Brittain Earns Medalist Honors at 72nd VSGA Senior Amateur
Posted on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019, 11:54 pm
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By Chris Lang
HOT SPRINGS – Eighty-four players entered the 72nd Virginia State Golf Association Senior Amateur Championship. After two days of stroke-play qualifying, only one finished under par at The Omni Homestead Resort’s classic Cascades Course.
Tazewell’s Buck Brittain (The Virginian GC) posted a 1-under-par 69 on Tuesday for a two-day aggregate 4-under 136 to earn qualifying medalist honors and the top seed in the 32-player match-play bracket.
Brittain was also the medalist last year at the Golden Horseshoe in Williamsburg and advanced to the semifinal round before falling to eventual champion Cam Young.
Brittain won the last two Senior Opens of Virginia and won last year’s VSGA Mid-Amateur Championship, so his success at the Cascades Course should come of surprise to no one. He made six birdies on Tuesday but also finished with three bogeys and a double bogey. It was still enough to post an under-par round and finish four strokes clear of Gainesville’s Rich Buckner (Robert Trent Jones GC).
Buckner won the 2017 VSGA Senior Amateur at Keswick Golf Club and was a finalist in the event in 2016 at The Homestead.
Martinsville’s Keith Decker, a Chatmoss CC member who won the championship the last time it was held at the Cascades, signed for a 2-over 72 on Tuesday and finished tied with Midlothian’s Steve Serrao (Willow Oaks CC) for third. Both players posted identical qualifying rounds of 69-72—141.
Midlothian’s Scott Reisenweaver (Salisbury CC) was fifth at 73-72—143.
Two past Senior Open of Virginia champions—Williamsburg’s Dave Pulk (Two Rivers CC) and Virginia Beach’s Roger Newsom (Elizabeth Manor G&CC)—tied for sixth after returning two-day totals of 145.
The final spots in match play were decided by a four-for-three playoff, with John Lombardozzi, Phil Mahone and Skip Zobel emerging to complete the field of 32.
Among those to make the match-play cut were both members of the winning side at this spring’s VSGA Senior Four-Ball Championship (Bob Bailey and Robert Nussey); 2019 VSGA Super Senior Stroke Play Champion Leon Roday; and Steve Serrao’s younger brother Jay, who is participating in his first event as a senior.
Notably missing from match play are 13-time VSGA champion David Partridge, 2018 Senior Amateur finalist Mark Boedicker, and this year’s Senior Stroke Play champion, David Jordan. Partridge and Boedicker missed the cut, and Jordan withdrew before Tuesday’s round.
Qualifying this week unfolded much like it did in 2016 at the Cascades. That year, only one player (Decker) shot an under-par qualifying score. The cut was at 14-over 154, one stroke higher than it was this week, when players who shot 13-over 153 earned the final match-play spots.
Lang is the editor of Virginia Golfer magazine and the VSGA’s manager, digital media.
72nd VSGA Senior Amateur Championship
At The Omni Homestead Resort (Cascades), Hot Springs
Par 70, 6,360 yards
Tuesday’s second-round scores
Buck Brittain (Tazewell), 67-69–136
Rich Buckner (Gainesville), 70-70–140
Keith Decker (Martinsville), 69-72–141
Stephen Serrao (Midlothian), 69-72–141
Scott Reisenweaver (Midlothian), 71-72–143
Roger Newsom (Virginia Beach), 74-71–145
Dave Pulk (Williamsburg), 73-72–145
Robert Slavonia (Middleburg), 73-74–147
Marc Hogan (Woodberry Forest), 76-72–148
Robert Nussey (Midlothian), 72-76–148
Stephen Whitfield (Virginia Beach), 75-73–148
Greg Bales (Richmond), 77-72–149
Jeffrey Klatt (Manassas), 72-77–149
David Price (Hillsboro), 76-73–149
Bob Bailey (Yorktown), 75-75–150
Scott Pultz (Hamilton), 75-75–150
