Landon Merrell. photo by Wayne Hinshaw, for the Salisbury Post

 

Staff report

CHINA GROVE — The field is set for the 2025 Rowan Masters Championship.

The tournament began in 2003 and always is held at Warrior Golf Club, a scenic course built around Lake Wright and rated as one of the top golf experiences in the Charlotte area

Keith Dorsett won the inaugural event and is an eight-time champion. He’s in the field for another try, and you can never count out Dorsett in a match play event.

The Masters is one of the majors for Rowan golf and attracts a mix of veteran golfers, who have won local events, as well as teens who are still playing for their high school squads and young men in the college ranks.

The top 31 after a stroke-play qualifying round made the 32-man bracket for match play. Everyone shot 84 or better.

Chris Owen, who made an albatross on No. 17, the Warrior’s signature hole, in last summer’s tournament, didn’t have to qualify. He’s the defending champion and the No. 1 seed.

Owen starts his title defense on Friday at 2 p.m. against Chris Fenerty.

Seeded second and third are Derek Lipe and Kevin Lentz. They shot 70s in qualifying. Both are perennial contenders in local tournaments.

Fourth-seeded Michael Swaringen will be tough to eliminate. He won the Masters in 2023 and he and Lentz recently teamed to win the Grady B. McCanless Four-Ball Tournament.

Dorsett shot 76 in qualifying and is the 14 seed. The veteran will take on 19 seed Cade Cranfield, who starred at Carson not long ago.

Despite the difference in seeds, Lipe may have an interesting match in the first round against 31 seed William Little, who had an off day in qualifying, shot 83 and barely made the field.

Little drives long and was Masters runner-up in 2024. Little and Lipe also have been a winning Championship Flight partnership in the Labor-Day Four Ball at the Country Club of Salisbury.

It takes five victories to take the Masters crown. A golfer has to win an opening-round match on Friday and two matches in the heat on both Saturday and Sunday.

 

Rowan Masters

(32) Chris Fenerty vs. (1) Chris Owen

(17) Richard Cobb vs. (16) Robert Shoaf

(25) Todd Pegram vs. (8) Scott Goodelle

(24) Ross Brown vs. (9) Randy Cooper

(29) Brody Benfield vs. (4) Michael Swaringen

(20 John Gaddy vs. (13) Jaden Sprinkle

(28) Andrew Morgan vs. (5) Brady McIntyre

(21) Jeff Childress vs. (13) Matt Davis

(31) William Little vs. (2) Derek Lipe

(15) Tyler Kepley vs. (18) Chris Harte

(26) Samuel Faulkner vs. (7) Landon Merrell

(23) Matt Graham vs. (10) Dan Hurd

(30) Stephen McQuage vs. (3) Kevin Lentz

(19) Cade Cranfield vs. (14) Keith Dorsett

(27) Cole Sajonia vs. (6) Hunter Byrum

(22) Griffin Robbins vs. (11) Brandon Ancona

June 27-29, at Warrior

Defending champ — Chris Owen

Top qualifying scores — Derek Lipe 70, Kevin Lentz 70, Michael Swaringen 71, Brady McIntyre 71