Eichholtz wins '99 Logan County Open title
Eichholtz outduels Bechtel for '99 title
Bud Eichholtz, left, is congratulated by Shawn Bechtel after a three-hole
playoff at Cherokee Hills that saw Eichholtz claim the 1999 Logan
County Open title. Both shot a three-day total of 220. (Examiner photo
by Jim Mason) |
By Don Hensley
Examiner Sports Editor
What was supposed to be a cakewalk, turned into a nightmare
for Rob Wellnitz.
While the second round leader of the Bellefontaine Examiner/
Logan County Open was finding trouble all over Cherokee Hills Golf Course,
Bud Eichholtz and Shawn Bechtel were doing what they do best.
By staying calm, hitting fairways and not making mistakes,
Eichholtz and Bechtel wasted little time turning what looked to be a blowout
into one of the finest tournaments in the six years of the county championship.
While Wellnitz was no where to be found in the end,
it was Bechtel and Eichholtz that waged a three-hole playoff before Eichholtz
became the fourth different player in the last four years to be crowned
champion.
"Shawn beat me in the Liberty Hills Club Championship
and there was one shot I would love to have back from that," Eichholtz
said. "He won that day and I won today."
But no one ever thought it would come down to that.
After Wellnitz scorched Tree Links for a 70 and turned
a 71 in at Liberty Hills, it looked like his lead was insurmountable.
But then everything fell apart on Sunday.
He entered play with a two-round total of 141 and had
an eight shot lead on Eichholtz and a nine shot lead on the defending
champion Bechtel.
But by the time Wellnitz triple bogeyed No. 2 and bogeyed
No. 4, his lead was down to one shot after five holes when Eichholtz and
Bechtel played those holes in three under par.
"I knew when I made up five shots in two holes
it was game on," Bechtel said.
And the three players dueled it out from there.
With the leaderboard changing like a Labor Day telethon
tote board, the final threesome took turns taking their crack at leading
the tournament.
But the big change came on No. 14. With Wellnitz and
Eichholtz tied and Bechtel one shot back, Wellnitz hit his ball in the
water on the par five and Bechtel three-putted to give Eichholtz and one
shot lead over Wellnitz and a two shot lead on Bechtel.
But when Bechtel made a three on the par three 16th
and the other two bogeyed, Bechtel and Wellnitz were both within a shot
of Eichholtz.
"I didn't think I had a chance," Eichholtz
said. "He (Wellnitz) had played so well on Saturday, but I only missed
three greens the whole day and patience was the key."
All three players made par on the par five 17th, setting
up the drama on the 18th hole.
Wellnitz drove his tee shot into the water to the left
of the fairway and although he chipped out, could only make a five.
Bechtel drove his ball to the front of the green and
chipped to within five feet and when Eichholtz made par, Bechtel made
the putt to send the tournament to the second sudden death conclusion
in its history.
The first time the tournament went extra holes was at
Cherokee Hills three years ago when Mike McGarry beat Bechtel on the third
hole of sudden death.
But as Eichholtz and Bechtel headed to the first tee
for the playoff, a subdued Wellnitz was gathering his clubs.
"I hit a bad shot on No. 2, but those guys were
three and four under on the front," he said. "I might have let
them back in it, but they came and got me too. I came out with the attitude
of going after the course, but the seven on No. 2 hurt and I struggled
on the back nine."
On the first hole of sudden death, Eichholtz got up
and down for a par and Bechtel made an incredible two putt on No. 2 to
send the match to the third hole.
Both players had about 50 yards in on the par five,
with Eichholtz in the fairway and Bechtel in the rough.
With the adrenaline pumping, Eichholtz sent his shot
30 feet over the flag on the back of the green. Bechtel then fluffed a
wedge to the front of the green and chipped up and left himself a tough
10-foot putt for par.
"It was just a dumb shot that cost me, but I couldn't
have lost to a nicer guy," Bechtel said. "The ball was sitting
up on that third shot and I got under it."
Eichholtz then rolled his putt three feet past the hole
and when Bechtel missed his par putt, he rammed his in for the win.
"I just didn't want to make a fool out of myself.
I knew I would be hitting my second shot first all day because both of
those guys hit the ball so long," he said.
But this championship wasn't about length off the tee,
it was about patience and determination and the fact that age doesn't
matter on the golf course.
Eichholtz, almost twice as old as his two closest pursuers,
proved that experience and ball placement are also important elements
of the game.
"The age factor wasn't that big a thing,"
Eichholtz said with a smile. "But today was a lot of fun."
But it didn't come easy.
Wilson, who played on the Nike Tour from 1991-1993,
entered the final round with a five shot lead over Max Bixler, Shawn Bechtel
and Schwaderer.
But Schwaderer came out on fire. He made three double
bogeys, but still shot a blistering 69.
"I had a lot of holes where I made a bunch of putts,"
said Schwaderer.
Wilson still held a two-shot lead with two holes left
to play.
But on No. 8 he was forced to play a great recovery
shot from behind the green en route to a bogey that trimmed his lead to
one shot.
On his final hole, No. 9, Wilson's tee shot was in front
of the green and his chip sent him six feet past. A tricky putt from the
start, the ball lipped the cup but stayed out, thus forcing the playoff
between the two friends.
"I thought it was fitting that it came down between
myself and Troy," said Schwaderer.
For Schwaderer, the 69 that set up the playoff was a
far cry from last year when an 81 at Liberty Hills left him scratching
his head.
"I feel like I made a pretty good comeback,"
he said. "My caddie (Dean Elliott) and I talked (Saturday) night
about just playing my game. We knew we had to shoot under 70 to have a
shot. With his help, I made a bunch of putts."
But the one putt he didn't make proved to be the most
costly.
On the first hole of sudden death, Wilson's second shot
came up 20 yards short of the green, while Schwaderer stuck his within
10 feet of the cup.
Wilson then chipped to within seven feet while Schwaderer
lined up his putt.
"I was watching and expecting him to can it on
me," said Wilson. "Let's face it, you don't shoot 69 and not
make some putts. I knew he had been putting pretty good all day."
The putt had a right to left break, but Schwaderer left
it high all the way.
"I just hit it too hard," he said.
On the second hole, both players drove their ball to
within 10 feet of each other. Schwaderer hit first and left his ball short
on the side of the hill that elevates the green.
"I wanted to go to the middle of the green. I had
a good lie, I just deaccelerated through the ball," Schwaderer explained.
Wilson then dropped his ball in the middle of the green
and putted to within a foot. Schwaderer's chip scooted past the hole leaving
him a slippery 10-foot downhill putt.
Schwaderer's putt stayed just outside the hole and Wilson
rammed his home for the win and a little redemption.
In the Liberty Hills championship earlier in the month,
Wilson struggled and felt he had something to prove Sunday.
"I knew my game was good enough to win. It was
just a matter of keeping it together down the stretch," he said.
The other flights saw Gabe Wickline win the A, Earl
Zilles beat Chris Bowsher in a B flight playoff, Rob Powell won the C
flight and Darrin Beaverson claimed the D flight.
In all 116 golfers teed off at the start of the tournament
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