The day was beautiful and Shore Gate was in exquisite condition. Unlike many past years when only a handful appeared for the last tournament, all tour player showed along with several guests, all except Bleeding Green Mike O’Brien.  Out of the Gate Michael Lazarchick sent a booming drive down the fairway, followed by a sweet iron dropping the ball three feet from the cup for an easy opening Birdie.  But the Doctor and all others would find such play very unusual on the most difficult challenge of the season. Only Marc Bohan, sporting a 12 Handicap, was able to break 90, just barely, uncharacteristically posting 2 sevens and 3 sixes on the Scorecard.  Dave Kissinger so impressive climbing into a first place tie for the point lead with one to go, became the first player in modern day OCAGA history to not make the finals. Only four could post in the nineties while eleven suffered a 100 plus event. Those with the most meticulous putting strokes were rewarded on fast and true greens. Placing the ball in the fairways and avoiding a myriad of hazards required considerable precision and course management was at a premium. Extricating oneself from dicey situations was quite common and errant attempts delivered scores of scores like 7,  8, 9, 10 up to a 13 on a hole.

Milt Nicholas had flirted with the final four all season and knew he had to step it up to catch and out duel the league’s most accomplished competitors. Indeed head to head, he bested both March Bohan and Charlie Ranucci on the front, cashing in a sweet 43. He had Marc by 1 and Charlie by 4 at the turn.   He had erased the 11 strokes he was giving Paul Ruth the highest Handicapper at 36, a clear and dangerous threat. He was ahead of Scotty Shaw and Art Czachorowski.  Lazarchick was coughing, struggling to concentrate and racking up some big numbers.

Marc Bohan would catch Milt in gross score on the 12^th hole and Charlie would also pass him on 15, too little too late. On the 14^th Hole Milt Nicholas dropped a dart closest to the hole, the hole that delivered the bonus 3 points. He was tired but clearly in command. He edged out Charlie Ranucci for the victory and bested the high handicappers Sweiderk, Ruth  and Stocker, all delivering respectable performances. While not close enough for the final four, they were spoilers for Marc, Scotty and Art, not getting enough points to compete with the new Top Two.

Milt Nicholas finished the regular season in first place with 110 points, just 2 ahead of Charlie Ranucci. Scotty Shaw held in, dropping down to  3^rd position at 106 and Marc Bohan earned a return visit to the Championship with 100 points.

The Final Four will lead off the tournament on Championship Sunday, playing by USGA Rules. The remainder of the Tour will pair the highest handicap player with the lowest, moving towards the center, to play in the Hanko Memorial Tournament. The two man teams will play 6 holes best ball, 6 holes alternate strokes and 6 holes scramble delivering one score per team.

Following the tournament President Rob Juliano delivered perhaps the most energetic of all time, traditional regular season ending Press Conference. He lavished praise on Art Czachorowski, for his work managing the treasury and scheduling of tournaments in a season full of unfortunate weather. He lavished praise on Michael Lazarchick calling him the best Secretary in modern OCAGA History, collecting data, serving membership requests and contacting the OCAGA Press when any questionable news was reported. Rob personally thanked Scotty Shaw for his guidance as past president and started a clapping accolade for a remarkable Starter/SCATS Performance replacing legendary John Buechner, which brought a tear to Glenn Hamm’s eye.  He ended his oratory, humbly, saying with a soft voice, “ I am  just a regular guy who promised transparency and an exciting competitive season,” which elicited thundering Cheers of Approval.

NEXT:  CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY   GREATE BAY COUNTRY CLUB  October 14th    10:00 AM