David Brown reacts to his birdie putt on No. 15 (par 4, 448 yards).

Brown, Charpek top U.S. Senior Amateur Qualifier at LedgeRock

  MOHNTON, Pa. — A pair of mild-mannered, matter-of-fact mashers shared medalist honors in a U.S. Senior Amateur Qualifier administered by the Golf Association of Philadelphia at LedgeRock Golf Club (par 72, 6,854 yards) Monday.

  David Brown, winner of the 2017 Pennsylvania Golf Association Senior Amateur Match Play, and William Charpek, the 2015 New Jersey State Golf Association Senior Amateur Champion, carded respective 2-under-par 70s to advance to the Championship proper. Don Donatoni, the four-time reigning GAP Super-Senior Player of the Year, Christopher Clauson of Lu Lu Country Club and LedgeRock’s own Scott Mayne rounded out the qualifiers.

  The U.S. Senior Amateur will take place Aug. 26-31 at The Minikahda Club in Minneapolis, Minn.

  “It was a pretty clean golf round. I missed some short putts early,” Brown, 56, of Ligonier, Pa., said. “I’m hitting my driver a littler straighter [this summer], for whatever reason. I hit some good drives here today. I was out of position only once or twice.”

  “I hit very well and very close on a lot of holes, frankly,” Charpek, 60, of Holmdel, N.J., said. “I didn’t really putt that well. I misread a number of putts. I bet I had four or five makeable putts that I didn’t make.”

  The birdies Brown and Charpek left on the LedgeRock table? Unused decorative pieces in the end. The ones made by both proved to be the entrees needed for Senior Amateur sustenance.

  The co-medalists both birdied the par 4, 345-yard 16th hole. Brown did so by knocking a 54-degree wedge 65 yards to 17 feet; Charpek a sand wedge 75 yards to three feet. In fact, Charpek’s sand wedge became a trusty confidant on the LedgeRock hillsides. It set up three-foot conversions on Nos. 3 (par 4, 340 yards), 12 (par 4, 279 yards) and 13 (par 5, 556 yards).

  The red painted on No. 16 allowed both Brown and Charpek to approach the strenuous par 4, 424-yard 17th hole with a lighter load of stress. After missing the elevated green right with a 5-iron, Brown, A member of Champion Lakes Golf Resort, swung hard with a wedge and stopped his third shot five feet from the flagstick. He cleaned up the par putt.

  Charpek, with leaderboard flexibility at 3 under, played the 17th as a par 5. The Merion Golf Club member lifted his approach into a collection area a tier below. A flipped wedge and two putts meant a bogey and minimal scorecard damage.

  “I could give one away there. It’s a tough hole,” he said.

  Brown’s competed in 10 USGA championships overall. His last appearance came in the 2012 U.S. Senior Open. Brown, Recent runner-up in the R. Jay Sigel Match Play Championship, will bring a singular goal to Minneapolis next month.

  “I love match play, so hopefully I can make it to match play and play some matches,” he said.

  Like Brown, Charpek holds a degree of USGA experience. He’s excited for the opportunity ahead.

  “I’ve played in the U.S. Amateur. I’ve played in the U.S. Mid-Amateur,” Charpek said. “Now I’ll be able to play in the U.S. Senior Amateur. I’ve never tried for the U.S. Senior Open. Maybe I’ll do that next year.”

  Perhaps the only difference between the co-medalists was headwear. Brown sported a straw hat with a Bay Hill insignia Monday; Charpek bypassed a cap altogether.

  When he qualified for his first and only U.S. Senior Amateur in 2014, Clauson waited for five hours at Galloway National Golf Club before prevailing in a playoff. Monday was a case of déjà vu. Clauson, runner-up in the 2016 Brewer Cup, carded an even-par-72 in the morning and waited to learn his fate.

  “Coming in [on the last few holes], I was a little nervous,” Clauson, 60, of Philadelphia, Pa., said. “On at least five shots I made good misses. Today was nice. I’ve struggled for a little bit. My game is coming around. I found something.”

  Donatoni qualified for his fourth U.S. Senior Amateur (2012-13, 2015) Monday. Mayne, the 2016 Pennsylvania Senior Amateur Champion, has two appearances (2014, 2016) to his credit.

U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Qualifier
  A high volume of golf exhausted Elizabeth Haines, so much so that the Merion Golf Club member decided to take a few days off. The rest primed her for a prolific performance Monday.

  Haines carded a 1-over-par 75 at LedgeRock (par 74, 5,737 yards) to secure the lone qualifying spot available in a U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Qualifier held concurrently.

  The U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur will take place Sept. 9-14 at Waverley Country Club in Portland, Ore.

  “I’m thrilled with the way I played today,” Haines, 69, of Gladwyne, Pa., said. “I played this course for the first time yesterday. There were a lot of shots that I wasn’t certain about. It helped today. You can’t come into a course like this having never played it.”

  Haines swept in a six-footer for birdie on No. 1 (par 4, 287 yards) — a good omen for the day ahead. A birdie on the par 4, 284-yard 16th hole gave Haines a six-shot lead over the field. She rolled in a 50-footer from the front of the green.

  Haines finished as runner-up in the 2004 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur. She fell to Carolyn Creekmore, 1-up, at Pasatiempo Golf Club in Santa Cruz, Calif.

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 153 Full Member Clubs and 57,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. 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.