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| Huntingdon Valley's Trevor Bensel was one of two medalists at Running Deer. |
Bensel, Vannucci top Open Qualifier field at Running Deer
PITTSGROVE, N.J. – Ron Jaworski’s Running Deer Golf Club saw two different sets of weather and playing conditions on Monday: breezy and soft in the morning, perfectly warm and fast in the afternoon. Following along with the day’s polar-opposite theme, not one but two players came away with medalist honors; one from the morning wave, one from the afternoon.
| Scorecards |
History |
Little Mill Country Club’s Troy Vannucci and Huntingdon Valley Country Club’s Trevor Bensel each fired rounds of 3-under 69 in a Golf Association of Philadelphia Open Championship Qualifier to top a field of 114 players vying for 22 qualifying and three alternate spots. The duo shared the top spot in the final of two Open Qualifiers. The Championship proper will be played on July 22 at Philadelphia Cricket Club’s newly-renovated Wissahickon track.
Bensel, who currently calls Huntingdon Valley’s professional golf management program his second home, implemented a “conservative-yet-aggressive” approach on the day. Ultimately, Bensel’s success came on the putting green. To say Bensel’s flatstick was on fire would be a major understatement.
His round’s first two birdies were delivered after beautifully-placed sand wedges on both Nos. 4 (par 5, 522 yards) and 9 (par 5, 538 yards). The par 4, 356-yard 11th hole saw Bensel’s next birdie fall after he hit an 8-iron to 10 feet. He kept the momentum going by sinking birdies on both Nos. 13 (par 3, 204 yards) and 14 (par 5, 540 yards).
Having never played in a GAP competition before, Bensel, of Dresher, Pa., is looking to use his Open appearance as a way to make a bigger name for himself.
“This feels good because Philadelphia has some of the best players, amateurs and professionals, and I see a lot of that at Huntingdon Valley,” said the 20-year-old professional who plays in the Philadelphia PGA Section. “I’m just trying to get my name in there with the big dogs.”
At Running Deer, Vannucci also continued his impressive play during one of his first competitive rounds of 2015. Coming off a recent GAP Winter Series Player of the Year honor, Vannucci’s round of 69 added today’s medalist honors to his trophy case.
“My game has carried over from the winter,” said the 23 year old. “I’ve been posting good scores, but haven’t played too many competitive events so far this year. I was ready to tee it up today when it actually mattered.”
Vannucci, of Marlton, N.J., started his round with a red number and never looked back. On No. 1 (par 4, 394 yards), he holed a 10-footer followed by a successful six-foot birdie on No. 9. He dropped a 20-foot bomb on No. 10 (par 4, 395 yards) and a tough 15-foot attempt on No. 12 (par 4, 440 yards) to add to his birdie total.
His only mistake off the tee on the day came at No. 15 (par 4, 342 yards), where he pulled his drive into the left fescue area, and was forced to play his provisional. Vannucci then made “birdie” with his second ball for crucial damage control to save bogey. Talk about resilience.
Vannucci will make his first Open appearance this year at Wissahickon. He failed to qualify last year after shooting 78 at Greate Bay Country Club, missing the qualifying cut by three shots.
“In the past, I’ve played the course before its renovations. I definitely like it,” said Vannucci. “Everything is perfect and it's always in great shape. There are some tough players at Cricket. I’m looking forward to see how I do once I tee it up there.”
Another Little Mill product found his way to the top of the leaderboard when Michael Hyland turned in a 2-under 70. However, it wasn’t his club affiliation that was the key to his success.
It was the two-time Philadelphia Amateur champion’s caddie, who also happened to be his daughter.
“I haven’t seen her lot this summer, so it was great for us. She’s been busy, I’ve been busy,” said Hyland, 36, of Medford, N.J. “I’m trying to get her into golf but she's a huge softball player. She likes driving the cart around and she is really well behaved out there. Plus, I think she reads putts better than I do.”
Out of the 22 spots available, 12 were taken by amateurs and 10 by professionals. The final spot was claimed by Rob Savarese, Jr., who made birdie on the first playoff hole. The Cricketeer will play in this year’s Open at his home course. The last five champions have all been amateurs. In the prior 105 Opens before that, only 12 amateurs broke through with wins. The last professional to win the Open was Rich Steinmetz of Spring Ford Country Club in 2009.