Donnie Hankins (Bristol), 74-77–151
Jimmy Jones (Newport News), 75-76–151
Frank Leyes (Boones Mill), 77-74–151
John Steele (Boyds), 75-76–151
Carlos Aranda (Alexandria), 77-75–152
Neil Davis (Charlottesville), 74-78–152
Jeffrey Flax (Virginia Beach), 75-77–152
John Kinder (Quinton), 72-80–152
Greg Kozy (Clifton), 80-72–152
Tony Mitchum (Chesapeake), 77-75–152
Leon Roday (Henrico), 75-77–152
Jay Serrao (Virginia Beach), 77-75–152
Tim Vigotsky (Centreville), 78-74–152
John Lombardozzi (Herndon), 77-76–153
Philip Mahone (Charlottesville), 76-77–153
Skip Zobel (Virginia Beach), 76-77—153
Did not qualify
Michael McGowan (Bethesda), 76-77–153
Jack Catlett (Richmond), 80-74–154
Mark Funderburke (Roanoke), 75-79–154
David Partridge (Manakin), 77-77–154
David Schmidt (Wytheville), 77-77–154
Jack Allara (Salem), 75-80–155
Tony Green (Kingsport), 74-81–155
Mike Howell (Centreville), 77-78–155
Keith Myers (Roanoke), 79-76–155
Chris Robb (Stafford), 78-77–155
Mark Alonzi (Richmond), 81-75–156
David Tolley (Roanoke), 76-80–156
Jim Woodson (Powhatan), 79-77–156
Michael McLister (Leesburg), 78-79–157
Bowen Sargent (Charlottesville), 76-81–157
Mark Boedicker (Great Falls), 80-78–158
Steve Douglass (Leesburg), 80-78–158
Joe Monk (Williamsburg), 80-78–158
Jon Zampedro (Centreville), 80-78–158
Stan Britton (Pendleton), 76-83–159
Duncan Hardcastle (Midlothian), 77-82–159
Jeff Hudgins (Richmond), 80-80–160
Jeff Nygaard (Moseley), 78-82–160
Jack Vardaman (Washington), 78-82–160
John Williams (Arlington), 80-80–160
Brian Killough (Poquoson), 79-82–161
Marty Heath (Annandale), 79-83–162
Chad Strayer (Providence Forge), 78-84–162
Drew Wine (Rockingham), 85-77–162
Randy Newsome (Haymarket), 81-82–163
David Ziemba (Annandale), 85-78–163
Art Akers (Virginia Beach), 79-85–164
Jeff Fleishman (Williamsburg), 80-84–164
Edward Shine (Chesapeake), 78-86–164
Ron Clatterbuck (Haymarket), 79-86–165
Jim Monger (Singers Glen), 90-77–167
Jeff Woods (Radford), 84-83–167
David Aitken (Winchester), 82-86–168
Scott Arthur (Winchester), 81-87–168
Steve Washburn (Lynchburg), 86-83–169
Erik Pierce (King George), 87-83–170
Stan Jaworowski (Arlington), 82-89–171
Michael Byrum (Suffolk), 86-86–172
Mark Shull (Winchester), 89-83–172
Brian Spooner (Glen Allen), 84-88–172
Jeff Hooper (Midlothian), 89-85–174
George Salcedo (Waynesboro), 90-89–179
Darrell Craft (Salem), 75-WD
James Wright (Roanoke), 78-WD
David Jordan (Glen Allen), 81-WD
Roy Phillips (Fairfax), 89-WD
Wednesday’s round-of-32 matches
#1 Buck Brittain (Tazewell) vs. #32 Phil Mahone (Charlottesville), 8 a.m.
#16 Bob Bailey (Yorktown) vs. #17 Jimmy Jones (Newport News), 8:09 a.m.
#8 Robert Slavonia (Middleburg) vs. #25 Tony Mitchum (Chesapeake), 8:18 a.m.
#9 Stephen Whitfield (Virginia Beach) vs. #24 Tim Vigotsky (Centreville), 8:27 a.m.
#4 Steve Serrao (Midlothian) vs. #29 Neil Davis (Charlottesville), 8:36 a.m.
#13 Jeffrey Klatt (Manassas) vs. #20 Frank Leyes (Boones Mill), 8:45 a.m.
#5 Scott Reisenweaver (Midlothian) vs. #28 Jeffrey Flax (Virginia Beach), 8:54 a.m.
#12 David Price (Hillsboro) vs. #21 Leon Roday (Henrico), 9:03 a.m.
#2 Rich Buckner (Gainesville) vs. #31 John Lombardozzi (Herndon), 9:12 a.m.
#15 Scott Pultz (Hamilton) vs. #18 John Steele (Boyds), 9:21 a.m.
#7 Dave Pulk (Williamsburg) vs. #26 John Kinder (Quinton), 9:30 a.m.
#10 Marc Hogan (Woodberry Forest) vs. #23 Jay Serrao (Virginia Beach), 9:39 a.m.
#3 Keith Decker (Martinsville) vs. #30 Skip Zobel (Virginia Beach), 9:48 a.m.
#14 Greg Bales (Richmond) vs. #19 Donnie Hankins (Bristol), 9:57 a.m.
#6 Roger Newsom (Virginia Beach) vs. #27 Carlos Aranda (Alexandria), 10:06 a.m.
#11 Robert Nussey (Midlothian) vs. #22 Greg Kozy (Clifton), 10:15 a.m.
Wednesday’s round-of-16 matches
Begin at approximately, 1 p.m.
