Randy Haag claims NCGA Senior Match Play championship
8/19/2016 | by Northern California Golf Association
see also: View results for NCGA Senior Match Play, Poppy Hills Golf Course
In the Super Senior Division Frank Pieper won his NCGA individual title
PEBBLE BEACH, CA (August 19, 2016) -- It took a while for record six-time NCGA Player of the Year Randy Haag to finally fully join the senior ranks.
The 57-year-old isn’t just getting more used to it, he’s quickly becoming a force.
On Friday, Haag claimed his third big senior title of the year, defeating Orinda CC member Jim Williams, 4 and 3, in the 18-hole final of the 10th annual NCGA Senior Amateur Match Play Championship at Spyglass Hill. Haag also won this year’s NCGA Senior Four-Ball Championship and the San Francisco City Senior.
“It’s a great win. We all have to get comfortable to our graduation to the older levels,” Haag said. “Some guys can’t wait, and some guys go begrudgingly. I’m getting used to the forward tees. This is the first time I didn’t have applications for both the NCGA Match Play and Senior Match Play in front of me.”
With the win, Haag joined Casey Boyns as the only players to have won both the NCGA Amateur Match Play and Senior Match Play crowns. Overall, the victory was Haag’s 16th career title, second only to Boyns.
“Getting wins in both events is special. I’m only getting started,” Haag said.
With a par on the first hole, the 60-year-old Williams took a 1-up lead through the first three holes. After that though, it was all Haag. Three straight pars and a birdie from holes No. 4 through No. 7 gave Haag a 3-up lead. With another birdie later on the par-5 14th, Haag went 4-up.
Following an opening bogey, the No. 2 seeded Haag went 1-under over the rest of the 14 holes. Williams, meanwhile, never really could get his putter to cooperate.
“I know Jim, he’s a tough competitor,” Haag said. “He’s got great shot-making capability. In match play, you always expect the other guy to make the putt.”
At this year’s San Francisco City, Haag beat Williams, the No. 12 seed, in the semifinals. The two also tangled at this year’s NCGA Senior Four-Ball Championship, where Haag and partner Chip Lutz prevailed over Williams and his brother, Doug, on the fifth hole of a sudden-death playoff.
“Randy’s really good. That’s now three times he got me this year,” Williams said. “I just wasn’t as sharp as I was the previous days.”
SUPER SENIOR MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP
Monterey Peninsula Country Club member and Aptos resident Frank Pieper had already won an NCGA title when he and partner Mike Staskus captured the 2014 Senior Four-Ball crown.
Never before though had the 66-year-old Pieper won an individual NCGA title. Until now.
Pieper, the son of amateur legend Ernie Pieper, Jr, got the win in the inaugural Super Senior Match Play Championship, defeating Bob Thomason, 1-up.
“This is a big deal,” said the 66-year-old Pieper. “I’ve been playing in these things since around 1966.”
Holding a 1-up lead on the 18th tee, it looked like Pieper would maybe lose his opportunity when he pulled his approach shot right of the green into the bunker while Thomason hit his second shot within 12 feet of the pin. Pieper, however, made a great up-and-down to halve the hole and claim the victory.
“That was the highlight shot,” Pieper said. “I’d hit a good putt earlier on 17, but it didn’t go in.”
Thomason, the men’s basketball coach at University of Pacific for 25 years, fell behind by three holes and couldn’t make up difference, even though he birdied three holes on the back-nine.
“When I was down early, I just reminded myself to stay focused on what I had wanted to do, and not what I had done,” Thomason said. “Frank just played very consistent golf.”
About the NCGA Senior Match Play
The NCGA Senior Match Play Championship was historically an invite-only event in which the top 16 players on the NCGA Senior points list were invited to participate in the Senior Match Play Championship, held concurrently with the NCGA Amateur Match ...
Most Popular Articles
2025 PGA TOUR Q-School Guide: Sites, Scores, and Who Advanced
Dec 5, 2025Second Stage is complete and Final Stage awaits at Sawgrass — follow every Q-School leaderboard and the players still chasing
2025 LPGA TOUR Q-Series: Final Qualifying Stage FINAL SCORING
Dec 8, 2025Helen Briem earns medalist honors, 31 players headed to the LPGA next year
Australian Open at Royal Melbourne: Preview, amateur bios, and how to watch
Nov 30, 2025Rory McIlroy headlines one of the championship's top fields in years - at least four amateurs will have their chance at glory
Luke Ringkamp Cruises to Rolex Tournament of Champions Title at TPC San Antonio
Nov 26, 2025One week after committing to Pepperdine, Luke Ringkamp won the Rolex Tournament of Champions by nine shots.
Inside Gil Hanse’s Restoration of Baltusrol’s Upper Course: A Return to Tillinghast’s
Dec 11, 2025Renowned architect Gil Hanse reveals how he brought Baltusrol’s Upper Course back to life by honoring A.W. Tillinghast’s original