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 151 Member Clubs and 57,000 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.
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Qualifiers
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Name, club
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Scores
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(a) Troy Vannucci , Little Mill Country Club
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69
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Trevor Bensel, Huntingdon Valley Country
Club
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69
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(a) Michael Hyland, Little Mill Country Club
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70
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Mike Meisenzahl, Shore Gate Golf Club
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70
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Colin Corrigan, Saucon Valley Country Club
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71
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Jakob Gerney,
Trump National Golf Club - Philadelphia
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71
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(a) Jalen Griffin, Talamore Country Club
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72
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(a) Mark Benevento, Jr., Greate Bay Country
Club
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72
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Jordan Gibbs, Gulph Mills Golf Club
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72
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Mike Furey, Mahoning Valley Country Club
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72
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(a) Christopher Ault, Burlington Country Club
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73
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(a) Matthew Finger, DuPont Country Club
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73
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(a) Blaine Lafferty, Burlington Country Club
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73
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Chris Krueger, Kings Creek Country Club
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73
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(a) Tom DiCinti, Old York CC at
Chesterfield
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74
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(a) Joshua Krumholz, Golden Oaks Golf Club
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74
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(a) Roland Massimino, Jericho National Golf
Club
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74
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(a) Lodie Van Tonder,
Sakima Country Club
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74
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Jason Panter, Sand Barrens Golf Club
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74
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Bertus Wessels,
Green Valley Country Club
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74
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Tom Michaels, Waynesborough Country Club
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74
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*(a) Robert Savarese, Jr., Philadelphia
Cricket Club
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75
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Alternates (in order)
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*Stephen Frederick, Lehigh Country Club
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75
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*(a) Louis Kelly, Jr., Philmont Country
Club
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75
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*(a) Mike Korcuba, Medford Village Country
Club
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75
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Failed to qualify
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(a) Bobby Svigals, Radnor Valley Country
Club
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75
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(a) Luke McKeogh, Commonwealth National
Golf Club
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75
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(a) Erik Reisner, Philadelphia Publinks GA
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75
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John Cooper, Jr., Green Valley Country Club
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75
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Greg Matthias, Tavistock Country Club
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75
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(a) John Dugan, Sea Oaks Golf Club
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75
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Kevin Nicholson, Makefield Highlands Golf
Club
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75
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Corey McAlarney, Elkview Country Club
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75
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(a) P. Chet Walsh, Philadelphia Country Club
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76
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(a) Tim Godshalk, Whitford
Country Club
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76
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(a) Gary Schoeman, Gulph
Mills Golf Club
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76
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(a) Daniel Mahoney, Lu Lu Country Club
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76
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(a) Stephen Freda, Greate Bay Country Club
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76
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(a) Justin Elwell, Valleybrook
Country Club
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76
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Shawn Matthews, Squires Golf Club
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76
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Eric Kennedy, Overbrook Golf Club
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76
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David Sandberg, Saucon Valley Country Club
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76
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(a) Rand Mendez, Fieldstone Golf Club
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77
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(a) Richard Marabella, Whitemarsh
Valley Country Club
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77
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(a) Cody Dazen, Tavistock
Country Club
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77
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(a) Gary McCabe, Jr., RiverCrest Golf Club
& Preserve
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77
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(a) Ryan Felpel, Meadia
Heights Golf Club
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77
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(a) Chris Meares, Running Deer Golf Club
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77
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(a) Sam Digaetano, Mercer Oaks Golf Course
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77
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(a) David Hicks, Wildwood Golf & Country Club
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77
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(a) Robert Wolfers, GAP Junior Players Club
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77
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(a) Tyler Sokolis, Commonwealth National
Golf Club
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77
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Andrew Turner, Whitford Country Club
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77
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(a) David Denlinger, Lancaster Country Club
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77
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(a) Kevin Haag, Makefield Highlands Golf
Club
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78
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Bill Walker, Riverton Country Club
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78
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Ryan Lagergren, Stonewall
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78
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(a) Brendan Bacskai, Applebrook
Golf Club
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79
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(a) Scott McKean, Chester Valley Golf Club
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79
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(a) William Mitchell, Laurel Creek Country Club
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79
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Vince Ramagli, Links Golf Club
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79
