Trevor Bensel earned his second #GAPOpen Qualifying medal.

Overbrook's Bensel wedges way to #GAPOpen Qual. medal

  WESTAMPTON, N.J. — Trevor Bensel’s putter isn’t his best friend at the moment. Despite that strained relationship, all the Overbrook Golf Club professional needed Tuesday at Burlington Country Club (par 70, 6,665 yards) was his valiant Vokey wedge.

  Bensel, an assistant caddiemaster at Overbrook, fired the lone subpar round (1-under 69) to take medalist honors in a #GAPOpen Qualifier. The low number was propelled by back-to-back chip-ins for birdies on the back nine.

  The cut line stopped at 76 by day’s end, with 42 individuals (29 amateurs, 13 pros) advancing. The 114th Open Championship will take place July 18-19 at St. Davids Golf Club.

  In the morning, Little Mill Country Club’s Blaine Lafferty and Radley Run Country Club’s Parker Wine each carded rounds of 1-over 71 to set the early mark. When arriving to the track under sublime skies, the afternoon wave had a good idea of where the cut number would fall. Those over-par morning numbers helped gameplans develop for some, especially the medalist.

   “I thought the cut line would be around five or six over. I was surprised, honestly, by the high scores when I showed up. I play here a good amount, and play here in the Pro-Am., so I knew the course pretty well,” said Bensel, formerly of Huntingdon Valley Country Club's PGM program. “It ended up being the firmest I’ve seen Burlington play.”

  After making the turn at 2-over 37, Bensel went on to play Burlington’s final nine in 3-under par. The consecutive hole outs came on Nos. 13 (par 4, 447 yards) and 14 (par 5, 561 yards). The crucial chip-ins were almost identical – both coming from above the hole and back from just behind the green.

   “I couldn’t get a putt to fall all day. But that’s alright, because I had my 58-degree wedge,” said Bensel, who medaled in a 2015 GAP Open Qualifier at Running Deer Golf Club.

  The only birdie jarred with the flatstick came on No. 17 (par 4, 409 yards). After smashing a 3-wood right, Bensel lifted a 9-iron 150 yards over the trees and put it to 10 feet. He drained that look – his longest made putt of the day – to get to his eventual final number.

  Bensel, of Denver, Pa, is a frequent player in the Philadelphia PGA Section events, as well as Pennsylvania Golf Association championships. His non-playing days are spent as an assistant caddiemaster at Overbrook. He’s hoping for more success moving forward, as he says his game isn’t where it needs to be at the moment.

   “I’m hitting the ball sideways. It’s a mess, but luckily today wasn’t too bad,” he said.

  At the end of the day, no matter how he played, Bensel did exactly what he set out to do: qualify for the Open Championship, where he finished tied for 21st in last year’s rendition at Philadelphia Country Club. He'll look to build on that finish, and will bring some needed confidence to the tee in result of the medalist honor.

   “My goal now is to not have to qualify for the championships. I just missed out on those exemptions with my finish last year, so headed to [St. Davids], that will be my focus,” he said.

  Playing partners Ambrose Abbracciamento of Jericho National Golf Club and Bensalem Township Country Club’s Matt Balcer fired even-par 70s to share the runner-up position. Both players agreed Burlington was playing fair, but difficult.

   “There were a good number of holes where you had to play shots into the green eight or 10 feet short and bounce them up. The greens don’t break a ton around the holes, and they’re in really good shape, which we enjoyed,” said Abbracciamento, a sophomore standout at University of Hartford who will be transferring to San Diego State University in the fall.

   “It was a good showing today overall,” said Balcer, who returns to the Open field after a year hiatus due to a blood infection. “Hitting a ton of fairways was key here. That made it easier than it should have been.”

  The qualifier at Burlington was one of two being conducted on the day. Commonwealth National Golf Club’s Ron Robinson took medalist honors at Woodstone Country Club with a 1-under 71.

   The Golf Association of Philadelphia expanded its Open Championship field to 132 players in 2017. The format remains 36 holes of stroke play. It is contested over two days instead of one — a change also made in 2017. A cut to the low 60 and ties takes place after Day One.

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 260 Member Clubs and 75,000 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.