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Ron Davis Dominates Senior Stroke Play All Weekend to Earn Championship Victory
By Megan Terry, Programs Administrator
Seventy-three of Utah golf’s most talented senior competitors gathered at Bountiful Ridge Golf Course August 17-19 for a chance to capture the final senior championship title of the Utah Golf Association’s 2017 season. The Championship Division field consisted of 40 contestants, the Super Senior Division included 17 players and 16 competed in the Net Division.
Following Thursday’s opening round, Ron Davis lead the pack by one stroke over fellow Championship Division competitor Brigham Gibbs. Davis carded three-under 68 to gain the early advantage. He started the 54-hole event strong with back-to-back birdies and a bogey-free front nine to help him post 33 going out and 35 coming in.
Brigham Gibbs posted 70 (-1) during the second round to catch Davis as the co-leader heading into the final round. Gibbs made just one bogey on the par-4 No. 15 for the opportunity to take on Ron Davis for the Championship Division victory.
It all came down to the third and final round at the spectacularly beautiful Bountiful Ridge. Despite Davis maintaining the lead during the first 36 holes, it was still anyone’s ball game. 2017 Utah Senior Open Low Amateur and home-course favorite Steve Poulson carded a final-round 69 to overtake Gibbs by one stroke. Poulson shot a pair of 70s on Thursday and Friday to stay in the game. Two under on Saturday, with four birdies and two bogeys, was enough to jump up the leaderboard, and Poulson came from behind to capture the runner-up win at 209 (-4).
Still, it was Ron Davis who dominated the field from day one. Davis faced the strong competition head on and posted a final-round 69 (-2) to capture his eighth victory of the year. Over the course of three days, Ron made 12 birdies and only seven bogeys. He was three under on par 3s and six under on par 5s.
Kurt Bernhisel lead the Super Seniors at one-under 70 after the first of two rounds. Bernhisel posted 36 (+1) on the front and 24 (-2) on the back to lead Tom Jones by one stroke. However, Jones overtook Kurt with a final round of 72 to earn the Super Senior victory by one shot over Michael Hacker. Richard Dibblee clinched the Net Division victory at three-under 139. Ken Slagle lead the division after the opening round with a net 67, one shot over Dibblee. Nevertheless, Dibblee rose to the challenge and posted a net 71 to claim the title.
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