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Doug Delaney, Sand Barrens Golf Club
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79
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(a) Ben Litt, Riverton Country Club
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80
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(a) Dan Clark, Old York Road Country Club
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80
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(a) Brendan Borst, Philadelphia Cricket
Club
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80
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(a) Dan Wach, Blue Heron Pines Golf Club
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80
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(a) Kyle Henofer, Indian Valley Country
Club
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80
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Andy Watters, Talamore Country Club
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80
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Brian Levengood, Pine Valley Golf Club
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80
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(a) Kyle Ginty, Talamore
Country Club
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81
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(a) Jim Engler, Sea Oaks Golf Club
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81
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(a) Otis Baker, Gulph Mills Golf Club
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81
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(a) Vincent Kwon, Little Mill Country Club
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81
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John Tyrell, Running Deer Golf Club
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81
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Hugh Reilly, Jr., Huntingdon Valley Country Club
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81
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(a) Evan Galbreath, Philmont
Country Club
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82
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(a) John Donnelly, White Manor Country Club
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82
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(a) Brian Degnan, Philadelphia Publinks GA
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82
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(a) Liam McGrath, Huntingdon Valley Country Club
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82
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(a) Robert Dietrich, Loch Nairn Golf Club
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82
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(a) Troy Thierolf, Commonwealth National Golf
Club
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82
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(a) Joseph Hughes, Little Mill Country Club
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82
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(a) Matt Kocent, White Manor Country Club
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82
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(a) Mark Hill, Rolling Green Golf Club
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82
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(a) Trever Mertz, Golden Oaks Golf Club
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82
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(a) Joe Visalli, White Clay Creek Country
Club
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82
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Jeffrey Bonicky, Sea Oaks Golf Club
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82
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Robert Kave, GolfTEC-Moorestown
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82
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(a) L.J. Georgetti, Wildwood Golf &
Country Club
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83
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(a) Andrew Sterge, Applebrook
Golf Club
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83
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(a) Pierce Herbst, Greate
Bay Country Club
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83
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(a) Fraser Graham, Rolling Green Golf Club
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83
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(a) Alexander Kim, Blue Bell Country Club
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83
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Wesley Hollis, Patriots Glen National Golf Club
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83
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Mike Dynda, Meadowlands Country Club
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83
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(a) Jack Quirk, Huntingdon Valley Country Club
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84
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(a) Todd Smith, Trenton Country Club
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84
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(a) David Guertler, Laurel Creek Country
Club
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84
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(a) Joe Perese, Philmont
Country Club
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84
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(a) Kevin Turner, Philadelphia Publinks GA
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84
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(a) Wayne Lesage, Jr., Chester Valley Golf Club
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84
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(a) Matt Smith, Wilmington Country Club
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84
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(a) Mac Ryan, Overbrook Golf Club
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85
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(a) Kevin Maguire, Trump National Golf Club - Philadelphia
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85
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(a) Callum McCaslin,
GAP Junior Players Club
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85
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(a) Adam Sutovich, Brookside CC of Allentown
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85
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(a) Griffin Colvin, Concord Country Club
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86
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(a) Michael Flatley, Merion Golf Club
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87
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(a) Bobby Harrell, Links Golf Club
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87
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Jesse Corbett, Union League Golf Club at Torresdale
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88
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(a) Blake Vogdes, Wildwood Golf & Country
Club
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89
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(a) Ryan Conner, Jericho National Golf Club
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90
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(a) Justin Pak, Penn Oaks Golf Club
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90
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(a) J.T. Barker, Saucon Valley Country Club
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90
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(a) Ambrose Abbracciamento, Jericho
National Golf Club
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NS
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(a) Liam McAnally, Applecross
Country Club
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NS
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(a) Matthew Gaffney, Little Mill Country Club
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WD
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(a) Lance Oberparleiter, Little Mill
Country Club
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WD
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(a) Jim Macallister, Manufacturers Golf
& Country Club
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WD
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(a) Joseph Dulka, Bellewood Country Club
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WD
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(a) Sean Braddish, Medford Lakes Country
Club
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WD
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(a) Drew Petri, Jericho National Golf Club
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WD
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(a) Andrew Austin, Woodcrest Country Club
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WD
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Barry Dear, Links Golf Club
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WD
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* - determined in playoff; (a) - denotes amateur
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NS - no show; WD - withdrawal
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