Prairie Landing Golf Club
Host of the 2011 Chicago Championship
The 2011 Chicago season ended a whole lot better than how it started. Prairie Landing offered perfect conditions with the typical wind and as usual in great shape except for water damage to the right side of the 11th hole. The first hole at Prairie Landing increases the energy level that already exists with first tee jitters. With a fairway that slopes to the right toward a large water hazard and winds that usually blow from left to right forcing player’s to play left. If a player goes too far left, they end up with a blind shot to the green which is protected by a water hazard to the left front edge. Those who had the courage and length will drive over the right hazard which requires at least a 230 yard drive to carry the hazard; a great starting hole for the Championship.
The Chicago Championship was visited by 50 Tour Members anxious to end the season as the Champion of Chicago within their respective flight. There is nothing like the first tee when a player’s name is announced as they try to contain the nerves to hit a quality shot. As many soon found out, success on the first hole did not mean success throughout the day. Though the nerves may have calmed, there were still plenty of holes that presented challenges requiring well positioned tee shots.
For some, the tournament ended all too soon as players struggled to maneuver the first 6 holes. Congratulations to all the Champions.
CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHT: 2011 Champion – Jim O’Connor
The Championship Flight was contested by two players; Jim O’Connor and John Thom from the Milwaukee Tour. Both competitors struggled on the first hole scoring a double bogey to start their Championship. Joe Thom was unable to get anything going and had a stretch of bad holes that put him 6 strokes back shooting a 46 on the front nine. The back nine didn’t fare much better except for a lonely birdie on the par three 14th hole. Joe closed out his first round scoring a nine on the par five 18th hole for a round of 91. Jim O’Connor managed to find a birdie on the par five 7th but a bogey on eight gave him a front nine round of 40. Jim went on to post a 39 on the back and increase his lead by 12 shooting a first round 79. The second round started out the same way for Joe Thom as it did in round one with a double bogey and he needed a lot of help from Jim if he were to get back into the Championship. Jim closed out the tournament shooting an 81 for a two day total of 160 to win the Championship.
PALMER FLIGHT: 2011 Champion – Steve Dlugosinski
Steve Dlugosinski got off to a fast start paring the first and birdying the second. With a bogey on 8 and a par on nine, Steve went out in 36. Jacob Honath birdied hole’s 6 and 7 to get his round to even par but closed the 8th and 9th at four over for a front nine of 40. Jacob fought hard to stay within striking distance but a triple bogey on the par five 13th pushed him four more strokes back when Steve birdied the same hole. When round one finished, Steve Dlugosinski had a 7 stroke lead over Jacob Honath and nine stroke lead over Dan Steinman. Steve, Jacob and Dan were in the final pairing in the Palmer Flight. All three started their second round bogeying the first hole and paring the second. Steve really poured on the pressure when he pared the next eleven holes followed by a birdie to get him back to even par after thirteen. Steve cruised home with an easy victory and posted the low two day total with a score of 149.
HOGAN FLIGHT: 2011 Champion – John Mauck
John Mauck was not the early leader after the first two holes posting double bogies to start his Championship run. When the front nine ended on day one, John Mauck, Jim Cannon and DeRell Durr were all tied at 42. Brad Easterling was also in the hunt after four holes but was unable to stop the slide on holes five through nine posting a 49 on the front; seven strokes back. Brad managed to post a 37 on the back but it was Jim Cannon who took the lead putting up a 39 to head into the final round one stroke ahead of John and five ahead of DeRell and Brad. Jim Cannon, John Mauck and Brad Easterling were in the final group in the Hogan Flight. DeRell Durr was in the group ahead of the leaders but his struggles continued and he quickly fell out of the hunt. Jim posted a 48 on the front; 10 strokes back of John Mauck. Brad Easterling posted a round of 77 which usually is a strong run at the leader, except on this day John Mauck posted the 2nd lowest score of the day with a 75. Over the two day tournament, John scored 7 birdies to finish with a winning two day total of 157.
SENIOR HOGAN FLIGHT: 2011 Champion – Mike Coble
Jeff Bassett had to withdraw with a back issue and the field was reduced to four competitors. Ron Hoxsey took a strong lead posting a front nine 40 and a 7 stroke lead over Mike Coble. Tom Ward and Rick Wilson were unable to get anything going to challenge Ron and until the back nine, it appeared Ron was in control of the tournament. Mike Coble came charging back on the back posting a score of 36 to go along with his front nine 47 for a first round 83. When the first round came to an end, it was a two man race between Ron Hoxsey and Mike Coble who were tied at 83. With a 9 stroke lead the pair new one of them should emerge the champion. Mike Coble managed only 5 pars in his second round shooting a closing round of 85, but the key was he never put up a crooked number. Ron Hoxsey was not so fortunate as he drop 5 strokes back with a triple on hole number two and a nine of the par four 5th hole. Mike avoided the big numbers and finished with a score of 85 for a two day total of 168 to win by 6 strokes.
