Weather plays havoc with Labor Day qualifying

Published 10:18 pm Saturday, August 27, 2016

Staff report

SALISBURY — Storms in the area on Saturday disrupted the second day of qualifying for the 63rd annual Crowder-Dorsett Labor Day 4-ball golf tournament at the Country Club of Salisbury.

Ten two-man teams in the men’s open division, all trying to qualify in the late afternoon yesterday, were unable to complete their rounds. Those teams will have a 9:30 shotgun start this morning while today’s regularly scheduled qualifying tee times begin at 9:10, on the first and 10th holes.

“Due to the weather, the field was pulled from the golf course three times over the course of the day,” said Chad Campbell, head golf professional at the club. “The final time was at 7:15, with 10 teams left on the course.”

Campbell stressed that Sunday’s regularly scheduled qualifiers will start on time (see Scoreboard on page 2B).

Most of the teams scheduled to qualify on Saturday did get to complete their rounds.

The best score of the day was turned in by the team Patrick Gregg-Kevin Lentz, carding a 5-under par 66. At this point, Gregg and Lentz are third-best in the men’s open division, behind No. 1 seed Phil Miller-Andrew Morgan (last year’s champions) and the team of Nick Lyerly and Michael Childress, which qualified on Friday with a 64.

The duo of Jim Christy and Alex Nianouris shot a 67 on Saturday, followed by 68s carded by Josh Brincefield-Eric Mulkey and Clark Alcorn-James Kyger. The team of Wally Eidson and Kyle Venrick fired a 69.

Also shooting under-par qualifying scores of 70 on Saturday were Charlie Barr-Troy Beaver, Lee Frick-Blake Wray and Alan Fesperman-Bob Humble.

In the men’s senior division (55+), the team of John DeRhodes and Mallory McDaniel turned in a score of 1-under par 70. Defending champions of this flight, John Henderlite and John Kyger, will qualify today but are already the No. 1 seed. Craig Rae-Andre Resner shot a 67 on Friday and are the second seed at this point.

In the men’s super senior division (65+), the team of Gus Andrews and Jim Goodman shot a 1-under par 70 to move up to the second seed thus far, behind defending champs David Roueche and Steve Vail. Roueche and Vail also qualify today.

In the women’s division, two of the five teams qualified on Saturday. The team of Mechelle Kuld-Sharon Miller have made their way to the top so far with an 80 yesterday. That scored topped the 82 turned in by Kristi Laton and Susan Morris on Friday.

Today, five-time women’s champion Allison Adams, playing with new partner Micah Furr, qualifies at 10:50. The other pairing today is the team of Lisa Brier-Suzette Pritchard.

Grace Yatawara, Adams’ partner in the past five championships, is a freshman at East Carolina and was unavailable this year.