gorski-Cleveland 72-69-72-213
Gray-Loomis 68-69-78-215
Skillin-Balderston 71-69-75-215
Heritage
McBride-Fraser 71-70-73-214
Skillin-Berry 71-73-72-216
Bennett-Boyer 73-70-74-217
Johnson-Huhtala70-72-75-217
D. Eaton-Rivenburg 74-72-73-219
Kelly-Walton 73-72-77-222
P. Eaton-Benjamin 71-75-77-223
Doral
*Hall-B. Balderston 71-77-74-222
Costin-Provost 72-76-74-222
P. Ryan-T. Ryan 78-72-73-223
Testani-Haliquist 75-73-75-223
Georgia-Ross 72-77-75-224
Wheeler-Leonhardt 77-73-76-226
Hess-Peck 75-76-75-226
*Won in two-hole playoff
Memorial
Loftus-Hagen 72-80-75-227
Kelly-Wysor 78-74-76-228
Diorio-Derecola 78-74-77-229
Borfitz-Kozlowski 77-76-76-229
D.McBride-Witchella 78-74-79-231
Leibundgut-Leibundgut 77-76-78-231
Thall-Jones 78-76-79-233
Colonial
Burrell-Roswick 76-80-75-231
Borfitz-Spallone 79-79-75-233
Hannan-Hannan 77-79-80-236
Cola-Stalker 80-77-80-237
Mitchell-Flanagan 75-82-82-239
Maynard-Tomaszewski 83-78-79-240
Westchester
Clarkson-Tacinelli 79-84-78-241
Corey-Hawkins 83-80-82-245
Flanagan-True 86-78-81-245
Flanagan-Flanagan 81-84-80-245
Sastri-Schermerhorn 78-85-83-246
Voss-Trask 81-81-85-247
Gutosky-Gutosky 83-81-84-248
International
McCormack-Perez 81-85-78-244
Natoli-Sommer 90-77-78-245
Walsh-Sutton 80-87-79-246
Ferraresse-Smith 87-84-77-248
D. Adsit-Case 91-78-82-251
D. Flanagan-Boulton 83-87-82-252
Haskell-Haskell 84-83-85-252
**Bay Hill
DeMott-Moore 84-80-164
Sergio-Stanton 86-84-170
Swertfager-Shaheen 88-85-173
deCordova-Nugent 86-88-174
Guinn-Minor 83-91-174
Cevasco-Briggs 85-89-174
*Final round plus better of first two rounds counted toward final score.
The Ryans, buried near the bottom of the 12-team Masters Flight, completed the greatest comeback victory since the inception of stroke play to capture the 48th annual event.
“We were thinking about new blood winning this tournament, and these two were not a part of that new blood we were thinking about,” admitted C.C.C. head professional David Branham. “This was about as popular win as any team in this tournament.”
Languishing at even par after two rounds and tied for eighth out of championship dozen, all eyes were fixed on leaders Mike Branham and Bob Branham, who were bidding for a second title in three years. Also, the pairing of Tim Carson and Scott Seiler appeared a strong favorite just one shot behind the Branhams, while 2004 champions Doug Wilson-Joe Gutosky, and up-and-comers Tom Muserilli-Mike Conklin had realistic shots at a title with only three strokes to make up.
None of the aforementioned teams made a real dent in their scorecards, and only Wilson-Gutosky managed to hold at even par through the first nine holes.
Meanwhile, several groups ahead, the Ryans were collecting birdies like a squirrel collects nuts. After scrambling for par on the first hole, Matt stuck his wedge to 30 inches on the par-three second for the first of the team’s nine birdies on the day. Birdies followed on the third, fifth, and six holes until a slip-up bogey on seven. Still, the team regrouped quickly as Tom birdied the eighth hole. It was the type of beginning to the final round they could only have dreamed about.
“We’re were talking the night before with Kenny Stewart, and said, ‘what do we have to lose?’ Let’s go out and shoot a low number; you never know what will happen.” Tom Ryan said.
The progress this pairing made in just three years together is startling to say the least. The first season the duo fell short of the Masters flight. Last year, after an opening-round 66, the two shared the first-round lead and went on to finish fifth. Saturday completed the upswing.
“I didn’t think we had a prayer before the round,” Matt said. “Even if we went low, like a 64, we thought the groups ahead of us would be under par. “The 63 still hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
It wasn’t until the 15th hole, when the duo was already at 7-under-par for the tournament, that they caught wind of their contender status. The two promptly bogeyed the number two handicap hole on the course to fall back to 6-under-par for the tournament.
Behind them, the Branhams had failed to make a run and were at 4-under-par after 12 holes, while Carson and Seiler shared the Branhams’ four-under status. Seiler had an opportunity at an eagle putt on the par-five 13th hole for a share of the lead. He ran the putt by about six feet, and ending up three-putting for par. “That was the story of our tournament,” Seiler said afterward.
The usually unflappable Branham duo never made it easy on themselves, and even a birdie-four on 13 that put them one shot off the lead needed a full circle around the cup before dropping in. Over the last five holes, the Branhams failed to birdie a hole. “We didn’t have a real good day putting the ball,” Bob Branham said. “Good for them (The Ryans).”
