A big lead early helped Casey Hill finish on top this past weekend in the 58th annual Smokey Bear Golf Invitational held at the Falls Country Club.
Hill, who finished up four years of playing college golf this past season at Bemidji State University and was also a state champion in high school while golfing for Virginia, won the two-day men’s invite for amateurs with the low 45-hole score of 177.
Jeff Shermoen, a 2011 Falls High School graduate who is now playing college golf for Bellevue University in Nebraska, finished runner-up at 182, five strokes behind Hill.
Hill started the tournament Saturday with the overall low score for 18 holes of 67, five strokes below par. He was the only player of the 114 in this year’s event to shoot under 70 for 18 holes on either day.
“The first day was great,” Hill said. “Everything went smoothly — putted well, hit irons well, drove the ball well.”
On the front nine, Hill recorded five birdies to go along with a bogey and three pars for a 33. He carded two birdies and a bogey with six pars on the back nine for a 34.
Hill, who held a four-stroke lead Saturday over his closest competitor, Travis Blais from the Falls, then tied with Shermoen and another former Virginia and BSU golfer, Tyler Hill, for the lowest score for the first 18 holes on Sunday at 71.
Casey Hill led by nine strokes over Shermoen in second place going into the final nine holes.
Despite starting the final nine with four pars and then making a long putt on the fringe of the green to record an eagle on the par-five hole No. 5, Casey Hill ended up with the worst final-nine score of the championship flight’s top-six players with a 39 after having two bogeys and a double bogey in three of the final four holes.
“The last nine I had ‘er going — made that eagle — and then I was a little exhausted coming down the stretch and just kind of coasted in,” Casey Hill said.
Shermoen ended up runner-up after carding a two-under 35 for the final nine. He started with a bogey on par-four hole No. 1, then recorded birdies in three of the next four holes.
Tyler Hill finished third overall at 184, two strokes behind Shermoen, after carding a 36 for the final nine.
Glenn Walls, a 2011 FHS graduate who is now golfing at the University of Northern Iowa, had been 14 shots behind Casey Hill going into the final nine, which Walls finished off with a 33 for the best round in the 12-player championship flight and a stroke behind Tyler Hill for fourth overall at 185.
Blais also carded a 36 in the final nine to end up with a 186 and fifth place in the championship flight.
Brett Musich, a 2012 FHS graduate who will be golfing next season at BSU, closed out the tournament with a 37 in the final nine to place sixth in the championship flight at 187 for 45 holes.
Last year’s champion, Wade Walters of St. Paul, wasn’t on hand for this year’s tournament.
The 2011 runner-up, Mike Cocanour, failed to make this year’s championship flight and had to settle for first place in the first flight with a 36-hole total of 155.
Inaugural seniors title
This year’s Smokey Bear Golf Invitational debuted a seniors division for players 50 and older.
Golfers 50 and older in the top 12 overall after the first 18 holes Saturday had the option of playing for either the overall or seniors title, but not both, with the championship flight teeing off farther away from the blue tees and the senior flight using the white tees.
The senior flight included the 12 best golfers, who elected that division, playing 27 holes on Sunday.
It took an extra hole to decide the first seniors championship when Bill Hughes, who is originally from Texas and now spends his winters in Arizona, tied with Bob Mason at 188 after 45 holes.
In the playoff, Hughes won after picking up a par on the par-four hole No. 9. Mason ended up shooting out of a sand trap near the green and recorded a bogey.
Hughes, who has been a golfer since the 1960s, said he has “mixed emotions” about the tournament now having a seniors division.
“I still think we ought to just tee it up and play with the young kids, myself,” he said. “But, I’m glad they’ve done it, because it will bring more people in — more seniors...
“It’s nice to win the first (seniors title) ever, that’s for sure. I’m really fortunately to do that, that’s for sure.”
Hughes shot a 75 after the first 18 holes and like Mason, who opened with a 73, could have possibly played for the overall title.
