*Playoff/challenge schedule

Four advance to GAP Team Matches Playoff

  GAP Team Matches legacies will be created or enhanced this Saturday as four player-rich teams will battle in the Playoff. Little Mill Country Club, Merion Golf Club, Overbrook Golf Club and Philadelphia Cricket Club advanced after wins in Week Three. Each enters the Playoff with a different story to tell.

  Little Mill reeled off perhaps the most dramatic GAP Team Matches victory in Week Three, defeating 32-time champion Huntingdon Valley Country Club, 35.5-18.5.

  “It feels like we back-doored our way into the finals,” Little Mill’s captain Ryan McCarty said. “We feel like we have a second life.”

  Coming off a Week Two loss to Llanerch Country Club, Little Mill felt deflated as it prepared to oppose a then-unbeaten Huntingdon Valley team. However, the team prevailed in critical matches both home and away and earned enough points to leapfrog Huntingdon Valley by 3.5 overall. Little Mill’s Michael Hyland, the reigning Amateur Champion, defeated reigning William Hyndman, III Player of the Year Andrew Mason.

  “Going into it, we knew we needed the stars to align,” McCarty said. “We needed those key matchups to go in our favor. It was just fortunate it went our way that day.”

  That good fortune was evident among the final group on No. 18 at Huntingdon Valley. Little Mill’s Scott Bergson needed to make par or better; otherwise, Little Mill wouldn’t advance. Bergson canned a 30-footer for birdie.

  “In essence, Scott Bergson came up big for us in the end,” McCarty said.

  Now that it’s earned a spot in the Playoff, Little Mill can definitively defend its title.

  “We’re as strong as, if not stronger, than our team from last year,” McCarty said. “But with that said, I think every team has a chance. We’re pretty evenly matched.”

  In Section 4, Merion defeated RiverCrest Golf Club & Preserve, 42.5-11.5, to secure a Playoff spot for the third consecutive year.

  “Our team did great this year,” Merion’s captain Michael McDermott said. “We had 18 different guys play for us. To win the division and capture the most number of points [in AA} was really a great accomplishment.”

  Merion will continue to rely on its depth in the Playoff, where it will be without Patrick Knott, one of the team’s top performers this season.

  “Patrick’s been great,” McDermott said. “When you look at the Merion team, he may not be a name that people knew. I point to Week Two as a proving point for him. He played Michael Brown [2010 William Hyndman, III Player of the Year]. I thought that was a real test for Patrick and he got the win in a critical spot against Mercer Oaks.”

  Although Merion earned the most points in Division AA with 117.5, McDermott doesn’t believe it’s the team most likely to win.

  “I wouldn’t consider us the favorite but that’s why you tee it up and play,” he said. “We know this week is going to be tough. All four teams are very strong.”

  Philadelphia Cricket Club clinched its first Playoff appearance since 2007 with a 36.5-17.5 win over Fox Hill Country Club in Week Three.

  “We were all excited about our performance. We were fortunate to play well in all of our matches,” Philadelphia Cricket’s captain Robert Savarese, Jr. said.

  After its home team compiled 19 points on the Militia Hill Course, Philadelphia Cricket’s road warriors assured victory by posting a healthy 17.5 points. The club is a victory away from earning its first-ever GAP Team Matches title. Philadelphia Cricket is one of the Association’s founding Member Clubs.

  “We’ve been getting great feedback from other members at the club. There are a lot of people pulling for us internally,” Savarese said. “We’re thrilled.”

  Overbrook clinched a Playoff berth after defeating a tough Tavistock Country Club, 32.5-21.5.

  “We feel very happy and pleased. It’s special,” Overbrook’s captain Oscar Mestre said. “In the politely worded maturation process, you realize that the number of opportunities are dwindling. The core of the team has been together for a lot of years. It’s nice to have a shot at it.”

  Like Little Mill, Overbrook took critical match-ups in Week Three. Raymond Thompson, the reigning Senior Amateur Champion, grabbed 2.5 points from his bout against Tavistock’s Tom Gramigna, the 2010 Middle-Amateur Champion. Overbrook’s Francis McFadden swept his match against Jamie Slonis.

  “We’ve always felt that you line up people head-to-head and take your chances,” Mestre said. “We’re equally strong away and at home.”

  Overbrook holds six GAP Team Matches titles, its last coming in 1988. It’s thankful just to have an opportunity to end that drought.

  “Regardless of what happens, we’re going to enjoy it,” Mestre said. “That shot at the title isn’t always guaranteed.”