Alex Mulrooney (left) and Mark Wachter won with the lone red card Monday.

DuPont duo of Mulrooney, Wachter wins Deeg Sezna at Radley Run

  WEST CHESTER, Pa. — The dynamic DuPont Country Club duo of Alex Mulrooney, a Junior golfer in the midst of a scorching summer streak, and Mark Wachter, a Golf Association of Philadelphia Middle-Amateur regular, were yoga classmates when they first met. They've now flexed into GAP’s newest champions.

  On a day where red numbers were hard to come by, Mulrooney and Wachter teamed up to fire a 2-under 70 to win the title in the 17th The Deeg Sezna at Radley Run Country Club (par 72, 6,303 yards). Monday’s lone subpar round earned them the Junior Boys’ crown. They topped all 37 teams competing on the day over five Divisions.

  Their card’s first of four red numbers came on No. 7 (par 5, 488 yards). With the event being a selective drive/alternate shot format, the duo went with Wachter’s drive just in the left rough, leaving 240 yards in. Mulrooney’s 3-hybrid approach landed just short of the green, but a well-executed chip by Wachter left a straightforward five-footer that was converted for birdie. The next came on No. 9 (par 4, 331 yards), where Mulrooney hit a driving iron into the center cut of the fairway, leaving Wachter with a wedge from 120 yards out. The elder teammate tossed the approach shot to 15 feet, leading to a jarred roll by the talented youngster. The eventual champs made the turn at 1 under.

  The third birdie arrived immediately on the back, on No. 10 (par 4, 336 yards). Wachter blasted a drive, making way for a Mulrooney flop shot over a greenside bunker from 40 yards out that nestled to six feet. Wachter drained it to move to 2 under.

  Although a bogey blemish surfaced on No. 14 (par 4, 364 yards) in result of a three putt, they’d bounce back with a highlight play on No. 16 (par 5, 531 yards). After a perfect Mulrooney drive and Wachter approach, Mulrooney threw a wedge dart into the green from 50 yards out, leading to another birdie conversion by Wachter from five feet. Two pars on the way in, including a clutch eight-foot par make by Wachter on the finisher (par 4, 430 yards), completed the winning 2-under round.

  “It was a solid round. We did have two holes where we three putted, but it was solid all around,” said Wachter, 50, of Wilmington, Del.

  As previously mentioned, the two first met in a yoga class, which is also attended by Mulrooney’s mother, Debbie. From there, the connection was stretched, and an eventual bond of champions was forged.

  “We first met there. Then, Mark emailed me asking me to play in [The Deeg Sezna], but I didn’t really know what the event was,” said Mulrooney, 15, also of Wilmington, Del. “Honestly, it was a really fun format. You have the chance to get aggressive off the tee, and it’s not too easy, either."

  “It was a great day with a great format. It’s always fun to play something different,” said Wachter.

  Mulrooney is used to having a good time on the golf course this summer. It’s been an absolute breakthrough party for the rising sophomore at Concord High School. Today’s trophy only adds to the signature success he’s garnered in the span of a few months.

  “I got off to somewhat of a slow start,” said Mulrooney. “I started well at the [GAP Open Championship], and ever since, I’ve been working on the swing a bit. I’ve just been making a ton of birdies this summer.”

  His tied-for-sixth finish as the youngest player in the #GAPOpen field opened eyes, including the second-round card of 3-under 67 Mulrooney fired at St. Davids Golf Club. The teenager then went on to win the Delaware State Golf Association Junior Championship (July 25-26) at Maple Dale Country Club. A week later, he utilized a 7-under 65 in the final round to finish tied-for-16th in the DSGA Open Championship at Heritage Shores Club.

  “Luckily I recruited him for today before he started getting hot,” said Wachter, who earned a victory in last year’s GAP Four-Ball Championship at Chester Valley Golf Club alongside partner Michael R. Brown, Jr. “I’ve already got Matt Finger asking me to recruit him for the [BMW GAP Team Matches]. We’ve got a lot of talent at DuPont.”

  It seems The Deeg Sezna agrees.

Noreen Mohler & Grace Simenson

Junior Girls'
  In the Junior Girls’ Division, it was Northampton Country Club's Noreen Mohler and RiverCrest Golf Club & Preserve's Grace Simenson who came out victorious on the sizzling day at Radley.

  A 1-over 37 on the front propelled the duo to the top of the leaderboard. Their second-side score of 43 was still enough to earn them the trophy, resulting in a 7-over 80 and a five-stroke edge over the others.

   “We played so well on the front. Unfortunately, we found some three putts on the back, but it was good enough to get the job done,” said Mohler, a GAP Executive Committee Member.

  The two first met at the Pennsylvania Golf Association Junior Championship six years ago at Hershey Country Club, where Simenson took the Junior-Junior Girls’ title. It’s been a flourishing friendship since then.

   “We’ve kept it touch ever since,” said Mohler, 64, of Bethlehem, Pa. “We plan to continue to do so when Grace leaves for school in two weeks.”

  That date is when Simenson will head to the University of Texas, where she plans to major in biomedical engineering. She says her plan is to continue playing golf, whether that be walking on or with the Longhorns' club team.

   “It feels awesome to get a trophy today,” said Simenson, 18, of Phoenixville, Pa. “I’ll make sure to bring it with me to school and put it in a place where my roommate can see it every day.”

  The Junior-Junior Boys’ Division was won by Tavistock Country Club’s Nathan Guertler and Adam Warner, who finished with a 6-over 78 for the triumph over a four-team field.

  The Junior-Junior Girls’ victory went to Kennett Square Country Club's Taylor Hollander and Mary Dunigan, who carded a 15-over 88 for the trophy, topping one other team.

  In the Mixed category, Whitemarsh Valley Country Club’s Casey and Paul Oppenheimer took the top spot with a 3-over 76, bettering a field of three duos.

  The Deeg Sezna celebrates the mentorship of the older generation for its younger counterparts. It is named in honor of Davis "Deeg" Sezna, Jr. of Hartefeld National, who lost his life on Sept. 11, 2001 in the attack on the World Trade Center in New York City.

  Deeg, an avid golfer long a mentor to his younger brothers Teddy and Willy, and a recent graduate of Vanderbilt University with a degree in economics, was in his sixth day of work on the 104th floor of the South Tower when the terrorists struck.

  To memorialize his name, the Golf Association of Philadelphia and his father, Davis Sezna, Sr., established the Deeg Sezna, pairing a junior player and an older amateur in a better ball competition, with a minimum age difference of 10 years and the stipulation that the younger player be 21 or younger. The goal is to give experienced golfers quality time with the next generation, and vice versa.

Golf Association of Philadelphia
  Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 260 Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.