2024-HARBOUR CUP/STATracker Weekly Report
Sunday, June 2, 2024
***KOONCE SETS SCORING RECORD***
~CRASHES THE 600 MARK ~FAHRMEIER SCORES 58 TO STAY CLOSE~
Week-14 of the 2024 STATracker season completed all 3 rounds as the 3rd month of the 8-month long 2024 season, came to a close this past Friday.
On Monday, Memorial Day, DAVE FAHRMEIER got everything right scoring a personal best 58 points for the round catapulting him into first place, overtaking STAN KOONCE. Fahrmeier had a day that round, which saw him help his team to a 2nd place finish but then he became the first player to score a rare Bunker Holeout (BHO), a PENpar AND a holeout plus 3 birdies, all in the same round.
His stay at the top was short lived as just 48 hours later, Koonce put on a points show like no other.
In fact, Koonce set a new single round points record in Wednesday’s MGA playdate round, racking up 82 points in all!! Get this… Koonce scored achievements in 6 different categories to set all kinds of scoring records. As mentioned before, just 48 hours after Fahrmeier scored his Bunker Holeout, Koonce echoed the feat with his own BHO on the par-5 number 12 hole. Koonce put his approach shot into the 12th green in the right greenside bunker. He knocked in from there for his par but since it was a shot from a bunker into the hole and his score ended up being par or better it was a combination Bunker Holeout-Sandy… a 30 point stroke. Adding another slap in the face, Koonce was not done as he also scored a PENpar on #2, 2 holeouts and 2 birdies. In the meanwhile, Fahrmeier scored 2 sandies. Fahrmeier’s week was 78 points (58-20-0). Koonce’s week was 102 points (2-82-18)… and that’s a new record, scoring more than 100 points in a single week. It is now Koonce once again occupying the top spot in the Combined standings after pushing past the 600 mark one week earlier than his record-setting season last year. Fahrmeier is back in the 2nd spot but only 31 back.
Now in Monday’s Memorial Day round, MARK NOLAN and JOE PILLOW scored a team win as they both played on the same team. Nolan has crept up on Winners Circle leader TIM WELCH, just one point behind after his team win on Monday. As for Pillow, he is now just 2 points behind Welch as Pillow secured his 10th team win for the season matching Welch’s 10 team wins. The difference is Welch’s individual win earlier this season. On that team with Nolan and Pillow were FRANK AIUTO and rookie LARRY CARKNARD.
In the MGA’s individual playdate round on Wednesday, it was GUS VILLANOVA and BRIAN McDOWELL getting their first individual wins (I-wins) of the season. For Villanova, that win goes along with his 8 team wins and he too, is just 2 points behind Welch in the 2024 Winners Circle competition. Further, Villanova became the latest addition to the exclusive Age Warriors club as he beat his age on Wednesday, scoring a 79 at age 82. LARRY ERVIN, once again beat his age as well as the 89 year old scored an 85 in Wednesday’s proceedings.
One more mention about Mr. Koonce… he helped his team on Friday to a 1st place finish, playing alongside FRANK AMATO and SEAN MULHALL. It was Koonce’s 50th career trip to the Winners Circle. Sean Mulhall also beat his age on Friday scoring an 84 at 87 years of age!
2024-HARBOUR CUP/STATracker Weekly Report
Sunday, June 9, 2024
***AIUTO SURGES TO TOP SPOTS***
~CARMICHAEL WINS TWICE ~WELCH MAINTAINS TOP SPOT IN WC~
Week-15 of the 2024 STATracker season completed all 3 rounds and it included the 7th MGA tournament of the season… the Mulligan MASH.
Some players just suddenly appear out of nowhere. Not that, that’s the case regarding seasoned veteran, FRANK AIUTO…BUT… Aiuto has been a player that has been in all the STATracker Playoffs and has had to scramble much of the time to make his way into that top 16 tier. However, this season seems to be a little different. Aiuto is playing some of the best golf of his career. In week-15, Aiuto led all scorers for the week with 69 total points in his two rounds (x-31-38) His scores included 5 birdies and he led all scorers in Wednesday’s MGA tournament. He has been slowly making his way up both the Combined and the Tournaments standings. In fact, after his performance in the tourney, Aiuto finds himself in 2nd place, just 8 points behind dual standings leader, STAN KOONCE. In the Combined, Aiuto now sits in the #8 position. He has achieved all this in just 17 starts this season which is about half the average of the top players in the field. Over the coming summer season, Aiuto indicated he would be playing much more regularly. So… we’ll see where all that leads.
Speaking of the MGA tournament this past Wednesday… the format was the annual fundraiser Mulligan MASH where players could purchase up to 4 “mulligans” for their round. When all was said and done, the team of MARK CARMICHAEL, BOB REIVIK, DAVE FAHRMEIER and P.J. GUERIERRO took the win. In the case of Carmichael, that win was the first of two wins for the week as he also ended up getting another team win (T-win) on Friday when he teamed up with HPGC legend BOB GILLHAM and Winners Circle leader, TIM WELCH. For Welch, the win on Friday put him back in the top spot in the Winners Circle competition after MARK NOLAN had briefly swiped the top spot away from Welch last week. Welch currently has a 1-11 record, that’s a total of 12 trips to the Winners Circle so far this season, good for 13 points and the number one position there.
