*Results
BMW GTM: Status quo streams through Week OneThe BMW GAP Team Matches picked up right where it left off a year ago. Reigning Playoff participants Aronimink Golf Club, Little Mill Country Club, Philadelphia Cricket Club and defending champion Overbrook Golf Club remain in the headlines thanks to Week One victories. They join Back Creek Golf Club, Glenmaura National Golf Club, Huntingdon Valley Country Club and Llanerch Country Club tied atop Division AA at 1-0. Partly sunny skies and temperatures in the mid 60s set the scene for opening week of the nation’s oldest interclub competition. Overbrook proved its championship moniker by posting a 45–9 win over Yardley Country Club (0-1). “There can almost be nothing worse than losing your first because then you know it’s an uphill battle,” Oscar Mestre, Overbrook’s captain, said. “If you win, you know you’re still in the game for at least one more week. That does give you a little boost and a little energy. Wining your first week keeps getting to the Playoff a possibility.” Overbrook will next encounter Huntingdon Valley on its road to a repeat. Both clubs carry a longstanding history of meetings within the BMW GAP Team Matches top-tier. “At this stage, I don’t know if there are many surprises between Overbrook and Huntingdon Valley,” Mestre said. “We’ve always known — and you have to be crazy not to know — that the past runs through Huntingdon Valley. We’re all trying to have the success that they kind of invented. It’s great competition and great camaraderie all at the same time. We’re looking forward to it.” So is the Huntingdon Valley team following a 29.5–24.5 win over Merion Golf Club (0-1). Captain Dan Pinciotti labeled the effort “hard fought” and lauded the team’s battle mentality. He hopes that attitude continues in Week Two against Overbrook. “We are a complete underdog. We know that they’re stacked,” Pinciotti said. “Their guys at home know that golf course inside and out, and the guys that they send away know our golf course. It’s going to be tough, basically smoke and mirrors I guess. “We don’t have the most solid of teams like an Overbrook or a Philadelphia Cricket. We’re just trying to throw some guys together and hopefully they all play well together and get a win.” Philadelphia Cricket, the 2013 titleholder, proved how solid it is by issuing a commanding 45.5–8.5 victory over Mercer Oaks Golf Course (0-1). Its road team posted 23 points — nine of which came from Marc Mandel and Jack Wallace in the Nos. 5 and 6 spots. “We’re very happy with the result and very excited to get the season off on a strong leg,” Robert Savarese, Jr., Cricket’s captain, said. “We had a number of guys who played very well at home, and we had a number of guys on the road that played real well, too. All in all, I’m very excited about the start. I couldn’t be happier.” Philadelphia Cricket next turns its attention toward Commonwealth National Golf Club (0-1), which fell to Back Creek Golf Club, 33–20.5. The team may pick the brain of Ryan Gelrod, a former Commonwealth member. “Having some insider knowledge certainly will help,” Savarese said. “I’m optimistic about next week.” In its triumph over Commonwealth, Back Creek held strong at home by tallying 21 points. Matt and Mike Hall, a father and son tandem, totaled 7.5 points in a match-up against youngsters Cody Fitzpatrick and Luke McKeogh. Back Creek’s Andrew Baldo and Charles McClaksey also earned three points apiece at home. Little Mill knocked off Huntsville Golf Club (0-1), 39–15, in Section II. Chris Hunger and Raymond Pawulich, stepping in for staple Tom Hyland and newcomer James Gillespie, contributed 2.5 points to the triumph. Team captain Michael Hyland, a two-time BMW Philadelphia Amateur Champion, played in the No. 6 spot due to a back injury and reeled off three of Little Mill’s 20 away points. “We set the line-up in an order where we felt we could make the most points,” Hyland said. “I got made fun of [for playing No. 6]. I could only swing about 60 percent. I wore massage pads all day long. It was unexpected. I got lucky on a few holes.” Like Little Mill, Llanerch used a strong road performance in defeating Fox Hill Country Club (0-1), 39.5–14.5. “You never know what you’re going to get when you go up to Scranton, with a lot of the clubs up there and a lot of good players that we don’t really see that often,” Tom Spano, Llanerch’s captain, said. “We were fortunate enough to get the W.” Carlo Fitti, Cory Reighard and James Wingerter each swept their individual matches at Fox Hill. Most of Llanerch’s away team will again travel west for a Week Two match-up against Huntsville, Spano said. A hefty road point total favored a Scranton area club in Glenmaura National. It posted 22.5 points en route to a 36–18 triumph over Tavistock Country Club (0-1) in Week One. Member Gary Phillips birdied three of the last four holes in a match against William McGuinness, a former BMW Philadelphia Amateur Champion (1996) and runner-up (2007). “The away team — obviously they get all of the credit in the world. To go and get that result on the road is an incredible performance on their part,” Matthew Dougherty, Glenmaura National’s captain, said. “To come away with a win against a team like Tavistok, you have to feel good about it, as we do. We certainly didn’t take them lightly." Glenmaura National next faces Division AA newcomer White Manor Country Club (0-1), which lost to Aronimink, 29.5–24.5. A Playoff team in 2014, Aronimink saw sweeps from Dan Bernard and Joseph Fabrizio at home and from the pairing of Douglas Schroer and Cory Siegfried on the road.
Golf Association of Philadelphia
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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.
