Preview: 2nd North Carolina Super Sr. Four-Ball

SOUTHERN PINES, N.C. (March 26, 2018) --  Benjamin Franklin said: "We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." With that quote in mind, the Carolinas Golf Association is excited to conduct the second North Carolina Super Senior Four-Ball Championship, open to men ages 65 and older. The tournament will be played at Maple Chase Golf & Country Club in Winston-Salem, N.C. on March 27-28.
 

Related: Championship Web Site | Full Field | Pairings | History

 

In last year's inaugural championship held on The Farm Course at Greensboro Country Club, Butch English of Cornelius and Wayne Pyrtle of Burlington found themselves facing seasoned partners Russ Perry of Winston-Salem and Mark Stephens of Troutman in a playoff. Both teams posted rounds of 66-67 for a two-day total of 11-under-par.

 

Perry and Stephens, champions of the 2016 Carolinas Super Senior Four-Ball and 2014 North Carolina Senior Four-Ball, notched another team victory when Stephens sank a 12-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole and English failed to answer with his birdie attempt. "It broke a touch left, and I just happened to hit a good one," said Stephens.

 

Perry made an up-and-down birdie from the greenside bunker on the par-5 18th to cap the duo's fourth birdie in the final six holes leading up to the playoff. "We're getting up there in age, but we love the competition," added Perry. "The more tournaments we can play in, the better."

 

Opened in 1955, the Ellis Maples-designed course at Maple Chase Golf & Country Club was carved from 150 acres of farm pasture and woodlands and offers a variety of scenery including various species of trees and beautiful lake views. The par-72 layout will play to approximately 6,071 yards for the championship division.

 

Fifty-one two-person teams will compete in 36 holes of four-ball stroke play at Maple Chase Golf & Country Club. Notable teams include:

• The defending champion team of Mark Stephens from Troutman, N.C. and Russ Perry of Winston-Salem, N.C. Together, Stephens and Perry were also victorious at the 2014 North Carolina Senior Four-Ball and 2016 Carolinas Super Senior Four-Ball. Stephens won the 1978 Carolinas Amateur, and Perry claimed the 2010 Carolinas Senior Amateur and 2013 North Carolina Senior Amateur titles.

• Six-time CGA champion Arlis Pike of Kernersville, N.C. and Charlie Parks of Asheboro, N.C. Pike won three consecutive Carolinas Super Senior titles from 2013 to 2015 and the North Carolina Super Senior in 2017.

• Five-time CGA champ Ron Carpenter of Creedmoor, N.C. and Gary Brown of Charlotte, N.C. The duo has captured both the 2011 North Carolina Senior Four-Ball and the 2014 Carolinas Senior Four-Ball. Carpenter won the 2017 Carolinas Senior Four-Ball with Garrett Garland.

• 15-time CGA champion Larry Boswell of Jamestown, N.C. and his partner Jim Pridgen, both of Jamestown, N.C. Boswell is a three-time North Carolina Super Senior winner, while Pridgen is a four-time Carolinas Super Senior Four-Ball champ with Ernie Newton.

• Robert Desjardins of Matthews, N.C. and Bill Boles, Jr. of Wilson, N.C. This team captured the North Carolina Senior Four-Ball in 2006. Desjardins won the North Carolina Super Senior in 2015. Boles is also a five-time CGA winner, including two Carolinas Four-Ball victories.

About the North Carolina Super Senior Four-Ball Championship

The North Carolina Super Senior Four-Ball Championship is conducted at 36 holes of four-ball stroke play. Entry is open to any male amateur golfer age 65 and older who is a legal resident of North Carolina, is a member in good standing of a club which is a member of the Carolinas Golf Association and has an active GHIN® USGA Handicap Index®. Teams may sign up for the 65+ or 70+ age division.

 

Competition Schedule

Tuesday, March 27
Round 1 – 18 holes four-ball stroke play (10:00 a.m. shotgun start)

Wednesday, March 28
Round 2 – 18 holes four-ball stroke play (10:00 a.m. shotgun start)
Lunch/Awards Ceremony immediately following play for players
 

About the Carolinas Golf Association (CGA)

The CGA is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational organization that was founded in 1909 to promote and to protect the game of golf in the Carolinas by providing competitions, education, support and benefits to golf clubs and golfers. The CGA is the second largest golf association in the country with over 700 member clubs represented by nearly 150,000 individuals.

The CGA annually conducts 48 championships and five team match competitions for men, women, juniors, and seniors. It also runs over 140 One-Day (net and gross) events and qualifying for USGA national championships. The CGA serves golf in the Carolinas with numerous programs such as: the USGA Handicap System; tournament management software and support; course measuring and course/slope ratings; agronomy consultation; answers about the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, and Handicapping; Carolinas Golf Magazine; Interclub series; Tarheel Youth Golf Association; Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame; expense assistance for USGA Junior and Girls' Junior qualifiers from the Carolinas; and the Carolinas Golf Foundation (CGF). The CGF has distributed more than $1,500,000 since 1977 to benefit Carolinas' golf initiatives including junior and women's programs.    

For more information about the CGA, visit www.carolinasgolf.org.

 

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