Mulligan Tour News

Tepid temps in November and improved greens at Harbor Club GC led to great scoring opportunities in the 2013 Runny Nose Open on Saturday. And, Tour rookie Gerry Sawchuck took advantage, posting a 6-under par 66 for a 3-stroke win in the final event of 2013 silly season.
Sawchuk was perfect after an opening bogey, mixing 5 birdies and an eagle among the 11 pars. His 27 putts tied for fewest putts with Greg Kline who finished in 2nd place with a 3-under 69.
Charlie Roy and Jeff Klipa tied for 3rd at even par 72.

2013 RNO

Gerry Sawchuk - 2013 Runny Nose Open champ

Bell rings for Klipa and the West

Team West won the 2013 Division Bell last Sunday at Farmington Hills GC by posting a 9-over par 297 to beat Team Central by 13 and Team East by 19. Mike Prieskorn led all players with a 3-under 69 as the event required 2 loops around Farmington Hill's back nine. Jeff Klipa finished at even par and Erik Meland was 1-over as the West team posted 3 of the 4 lowest scores.
Klaus Juska (72) and Greg Kline (74) led Team Central - winner of the first 3 Division Bells.
Barb Hoelzle (76) led the way for Team East.

Team Management kept the President's Cup on Sunday with a 6 to 3 win over Team Labor on the Fox Hills Classic courses. Mulligan Tour President Erik Meland's team won 2 of 3 matches in each of the 3 formats. Veterans Tom & Barb Hoelzle went 3-0-0 in their matches for Team Management, the first perfect 3 win performance in the 4 President's Cup matches contested so far. The Hoelzle's are 9-3-0 as a team in the 4 annual matches pitting a team from the Player's Advisory Council, "Management", versus a team from the membership, "Labor".

Meland's crew also included Bill Gordon (2-1-0), Jeff Klipa (1-2-0), Greg Kline (1-1-0) and Rich Dunmore (0-2-0). The Labor team was led by John Raymond (2-1-0) and Steve Bisson (2-1-0) and included Jon Heikkinen (1-2-0), Joe Robar (1-2-0), Tom Moran (0-3-0) and David Tobbe (0-3-0).

Klaus Juska outlasted Tom & Barb Hoelzle and Rich Dunmore in a sudden death playoff to take the final skin in the East Skins Game winning 7 skins in all worth a record $62. The annual Mulligan Tour Skins Game - one for each regional division - moved to the Jackal Golf Club at Mt Brighton when the traditional course, Mystic Creek GC, was booked on October 6.

Charlie Roy won his 2nd Skins Game in 2 years by edging out Commissioner Klipa in the West Skins Game. In the closest of the 3 games, Roy won 3 skins for $28, Klipa won 3 skins for $26, Andrew Wilson won 2 skins for $14 and Victor McCoy won one skin worth $12.

Jason Rectenwald, playing in his 2nd career Skins Game, won the Central Division edition by winning a playoff with Erik Meland, Greg Kline and Eric Birkle. The final skin was worth $32 and put Rectenwald over the top with 3 skins totaling $48. Meland finished in 2nd with 3 skins worth $32. Kline held the previous record of $56 in skins at last year's Central Skins Game.

Team West, led by Commissioner Jeff Klipa, kept the Cup in blue hands by beating Team East in the 9th edition of the Commissioner's Cup matches. With Manistee National's Cutter's Ridge course serving as the stage, Team West defended the Cup by winning 5 of the 8 singles matches to provide the final 13 to 11 score.

Team West took a 4½ to 3½ lead after the Saturday morning session of team matches. But Team East took 4½ of 8 points in the afternoon session and the teams were tied at 8 going into the Sunday singles. Greg Kline, Jason Rectenwald, Klipa and Mike Prieskorn won the first 4 four matches for the blues and then Tim Markel clinched the Cup for the West by winning the last 2 holes to take a 1-up win against Klaus Juska.
Notable: Erik Meland made a hole in one in the Friday practice round. Team West was happy he used it up.

Dave Oliver was crowned the 2013 TOUR Champion last Saturday. His 1-over par 73 at the Polo Fields Washtenaw matched that of Jon Heikkinen, who had finished an hour earlier but could not stay for a playoff. Oliver is the 4th player in Tour history to win a playoff without a putt-off and the 2nd in a major championship (Jeff Klipa, 2007 HPO).

After turning in 3-over 39, Oliver started the back nine with 5 straight pars. Birdies at the 15th and 16th moved him into a tie for the lead, but a bogey at 17 left him one back with one to play. A sand save birdie at the closing hole forced a tie and Oliver prepared, albeit briefly, for a playoff.

