Hunt Valley Golf Club, getting points from each of its four teams, defeated Beaver Creek Country Club, 8-4, to win the 16th Senior Team championship of the Maryland State Golf Association, September 27. The winners registered 4 1/2 points at home and 3 1/2 away to win their first outright title after having previously shared the 2013 prize with Bethesda, 6-6, when a playoff was halted by darkness.
At home, Ron Klauss-John Barnes scored the only sweep, beating Pat Steiner-Randy Cree, 3-0, and Gavin Stringer-Tom Grem split with Jim Kyttle-Finley Benjamin, 1 1/2 – 1 1/2. At Beaver Creek, John Pipitone-Chris Tremblay defeated Dennis Stoner-Jim Young, 2 1/2 – 1/2, and Mike Bertazon-Steve Grem lost to Greg Henry-Bill Calhoun, 2-1.
Stringer birdied the par-5 eighth with a chip shot to six inches and he and Grem won the front, 1-up, Kyttle (two) and Benjamin (one) birdied three holes in a row on the back and hung on for a 1-up win and half of the match point.
Cree birdied the second hole with a 50-foot putt and Steiner birdied the third from 15 feet to give the Beaver Creek side an early 2-up lead. That was wiped out, however, by a winning par and a 15-foot birdie putt from Barnes. The visitors won the seventh (it would be there last winning hole), but Barnes birdied the eighth and he and Krauss won the ninth with a par to win the side.
A 40-foot birdie putt by Krauss and a steady game for the last nine that featured two winning pars sent Hunt Valley 3-up for the side and 4-up for the match
Reported By:John Stewart