Elsewhere, top standings players Stan Koonce and Dave Fahrmeier continue to rack up big points as Fahrmeier continues to maintain his presence in Koonce’s rearview mirror. Koonce scored 53 points in his 2 appearances last week (23-x-30) which included two birdies, a PENpar and a double holeout day on Friday. For Fahrmeier, it was a 37 point week (15-6-16) as he scored 4 birds and a couple of sandies. With the aforementioned surge by Mr. Aiuto, Fahrmeier dropped into 3rd place in the Tournaments standings, but just 6 points behind Aiuto and 14 points behind Koonce at the top.
And from the AGE Warriors Department, 3 of HPGC’s legends beat their ages in week-15.
On Wednesday, it was LARRY ERVIN at 89 scoring an 88. In Friday’s round, Bob Gillham at 80 scored a 70 and C.A. Smith at 84 scored an 82.
2024-HARBOUR CUP/STATracker Weekly Report
Sunday, June 16, 2024
***AIUTO AMPS UP THE ANTE***
~RISES TO #4 RANKING ~ADAMS TIES SANDY MARK ~WELCH WINS AGAIN!~
Week-16 of the 2024 STATracker season completed all 3 rounds.
In an incredible display of “being in the zone,” FRANK AIUTO continued his stellar play, as he dominated week-16. The seasoned veteran player from Michigan put the full-court press on in each of his rounds last week. He competed in all 3 rounds in week-16 and came away with a breathtaking total of 133 points for the week (77-28-28), setting a new record in that regard. His 77 points in one round this past Monday, was the second highest all-time one round total. Interestingly, it was Stan Koonce setting the new record with 82 points just 2 weeks ago as both of these players, this season, passed the long-standing previous record of 74 points in one round, set by Gus Villanova 3 seasons ago. Getting back to Aiuto… in each of his 3 rounds last week, Aiuto scored the trifecta. That is, at least a birdie, a holeout and a sandy during the round. Well… he did it in all 3 rounds last week setting yet another record of 3 trifecta rounds in row! All in all, Aiuto scored 5 birdies, 1 eagle (more on that in a sec), 4 holeouts and 4 sandies. Further, he had a 1st place team finish on Monday as well as shooting his age…73.
Aiuto has achieved his highest ranking ever as he currently sits in the #4 position. That trajectory puts him in the featured 4 come the playoffs in November…BUT… we got a ways to go as this season closes in on the half way point in 2 weeks. Aiuto’s eagle by the way, occurred on the first hole on Monday when he placed his tee shot in the middle of the fairway, 100 yards from the pin. Then, with his wedge, he holed it out from there. It was the 5th eagle of the season by the field.
Elsewhere… defending Harbour Cup champ STAN KOONCE, continues to lead in the standings as he built a big cushion between himself and DAVE FAHRMEIER, with an 82 point week (35-19-28) as Fahrmeier only played in one round in week-16. Koonce now has a 121 point lead in the Combined standings. In the Tournament standings, it’s another story as the next MGA tourney looms this coming week on Wednesday. Koonce is just 8 points ahead of Aiuto and only 14 ahead of Fahrmeier.
Another week… another win for TIM WELCH! Welch took his lucky 13th trip to the Winners Circle this past week when he helped his team eek out a win via a playoff, on Friday, before the close of business. Welch continues his wire-to-wire hold on first place in that WC competition. Along with Welch on Friday was quite a team… Stan Koonce, BOB REIVIK and DAVE SEYERLE. In the MGA individual round on Wednesday, it was JOHNNY HARREL getting a one stroke victory in the A-flight and BRIAN McDOWELL with a convincing 4 stroke win in the B-flight. HPGC club pro JIMMY ADAMS tied the STATracker record of the most sandies in a single round when scored 3 of them in his round on Friday. Also, on Friday, C.A. SMITH beat his age again, when the major winner at 84 y.o. scored a solid 82!
2024-HARBOUR CUP/STATracker Weekly Report
Sunday, June 23, 2024
***KOONCE PASSES 800 MARK***
BEDENBAUGH WINS 3 ~AIUTO LEADS ALL SCORERS FOR 3rd WEEK IN A ROW
Week-17 of the 2024 STATracker season completed all 3 rounds which included the 8th MGA tourney of the season… the Silver-RED-Gold.
With his sandy in Friday’s round, STAN KOONCE moved past the 800 points mark in the 2024 Combined standings and now sits at 807… well ahead of his record-breaking pace set last year, when he won the Harbour Cup for the first time. He has opened up a comfortable 120 point lead over #2 ranked DAVE FAHRMEIER. In this season of huge points gains, 100 points could be had by some of these players in a week. For Koonce, he finished with 66 points for the week (31-25-10). Koonce’s week was highlighted by his sand play as he had 4 sandies, 2 of them in the tournament round on Wednesday, and then his sandy of Friday pushed him past that 800 mark. Koonce has 18 sandies on the year, just one behind sandking leader, Dave Fahrmeier.
