It’s not always birdies that win golf events, said Ryan Sam.
Sometimes — it’s the scrambling pars that are the big scores.
It was the scrambling pars that turned out key for him and Rocco Turner to win Sunday’s Belleria Pizza 2-player Shootout to launch the 15th season of The Greatest Golfer.
Sam rattled off 5 birdies in 7 holes to power the team’s 63. But Turner battled out some pars that came in clutch.
The two playing mates at Tippecanoe Country Club will be teammates next year at Youngstown State University.
Behind them in the A Flight was Blake Prince and Jason Dickey, who carded a 65. Right behind them were Corey Hines and Bill Cain, and Dave Kilgore and Matt May, each carding 68s.
In B Flight, the father-son duo of Bob and Chad Grey posted a 67. Their key shot of the day was Chad’s 200-yard 5-iron that landed for a tap-in birdie.
In C Flight, the teams of Mark Isaacson and Luke Stanovcak, and Larry Stacey and Jim Santini tied for first with a 72.
Flight 1:
1st – 63
Sam-Turner
$500
2nd – 65
Prince-Dickey
$300
3rd – 66
Hines-Cain
Kilgore-May
$125 each
Flight 2
1st – 67
Grey-Grey
$500
2nd – 69
Pappas-Pappas
$300
3rd – 70
Braham-Braham
$150
4th – 72
Yourstowsky-Taylor
Marsh-Giudici
$50 each
Flight 3:
1st Tie – 72
Isaacson – Stanovcak
Stacey-Santini
$400 each
3rd – 75
Koch-Turner
$150
4th – 76
Bostian-Fletcher
Elias-DiMuzio
$50 each
Skins
Eagle – #4: Kilgore-May
Eagle – #5: Cubellis-Bordonaro
Eagle – #7 – Braham-Braham
Birdie – #9 – Hines-Cain