Ahead, Matt and Tom Ryan both had good runs at birdie on 16, that after an admonition on the tee by Matt. “I just told Tom that we needed it to hold it together the last three holes and par out,” Matt recalled.
On 17, the difficult par-three and site of many a final-round calamity, both Ryans found themselves in trouble off the tee. Matt pulled his tee shot slightly left of the green. The ball tumbled down the hill through the sand trap and onto the cart part. The ball was headed toward the thickets, but the four-inch post that secured the railing running along side the cart path deflected the ball back onto the path. Matt received a free drop, pitched to within three feet, to salvage par. “The four inches (of the post) saved us,” Matt said, who conceded that the team most likely would have bogeyed the hole if not for the stroke of fortune.
Tom put the finishing touches on a 63 driving the ball to the right fringe pin-high to the par-four 18th flag, then he chipped to within 18 inches to set up an easy birdie. On the day, he had five birdies and his nephew totaled four. “Tom is the real horse of this group and I’m usually good for a birdie or two,” Matt said. “Today I made four, and it seemed like everything I putted looked like it was going in.”
Carson and Seiler improved one spot on their third-place showing a year ago with a birdie on the 18th hole for sole possession of second. The Branhams and Wilson-Gutosky tied for third at 4-under-par.
Other flight results
Joe McBride and his partner Collin Fraser of Australia, shot a final-round 73 to finish 4-over-par to claim a two-shot win in the Heritage Flight over runners-up Hal Skillin and Bob Berry. The McBride-Fraser team’s eagle-two on the par-four ninth hole kept the club at level par after the first nine holes. ...In the Doral Flight, Brad Hall and Bruce Balderston won a two-hole playoff over Doug Costin and Ted Provost. ...In the tightly contested Memorial Flight, one in which three teams shared the lead entering the final round, Joe Loftus and Brad Hagen had the low round of the bunch to grab the hardware. ...Eric Burrell and Rick Roswick, tied with brothers Aiden and Brendan Hannan after two rounds, shot a final-round 75 for the victory in the Colonial. ...In the Westchester Flight, Roger Clarkson and Dan Tacinelli had the lone sub-80 round in their flight to win by four shots over Corey-Hawkins. ...Mike McCormack and Kevin Perez earned a one-shot win in the International shooting a 78 to edge Barney Natoli and Tom Sommer. ...Lou DeMott and Matt Moore had the widest margin of victory winning the Bay Hill by six shots over Sergio-Stanton.
Scoring by Flight
Masters
Ryan-Ryan 70-70-63-203
Carson-Seiler 68-67-70-205
Branham-Branham 64-70-72-206
Wilson-Gutosky 70-68-68-206
Porack-Harmon 71-68-68-207
Muserilli-Conklin 69-68-71-208
Mirabito-Stewart 70-71-68-209
DeMellier-Gelsomin 69-71-71-211
Trojan-Trojan 69-70-73-212
Gorski-Cleveland 72-69-72-213
Gray-Loomis 68-69-78-215
Skillin-Balderston 71-69-75-215
Heritage
McBride-Fraser 71-70-73-214
Skillin-Berry 71-73-72-216
Bennett-Boyer 73-70-74-217
Johnson-Huhtala70-72-75-217
D. Eaton-Rivenburg 74-72-73-219
Kelly-Walton 73-72-77-222
P. Eaton-Benjamin 71-75-77-223
Doral
*Hall-B. Balderston 71-77-74-222
Costin-Provost 72-76-74-222
P. Ryan-T. Ryan 78-72-73-223
Testani-Haliquist 75-73-75-223
Georgia-Ross 72-77-75-224
Wheeler-Leonhardt 77-73-76-226
Hess-Peck 75-76-75-226
*Won in two-hole playoff
Memorial
Loftus-Hagen 72-80-75-227
Kelly-Wysor 78-74-76-228
Diorio-Derecola 78-74-77-229
Borfitz-Kozlowski 77-76-76-229
D.McBride-Witchella 78-74-79-231
Leibundgut-Leibundgut 77-76-78-231
Thall-Jones 78-76-79-233
Colonial
Burrell-Roswick 76-80-75-231
Borfitz-Spallone 79-79-75-233
Hannan-Hannan 77-79-80-236
Cola-Stalker 80-77-80-237
Mitchell-Flanagan 75-82-82-239
Maynard-Tomaszewski 83-78-79-240
Westchester
Clarkson-Tacinelli 79-84-78-241
Corey-Hawkins 83-80-82-245
Flanagan-True 86-78-81-245
Flanagan-Flanagan 81-84-80-245
Sastri-Schermerhorn 78-85-83-246
Voss-Trask 81-81-85-247
Gutosky-Gutosky 83-81-84-248
International
McCormack-Perez 81-85-78-244
Natoli-Sommer 90-77-78-245
Walsh-Sutton 80-87-79-246
Ferraresse-Smith 87-84-77-248
D. Adsit-Case 91-78-82-251
D. Flanagan-Boulton 83-87-82-252
Haskell-Haskell 84-83-85-252
**Bay Hill
DeMott-Moore 84-80-164
Sergio-Stanton 86-84-170
Swertfager-Shaheen 88-85-173
deCordova-Nugent 86-88-174
Guinn-Minor 83-91-174
Cevasco-Briggs 85-89-174
*Final round plus better of first two rounds counted toward final score.
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