Birdie Train: Beck starts tournament with 10 straight birdies
- Photo submitted
There are hot starts to a tournament, and then there is what Brandon Beck, 34, of Sherman Oaks, Calif. did at Rustic Canyon Golf Course in Moorpark, Calif.
Playing in the Rustic Canyon Men's Club August stroke play competition, Beck birdied every hole on the front nine to go out in 27, and then birdied the par-5 10th for his 10th straight birdie to open the round. The 10 consecutive birdies is the most ever reported in a golf competition, eclipsing the nine held by several players at all levels of the game, including Beth Daniel, Colin Montgomerie, Mark Calcavecchia, Omar Uresti, Amy Yang, and amateur Rayhan Thomas.
The streak was stopped with a lip out at the par-4 11th, and Beck would cool off after that, with a birdie at the par-5 13th offset by a lone bogey at the par-3 15th. His round of 62 was good for a six-shot win over Matt Suggett.
It was a good 66th birthday present for Beck's father Bruce, who witnessed the round. Others in the group included Brandon Faust and Tom Cammalleri, the Rustic Canyon Golf Club President who scored Brandon’s record-setting round.
Beck played professionally for four years after graduating from Cal where he was a member of the 2004 NCAA Championship team. He regained his amateur status in 2013. His previous record for consecutive birdies was five, set at the 2005 Southern California Amateur.
Rustic Canyon was designed by Gil Hanse, whose original projects include the Olympic Course in Brazil, Pinehurst No. 4, Boston Golf Club, and the South Course at L.A. Country Club.