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Dan and Charles Bernard capture 10th Deeg Sezna Four-BallAVONDALE, Pa. — Call them the Bernard bombers. Charles and his son Dan scorched Hartefeld National (par 72, 6,363 yards) to the tune of an 8-under-par 64 to take the 10th Deeg Sezna Four-Ball Tuesday. The Malvern, Pa. residents birdied all five par 5s en route to a sensational score.
“It’s nice to do it together,” Charles, a RiverCrest GC & Preserve member, added. “That’s special. We’ll always remember it.” Dan, 20, set a torrid tone for the Bernard team immediately. He nearly reached the No. 1 (par 5, 536 yards) green in two strokes with a 4-iron from 225 yards out. He nestled a chip to six feet. On No. 4 (par 4, 400 yards), Dan, a junior at Bucknell University, knocked a pitching wedge 121 yards to 12 foot and converted the left-to-right breaker for birdie. He and Charles matched birdies on No. 5 (par 5, 507 yards). Dan two-putted from seven feet after a commanding 6-iron shot. Laying three in the fairway bunker, Charles smacked a sand wedge 82 yards to five feet below the hole. The Bernard bombers moved to 4 under following a birdie on the strenuous par 5, 445-yard No. 8. A ball-decimating Dan pierced a pitching wedge 132 yards to 15 feet below the flagstick and two-putted. As Dan dominated the par 5s, dad Charles played the par 3s perfectly. He stopped a smooth 6-iron at six feet on No. 11 (par 3, 152 yards) and snaked in a sizzling 2. “I seemed to be the short specialist,” Charles, 54, said. Dan balanced power and grace on the downhill par 5, 539-yard 13th hole. He rocketed a 3-wood 244 yards, lofted a chip to nine feet and cleaned up the birdie putt. The Bernard team’s only birdie on a par 4 occurred on the 362-yard 15th hole. Charles smashed a sand wedge 88 yards to five feet. Dan cleared the par 5 plate with a birdie on No. 16 (par 5, 513 yards). He hammered a 4-iron 230 yards to 15 feet below the flagstick and two-putted.
“It’s a great tournament. We really like the golf course a lot,” Charles said. “We enjoy coming here. My brother, the boys (Joe and Dan) and I like it.” Defending champions Cameron Liebert of White Manor CC and Marc Mandel of Philadelphia Cricket Club were one of four teams who carded a 6-under-par 66 to finish second. Junior-Junior Wilmington CC’s Chris Anderson and Davis Mitchell carded a bogey-free 67 to top the Junior-Junior Division. “The main thing was to come out here in memory of Deeg,” Chris, who won last year’s Junior-Junior crown alongside nephew Brett, said. “I knew Deeg and watched him grow up. I think the tournament his father started was a great idea. I was supposed to be his (Mitchell's) mentor today, but I was just the par-man. It was really neat. It means a lot to not only play in it, but to win it as well.” Mitchell, 13, dug the duo into red figures on No. 5 (par 5, 507 yards) when he lofted a chip to seven feet and lagged in the downhill birdie putt. Mitchell hit an attack wedge 115 yards to six feet for a 3 on No. 7 (par 4, 364 yards). He and Anderson, 49, traded birdies on No. 13 (par 5, 539 yards); Anderson canned a downhill 15-footer, Mitchell a six-footer following a lob wedge shot from 70 yards. A birdie on the par 5, 513-yard 16th brought the Wilmington, Del. residents to 4 under. Mitchell sealed red on the scorecard with a birdie on No. 18 (par 4, 354 yards). He knifed a pitching wedge 130 yards to six feet.
“I can’t believe he’s only 13 because I’ve been admiring his game for years now,” Anderson, who captured back-to-back Golf Association of Philadelphia Amateur titles in 1982 and 1983, said. “He played great. He’s fun to watch.” “He was the best partner I could have,” Mitchell added. He was consistent. He hit a lot of great shots. It was fun playing with him. It will be a memory that I cherish forever.” The tournament, which celebrates the mentorship of the older generation for its younger counterparts, is named in honor of Davis "Deeg" Sezna, Jr., 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, GAP and his father, Davis Sezna, Sr., established the Deeg Sezna Four-Ball, 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.
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A Walk Through Time
GAP is the oldest state or regional golf association in the country. It started courtesy of a friendly competition – the Team Matches – and has grown into the preeminent golf association in the country. Along the way, golf history has been made.