Bill Gordon (39-35 - 74), Andrew Wilson (37-37 - 74) and Dan Michalski (36-38 - 74) tied for 3rd place just 1-stroke out of the playoff.

Jeff Klipa (39-38 - 76) finished in solo 8th and did not collect any more prize money, but he did lay claim to the 2013 Money Title from his $227.17 in earnings for the year.

Joe Robar, playing the 2013 WESTERN Championship on a defending champion's exemption, birdied Stonebridge Golf Club's 18th hole to shoot a 1-over 73 and beat Mike Prieskorn by 1 to win his 3rd consecutive WESTERN Championship. Robar made 6 birdies in all and nearly canceled the effects of his 4 bad holes - a triple, a double and 2 single bogies. Robar is the 7th player in Tour history to collect 4 major championships - his WESTERN trifecta adding to his 2009 Memorial win.

Prieskorn (33-41 - 74) led the tournament with 4 holes to play but took a costly triple-bogey at 15 and a double-bogey at 17 to settle for 2nd place. He also finishes 2nd on the final West division money list ($64.33) as Gail O'Brien wins the 2013 West Money Title ($65.60). Jason Rectenwald (38-37 - 75) and Jack Craig (37-38 - 75) shared 3rd place.

Joe Robar
2013 WESTERN Champion

Rookie Eric Messner won the 2013 PLAYERS Championship on Saturday at Whispering Pines Golf Club. Making birdies on 3 of the final 4 holes, Messner locked down the tournament finishing at 5-under par 66 to establish a new scoring record at the Central division championship. Messner used an exemption from a top-4 finish at the Ladies Open to get into the tournament and then became the 7th rookie to win in 2013 and the 4th to take a grand slam title.
Chris Dunmore (34-39 - 73) finished in solo 2nd and won the 2013 Central Money Title ($65.50). Darren Hamman (35-39 - 74) and the 2012 PLAYERS champ Tom Sachs (38-36 - 74) tied for 3rd.

Eric Messner
2013 PLAYERS Champion

Jeff Klipa won the EASTERN Championship at Westwynd GC on Saturday to claim the division's 2013 money title. Playing the final 2 holes in 3-under par, Klipa overtook Steve Villerot and Charlie Roy to post a 2-over 74 and a 2-stroke win. Klipa hit 6 of 13 fairways and 9 greens in regulation while taking 32 putts. The $48 first place check gave Klipa $129.67 on the East circuit and $227.17 overall. He had 2 wins among 5 top-4's from playing in all 10 East division tournaments.

Villerot (37-39 - 76) birdied the home hole to secure solo 2nd place. He finished 3rd on the final East money list behind Ed Campbell. Charlie Roy (36-41 - 77) settled for 3rd place in the championship and 6th on the money list. Tom Moran (42-38 - 80) caught Rich Dunmore (41-39 - 80) for a share of 4th place after a birdie-birdie finish that included draining a 120' putt on 17.

Jeff Klipa
2013 EASTERN Champion

A day after David Tobbe became the 5th rookie to win this year, Andrew Wilson made it 6 wins for the 2013 freshman class. Wilson shot a 6-under 66 at the Huntmore GC that was 6-strokes clear of the rest of the field and claimed the Little Diablo Salsa Western Swing as his first Tour win. The win gets Wilson into the PLAYERS Championship on August 31 at Whispering Pines.

A foursome of players tied for 2nd place. Ray Nadell (37-35 - 72) and Pat Craig (37-35 - 72) each had a pair of T-2's for the weekend. Darren Hamman (40-32 - 72) moved up to 5th on the Money List ($118.40) and Erik Meland (38-34 - 72) moved up to 4th ($120.00).

The 23 players in the field helped raise $210 for English Springer Rescue America

Andrew Wilson - 2013 Little Diablo Salsa Western Swing champ

David Tobbe gave the 2013 rookie class it's 5th win of the year at the Go Blue Classic on Saturday. Tobbe carded 4 birdies and an eagle to post a 1-under 71 at Lake Forest GC and a 2-stroke win over a fivesome of players that shot 73. Overall, Tobbe is the 10th first time winner in 2013.

Among the players tied for 2nd place, Gail O'Brien moved to the top of the West division money list ($65.60) with her 4th top-4 in west tournaments. The others tied for 2nd included Ray Nadell, Greg Kline, Ray Collins and Patrick Craig. It was enough to move Nadell into the top-20 on the West, but Collins, Kline and Craig fell just short of qualifying for the WESTERN Championship.

