By CRAIG DOLCH, Special to the USDGA
PORT ST. LUCIE – It came down to the wire – repeatedly – in the sixth USDGA Championship on Wednesday at PGA Golf Club.
Chad Pfeifer and Ryanne Jackson each made short putts on the 18th hole Wednesday to win their divisions by a shot, Pfeifer winning the men’s title for the third time and Jackson claiming her first women’s title. Ken Green and Eli Villanueva had to go to a playoff to decide the Senior title, with Green prevailing in two extra holes.
Yes, the USDGA Championship was really good until the last putt dropped.
Pfeifer defended his title and won for the third time in the last four years. The 45-year-old Idaho resident led the 54-hole tournament for only two holes – but they were the last two holes.
Pfeifer birdied the par-5 17th to grab the lead and then parred the 18th for a 1-under 70 to win by a shot over Albert Bowker at 4-over 217.
“I knew the birdie at 17 was huge, but I didn’t know how important it was until I looked at the leaderboard on the 18th tee,” said Pfeifer, who lost part of his left leg while serving in the Army in Iraq in 2007. “I hit a good drive at 17, and that allowed me to play aggressively.”
Pfeifer reached the par-5 in two shots and two-putted from 40 feet for the birdie. He hit an errant drive at the 18th, but made a nice recovery from the trees with a 7-iron from 167 yards to the edge of the green. He lagged to 4 feet and made the winning putt.
“That last putt was a little longer than I wanted, and it broke left-to-right, so it wasn’t an easy one,” Pfeifer said. “But I was able to make it.
“It always feels great to win any tournament, much less this one. This is a major in adaptive golf. Jason Faircloth and John Bell and the USDGA do a great job of running this championship.”
Bowker didn’t leave with a trophy, but he felt like a winner after shooting a 1-over 72 to finish one back at 5-over 218. After a difficult start – he was 3-over after 3 holes – Bowker made three birdies in the eight holes and was 2-under the rest of the round.
It was his best finish in adaptive golf (he was third in the Short Stature division in last year’s U.S. Adaptive Open).
“I was a little nervous playing in the final group for the first time,” said Bowker, from Santa Barbara, Calif. “But once the nerves went away, I was in my own environment. I started playing some solid golf; to shoot 73-73-72 is absolutely unreal.”
Chris Biggins, the 36-hole leader, shot 76 and was third at 7-over 220. Green (76), a five-time PGA Tour winner, tied for fourth with Villanueva (70).
Jackson started the day one shot behind defending champion Bailey Bish, but fired a 2-over 73 to finish a stroke ahead of Bish (75). Jackson rebounded from a double bogey at the par-3 12th to birdie the 13th. They were tied until Bish bogeyed the par-3 16th.
“I finally made some putts today,” said Jackson, who has muscular dystrophy. “It all came down to putting. Bailey missed a couple putts she usually makes.”
The victory enabled the Seminole, Fla., native to hold the top two trophies in women’s adaptive golf. Jackson won last year’s U.S. Adaptive Open, which is run by the USGA.
“It means a lot to me,” said Jackson, whose caddie was former college teammate Emily Valentine, a program director at the First Tee Florida Gold Coast. “It definitely motivates me to go out and start practicing to get ready for July.”
Bish said before the round she wasn’t worried about winning; she just wanted to focus on every shot.
“I’m happy with the way I played,” Bish said. “It was a great week.”
Green appeared to have the Senior Division title wrapped up – until the West Palm Beach resident made a triple bogey on the final hole to force the playoff with Villanueva. Green looked to be the winner on the first playoff hole until Villanueva made a 50-foot par putt. Green won with a par on the second hole.
“A win is a win. It still feels good,” said Green, whose last victory on the PGA Tour came in 1989. “I wasn’t thinking about the triple during the playoff; I wanted revenge on that hole. I know I’m never going to be the player I once was, but I never gave up.”
All division champions:
Men’s G1 (impairment affecting one leg): Pfeifer.
Men’s G2 (impairment in lower leg, less impactful than G1: Green.
Men’s G3 (impairment in both legs): Evan Mathias.
Men’s G4 (impairment affecting one arm): Vince Biser.
Men’s G5 (impairment affecting one arm in use of the swing): Villanueva.
Men’s G6 (impairment in both arms): Andreas Brandenberger.
Men’s G8 (neurological impairments): Biggins.
Men’s G9 (seated golfers): Mariano Tubio.
Men’s G10 (near to normal trunk control): Larry Celano.
Men’s G12 (higher visual acuity): Orlando Ramirez.
Men’s G13 (severe visual impairment): Willy Ray Pease.
Men’s G14 (short stature): Bowker.
Men’s G15 (intellectual disabilities): Wellman Conover.
Women’s G1 (impairment affecting one leg): Kelsey Koch.
Women’s G2 (impairment in lower leg, less impactful than G1: Jamie Allen
Women’s G4 (impairment affecting one arm): Kellie Valentine.
Women’s G5 (impairment affecting one arm in use of the swing): Sophia Howard.
Women’s G8 (neurological impairments): Jackson.
Women’s G12 (higher visual acuity): Amanda Cunha.
Women’s G15 (intellectual disabilities): Natasha Stasiuk.
The USDGA Championship is run by the U.S. Disabled Golf Association and Presented by the PGA of America.