With both electing to play in the seniors division, Hughes picked up two strokes with a 74 in Sunday’s first 18 holes, giving both players 149 strokes going into the final nine.
In the final three holes of regulation, Hughes took a two-stroke lead with a par on the par-four hole No. 7, on which Mason recorded a double bogey.
Mason then picked up pars on the final two par-four holes, which Hughes had bogeys on both, to force a playoff with both players carding a 39 for the final nine.
Tom Ziemann, who had the best final-nine score in the senior flight with a 34, ended up in third place, a stroke behind Hughes and Mason, at 189.
$6,795 in gift certificates
Tournament director Dave Cronin said $6,795 worth of gift certificates from the Fall Country Club had been awarded in the tournament with the top-six golfers in the championship and senior flights and the top four in each of the remaining flights receiving gift certificates.
Cronin said the overall and senior champions each received the top prizes of gift certificates worth $265, while Casey Hill also received a $150 medalist prize for having the best round after 18 holes Saturday.
2012 Smokey Bear Golf Invitational
FINAL RESULTS:
• Top six in championship and senior flights, top four in flights 1-10 and director’s flight
CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHT
1. Casey Hill 67-71-39—177
2. Jeff Shermoen 76-71-35—182
3. Tyler Hill 77-71-36—184
4. Glenn Walls 75-77-33—185
5. Travis Blais 71-79-36—186
6. Brett Musich 73-77-37—187
SENIOR FLIGHT
1. Bill Hughes 75-74-39—188
2. Bob Mason 73-76-39—188
3. Tom Ziemann 76-79-34—189
4. Rob Badiuk 75-77-40—192
5. Mike Katrin 80-75-38—193
6. R. Anderson 79-75-40—194
FIRST FLIGHT
1. Mike Cocanour 78-77—155
2. Derek Riley 80-75—155
3. Derek Fisher 78-79—157
4. Tom Levene 80-79—159
SECOND FLIGHT
1. Jeff Lindvall 80-77—157
2. Matt Kesanen 81-78—159
3. Brian McBride 81-79—160
4. Batt Vollmer 82-81—163
THIRD FLIGHT
1. Charlie Dalton 83-80—163
2. Keven Jackson 83-80—163
3. Charlie Ross 84-80—164
4. Ryan Rud 82-83—165
FOURTH FLIGHT
1. Ben Ziemann 84-71—155
2. Tim Anderson 84-79—163
3. Buz.Christensen 84-83—167
4. Brett Hughes 84-86—170
FIFTH FLIGHT
1.Al Henningsgaard 85-80—165
2. Ed Nichols 86-80—166
3. Gary Richards 86-82—168
4. Doug Brown 85-83—168
SIXTH FLIGHT
1. Doug Dault 87-83—170
2. James Moss 87-84—171
3. Jayme Steele 88-83—171
4. Shane Dexter 88-90—178
SEVENTH FLIGHT
1. Tom Sutch 91-81—172
2. Drew Fisher 89-87—176
3. Jerad Kostiuk 91-86—177
4. Jeff Porter 90-88—178
EIGHTH FLIGHT
1. Ryan Milette 91-85—176
2. Jim Mason 91-89—180
3. Andrew Katrin 92-89—181
4. Ron Ruelle 91-91—182
NINTH FLIGHT
1. Matt Rasmussen 93-80—173
2. Terry Burns 93-85—178
3. Shaver Briggs 93-88—181
4. Ralph Sobkowicz 92-90—182
TENTH FLIGHT
1. Monte Ross 94-86—180
2. Clayton Wenberg 96-90—186
3. Don Svir 95-92—187
4. Brian Werner 94-96—190
DIRECTOR’S FLIGHT
1. Tom Turry 98-85—183
2. Steve Johnson 98-86—184
3. Jordan Walls 98-87—185
4. David Doris 99-94—193
