BANDON, Oregon (April 16, 2018) -- The Colorado team of Jason Wood and John Krogh posted the round of the tournament, a 7-under 65 at Bandon Dunes, to break open a close contest and win the AmateurGolf.com Two Man Links Championship by five shots.

Once again a diverse field from across the country gathered at Bandon Dunes, with players representing 16 states and four time zones. After rain washed out the third round at Pacific Dunes, the weather brightened for the final round at Bandon Dunes.

Wood and Krogh entered the final round tied with the Texas-based team of Kevin Prater and Winn Smith, who closed with a 2-under 70. Wood & Krogh finished the tournament at 4-under 210, with Prater and Smith solo second at 215.



The California team of Mark Martin and Garrett Waldron finished third, with John Cesarz (New York, NY) & David Price (Raleigh, NC) fourth and the Las Vegas team of Thomas Fletcher & Darin Garness fifth.

It went down to the wire in the Net division. Chuck Purse (Melvin Village, NH), who has partnered well with Randall in the past (they were the Net champions in 2014) brought his son Cameron or “CJ” (Dallas, TX) and it worked out quite well, thank you.

The Purses shot their third straight 68 to squeeze out a one-shot win in CJ's first trip to Bandon Dunes.

“What an absolute treat to have the chance both play well as a team and introduce Bandon Dunes to my son at the same time,” said Chuck Purse. “It’s such a fun event.”

The defending champions Mike (Dayton, OH) and Steve Suttman (Castle Pines, CO) tied for second with the California team of Randall Schwartz and Mark Utter.

The top three teams all fired 4-under 68 in the final round.

Senior champs Greg Brooking (left) & Bill Byrne

In the Senior division, Gregory Brooking and Bill Byrne from Natchez, MS scored a comeback win, shooting a final-round 70 to overcome the second-round leaders Steve Robinson and Jay Weiss from California. With the win, they became the first players from Mississippi to ever win an AmateurGolf.com tournament!

"It was the single greatest golf experience I've ever had in my life," Brooking told his hometown newspaper, the Natchez Democrat. "It's what we practice for. To meet those people, battle those conditions and to win with one of my best friends, it was great. I've known Bill all my life, and I hope everyone gets to experience something like that."

Pat Garland (Brooksville, FL) and Greg Hendrix (Duluth, GA) shot the low round of the day, a 4-under 68, to pull into third, with the California team Dave Rathjen and tournament director Pete Wlodkowski fnishing fourth.

Five-time Senior champions Sherman Haggerty (El Dorado Hills, CA) and Ben Whipple (Marietta, SC) finished fifth.

ROUND THREE RECAP

The third round of the AmateurGolf.com Two Man Links Championship was washed out due to very heavy rains that left standing water on the greens at Pacific Dunes. The final round will be played as scheduled at Bandon Dunes.

ROUND TWO RECAP

The AmateurGolf.com Two Man Links Championship moved to Bandon Trails for round two, and players enjoyed the inland course's escape from winds that sent scores soaring in round one at Old Macdonald -- exposed from the elements with barely a tree in sight.

The Championship Division is paced by a Colorado duo (John Krogh and Jason Wood) plus a Texas team (Winn Smith and Kevin Prater). Both teams sit at 3-over 145, and will battle it out on Sunday. They are trailed closely by Californians Mark Martin and Garrett Waldron, who posted 147.

The Net Division is tight - with Californians Randall Schwartz and his partner Mark Utter putting up the low round of the day (a 6-under 65 net) to grab a share of the lead at 136 with Charles Purse and his son Cameron. Trailing by one are defending champs Mike and Steve Suttman, at 137 after a round of 66 today.

In the Senior Division it's Steve Robinson and Jay Weiss of California with the lead at 1-under 141. Major movers were Gregory Brooking and Bill Byrne of Mississippi who shot the reciprocal of their first round 76 (a 67) to move to 1-over 143 and Pete Wlodkowski and Dave Rathjen, who lopped 12 shots off their first round 79 with a 67 of their own to move into third at 146.

It's moving day tomorrow as the tournament moves to Pacific Dunes - a player favorite.

ROUND ONE RECAP

BANDON, Oregon (April 13, 2018) -- Superstitious or not, starting a golf tournament on Friday the 13th is enough to make a person wonder: 'how is this going to work out for me?'

Today at the amazing Bandon Dunes Golf Resort on the Oregon Coast, players spread across three divisions in the 18th Annual AmateurGolf.com Two Man Links Championship got to find out. With winds gusting at over 30 mph across the most difficult of Bandon Dunes' four 18-hole courses -- Old Macdonald -- their feet were thrown into the fire early. On a day like today, partner golf is the way to go.

The Championship Division is paced by two teams who posted 72. Mark Martin (Sebastopol, Calif.) and Garrett Waldron (Santa Rosa, Calif.) are tied with the father-in-law/son-in-law team of John Krogh and Jason Wood of Colorado (by way of Oklahoma).

"It's nice playing with my father-in-law, said Wood, an oil services executive who played collegiately and still carries plenty of game. "And my wife doesn't give me too much grief about it."

Krogh, a farmer turned insurance agent, won back-to-back Oklahoma Senior Amateurs in 2004 and 2005. He recently bested his age by a full 7 shots, posting 64 at Dornoch Hills in Oklahoma, where famous designer Perry Maxwell was laid to rest.

In the Senior Division, Virginians Rick Lareau and Mark Smith took the early lead, also posting a 72.

Giving chase are Steve Robinson (Belmont, Calif.) and Jay Weiss (San Jose), who put up a score of 73, offsetting the bogeys that are sure to happen on into-the-wind 475 yard par 4s with one birdie on the front, and three on the back.

"We played really well on the back side," said Weiss. "Steve birdied No. 11, and I birdied 14 and 15."

Net division defending champs Mike and Steve Suttman (Ohio and Colorado) are off to a solid title defense with a round of 71, but they are chasing three to the father son team of Chuck and Cameron Purse, who posted the only under par score of the day, a 68 -- causing tournament director Jake Wiese, PGA to break out the red pen for the only time of the day.

Tomorrow's second round of the 72-hole championship will be played at the third course to open at Bandon Dunes Resort - Bandon Trails. It's a player favorite.

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