Now, while Koonce is enjoying a nice cushion in the COM standings, things have changed dramatically over in the Tounaments standings. When the dust settled after last week’s 8th MGA tournament, only 7 points separate the top 3 players there. For now, Koonce maintains his hold on first place with 189 points. Just 3 points behind him is the surging FRANK AIUTO with 186 and in the third spot is Dave Fahrmeier with 182. In that tourney, FRANK AMATO led all scorers that day with 37 points, Fahrmeier had 32 for that round. Koonce had 25.
Speaking of Frank Aiuto… for the 3rd week in row, Aiuto led all scorers for the week, piling up 71 points in the 2 rounds he played in (41-30-x). Aiuto is currently ranked #4 in the COM standings, gaining on #3 ranked, MARK CARMICHAEL, just 32 points back. Just to give you an idea of the scoring that occurred in week-17, here were the top 5 scorers for the week…
Aiuto… 71 (41-30-x), Gillham… 67 (x-27-40), Fahrmeier… 67 (20-32-15)
Koonce… 66 (31-25-10) and Amato… 63 (6-37-20).
Elsewhere… WAYNE BEDENBAUGH hit the Winners Circle in each round last week, accomplishing that feat for the second time this season!! He is the only player in STATracker history to do that twice. Bedenbaugh, currently ranked #16, has a long history of being the consummate team player. A look at Bedenbaugh’s Winners Circle history reveals that he has been to the Winners Circle a total of 41 times in his STATracker career with only one trip, as an individual winner. In fact, BOB GILLHAM hit the WC 2 out of 2 times last week and was a teammate with Bedenbaugh during Friday’s win. Gillham has been to the WC 22 times in his ST career… all team wins!
AND… another first last week… for the first time ever, 4 of HPGC’s legends shot or beat their age in the same round. On Friday it was LARRY ERVIN @89/88, GUS VILLANOVA @82/78, SEAN MULHALL @87/86 and Bob Gillham @80/69.
2024-HARBOUR CUP/STATracker Weekly Report
Sunday, June 30, 2024
***SEASON REACHES HALFWAY MARK***
~ERVIN TURNS 90… SCORES TRIFECTA & BEATS AGE ~WELCH WINS ANOTHER~
Week-18 of the 2024 STATracker season completed all 3 rounds and it marked the halfway point of the season.
HPGC Legends of Golf member, LARRY ERVIN finished off his birthday week in top style. The longtime MGA member played on Friday in the Bald Eagles team event and accomplished scoring a birdie, a holeout and a sandy, during the round… and that my friends, is called the “trifecta” around these here STATracker parts. Ervin is currently ranked #29 in a field of 51 players. Further, on Friday, Ervin beat his new age by 2. Last season, Ervin narrowly missed getting into the STATracker Playoffs as a wild card. As we hit this halfway season mark, Ervin has increased his number of starts. Perhaps by season’s end, that might help him secure a playoff spot.
Also scoring a trifecta this past week was last season’s “Iron-Man” WAYNE BEDENBAUGH (#13). He was part of six players scoring sandies on Friday.
Elsewhere… STATracker Central is working with a skeleton crew this weekend, as many have left for a bit of a vacation. So apologies for the lack of the usual details regarding play this past week. TIM WELCH (#9) won again and continues to maintain his wire-to-wire hold on the top spot in the Winners Circle competition. It was his 2nd individual win (I-win) of the season, winning in Wednesday’s MGA playdate round. Also winning that day was #8 ranked JOHNNY HARRELL. It was his second I-win of the season as well. DAVE FAHRMEIER (#2) moved past the 700 points mark last week. However, he still trails STAN KOONCE by some 139 points as Koonce continues to roll on eyeing a second consecutive Harbour Cup title.
The next two weeks will feature two opportunities for players to win an individual event. This coming Wednesday will be an MGA individual playdate and the Wednesday after that will be the annual FOUNDERS CUP, where triple points are awarded for 1st, 2nd, & 3rd places.
In the second half of the season, the players will have some big tourneys coming up.
In later July, the HPGC 2-day Club Championship will be held and in August will begin the HPGC bracketed Match Play Championship. As you may remember, these events were added to the STATracker charter, beginning this season. Big points are available for successful participating players in both of those events. Then in September, the Broad Creek OPEN.
So loads of fun times, good camaraderie, and excellent competition await the STATracker field of players as the second half of the season begins on Monday, July 1st.
All the updated documents, standings and such, will be posted on Wednesday, July 3rd rather than on Monday, the usual day for this. Also, the sign-up sheet for that MGA Founders Cup tourney, on July 10th will also be posted this Wednesday as well.
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