SARAZEN FLIGHT: 2011 Champion – Chuck Gleason
Mark Titone is headed to the National Championship as a Sr. Hogan and has been the dominant force in the Sr. Sarazen ranks in his rookie year. It was Chuck Gleason who took the early lead by two strokes posting a 42 on the front while both Mark Titone and Richard Wright posted 44’s. Mark Titone made a charge on the back nine shooting an even par 36 for a first round lead by two strokes with a score of 80. Richard Wright finished his first round 5 strokes back shooting an 85. Chuck Gleason shot two strokes better on the back but ended the day two strokes back with a first round score of 82. The final pairing was Chuck Gleason, Mark Titone and Richard Wright. Richard started out strong firing a birdie on the first hole but for the next twelve holes fell fast and out of the race. Chuck Gleason took over the lead with a birdie on hole 4. When the front nine ended, Chuck Gleason now had a two stroke lead over Mark Titone. When the pair reached the 34th hole, they were both tied. Chuck took charge again with a birdie on 16 and a Par on 17 for a two stroke lead and a winning two day total of 159.
JONES FLIGHT: 2011Champion - Thomas Jankowski
Tom Jankowski and John Carrato both finished their first round with a score of 96, eleven strokes back. Jorge Arteta (85), Solomon Ardison (88) and Randy Simonson (90) appeared to be in charge of the flight with their first round scores. John Carrato posted a final round of 88 and a glimmer of hope. Unlike the lower flights, an eleven stroke lead might seem daunting, but in the Jones flight things can change quickly. Tom Jankowski finished strong and turned in a closing score of 85 for a two day total of 181 and John Carrato finished with a closing score of 184. When Tom was summoned from the restaurant area, he thought he was coming to collect Skins money. When it was announced that he had won the Championship in the Jones Flight, he was stunned. The leaders Jorge Arteta (102), Solomon Ardison (98) and Randy Simonson (104) hit a wall and were unable to stop the slide they were on. In a 36 hole tournament, anything can happen and it was Tom Jankowski who improved his first day round by 11 strokes giving him a shot. He would have never expected all three leaders to close with the low score among them to be a 98.
SNEAD FLIGHT: 2011Champion – Clay Koenig
Don Fiets was in the house early with a 94 with a one stroke lead over John Pacheco (95), three ahead of Dan Locke and a five stroke lead over Bryce Hanson and Clay Koenig who both shot 99. Even Brian Booker (103) and Tom Lally (108) were still in the hunt because just like the Jones Flight, things can change fast in the Snead Flight. Don Fiets was in the very last group of the day and was unable to finish his round due to back pain. Don withdrew for fear of making things worse and with National’s a couple weeks away, he did not want to risk further damage. Little did Clay Koenig know that Don had dropped out of the competition or the troubles that john Pacheco and Dan Locke were having behind him. Clay posted a final round of 91 but didn’t believe it would be good enough to catch the leaders. When Clay saw Don at the scoring area, he was the leader in the clubhouse with two players yet to come in. John Pacheco triple bogied three holes and a quad on the par five 4th hole to lose by two strokes with a final score of 97. Dan Locke never got anything going and was unable to make a run and finished third with a two day total of 195. Clay Koenig was standing around the scoring area hoping he finished in the money and won some skins. His reaction was similar to Tom Jankowski and one in disbelief that he had won the Championship. Clay posted the low round for the Snead Flight with a 91 for a two day total of 190.
Congratulations to the winners of their respective flights and thank you all for a wonderful season!
CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHT
160 (79-81) | Jim O’Connor | Champion $60 Gift Card & Trophy |
PALMER FLIGHT
149 (76-73) | Steve Dlugosinski | Champion $150 Gift Card & Trophy |
165 (85-80) | Dan Steinman | $70 Gift Card |
173 (83-90) | Jacob Honath | $20 Gift Card |
HOGAN FLIGHT
157 (82-75) | John Mauck | Champion $130 Gift Card & Trophy |
163 (81-82) | Jim Cannon | $50 Gift Card |
163 (86-77) | Brad Easterling | Lost to Jim Cannon in score card playoff for 2nd |
SENIOR HOGAN FLIGHT
168 (83-85) | Mike Coble | Champion $110 Gift Card & Trophy |
174 (83-91) | Ron Hoxsey | $30 Gift Card |
SARAZEN FLIGHT
159 (82-77) | Chick Gleason | Champion $200 Gift Card & Trophy |
162 (80-82) | Mark Titone | $120 Gift Card |
174 ( 85-89) | Richard Wright | $60 Gift Card |
175 (95-80) | Mark Giebelhausen | $40 Gift Card |
JONES FLIGHT
181 (96-85) | Tom Jankowski | Champion $130 Gift Card & Trophy |
184 (96-88) | John Carrato | $50 Gift Card |
SNEAD FLIGHT
190 (99-91) | Clay Koenig | Champion $170 Gift Card & Trophy |
192 (95-97) | John Pacheco | $90 Gift Card |
195 (97-98) | Dan Locke | $50 Gift Card |
198 (103-95) | Brian Booker | $30 Gift Card |
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