David Tobbe - 2013 Go Blue Classic champ

Tom Hoelzle collected his 3rd career win at the 2013 Caddyshack Classic. Hoelzle netted 6 birdies and 3 pars on his first nine holes to take the lead. A rough patch on the inward nine (5-over par from 10 thru 14) made the tournament interesting before Hoelzle closed with birdie-par-eagle to take the gopher trophy. Hoelzle hit 4 of 14 fairways and a career best 7 of 18 greens in regulation in posting a 30-38 - 68, the only sub-par score at the notoriously low scoring Links at Lake Erie.
Rich Dunmore (31-42 - 73) stayed ahead of the rest of the field for solo 2nd while Jeff Klipa (38-36 - 74), Don Morris (35-39 - 74) and Dan Michalski (35-39 - 74) shared 3rd place in the final East division tournament of the regular season.

Tom Hoelzle - 2013 Caddyshack Classic champ

Steve Villerot became the 5th multiple winner on Tour this season after beating Mike Geisser in a playoff for the 2013 Carrington Classic title. Villerot birdied 5 of his last 7 holes including the final 3 to finish at 4-under 68. Geisser, playing in the same group, had a smorgasbord of scores - making an albatross, 2 eagles, 4 birdies, 6 pars, 3 bogies and 2 doubles to net a 68.
A Geisser 3-putt on the first playoff hole was the difference as Villerot 2-putted the 4 holes for a 8 to 9 playoff win. Just 2 weeks after claiming the Match Play title, Villerot gets his 2nd win of the year and 5th overall since joining the Tour in 2010.
Tim Markel (35-34 - 69) took 3rd place while tournament host Jason Rectenwald (36-35 - 71) finished in the top-4 for the 3rd time in his event.

Steve Villerot - 2013 Carrington Classic champ

Mike Prieskorn birdied 2 of the last 3 holes on Downing Farms GC to win the 2013 Ugly Pants Open - his 7th career Mulligan Tour title. His 2-under par 69 was 1-stroke better than Gail O'Brien and the win secured a spot in the WESTERN Championship on August 31. Prieskorn hit 8 of 13 fairways and 8 greens in regulation.
O'Brien (33-37 - 70) led the field in putting (27) and may have collected her 2nd win of the year if not for a triple-bogey at 17. Still, she ranks 2nd on the West money list (10th overall) with plans of playing in the Go Blue Classic and the WESTERN Championship
John Raymond (37-36 - 73) and Jan Boyer (35-38 - 73) tied for 3rd.

Mike Prieskorn - 2013 Ugly Pants Open champ

Klaus Juska wins Fifty Cent Classic

Aug 6, 2013

Klaus Juska recorded 6 birdies against a single bogey to post a 5-under par 67 and a 3-stroke win over Patrick Craig in the 2013 Fifty Cent Classic. Juska hit 8 of 14 fairways and 9 of 18 greens in regulation while needing 30 putts on the Stony Creek Metropark course. He earned the bag of 65 Kennedy half dollars, the hallmark of the Fifty Cent Classic, and secured his place in the EASTERN Championship - August 24 at Westwynd GC.

Craig (32-38 - 70) netted 2 birdies and 3 eagles and picked up 49 fifty cent pieces for 2nd place - his 2nd top-4 of the year. Joe Brandenburg (36-35 - 71) birdied the 18th to finish solo 3rd ahead of Ray Nadell (34-38 - 72) and Greg Kline (35-37 - 72). Tournament host and East division Commissioner Tom Hoelzle (36-37 - 73) tied for 6th.

Klaus Juska - 2013 Fifty Cent Classic champ

Steve Villerot was the last man into the 2013 Match Play Championship field and the last man standing after running the table on 4 of the biggest names on Tour. The 16th seeded Villerot beat the Tour's top ranked player and 2-time Match Play champ, Kelly Arnold, 5&4 on Friday and followed that with a grinding win over 20-time Tour winner Rick Persichetti 2&1 on Saturday.
A semi-final 7&5 win over Tom W Litzler set up a championship match with another 20-win member, including 3 Match Play titles, Greg Kline. In winning his first major championship, Villerot beat 4 players that have combined for 24 majors in their Mulligan Tour careers.

Kline accepted the runner-up position for a 2nd time after playing in the final 4 for the 6th time in tournament history. Jon Heikkinen won the 3rd place match over Tom W Litzler - each player making it to the final 4 for the 2nd year in a row.

Steve Villerot - 2013 Match Play champion

Ron Hiestand played the final 8 holes of the 2013 Two-Stick Classic in 7-under par to post a 1-under 70 at the Woodlands of Van Buren and record his 2nd career victory. The reigning EASTERN Champion used a 5-wood and an 8-iron to navigate around the Woodlands and finish 4-strokes ahead of Jeff Klipa (39-35 - 74) and 6-strokes ahead of Joe Brandenburg (36-40 - 76). Don Morris (43-36 - 79) posted a top-4 in his first start of the year after recovering from heart surgery in the spring.

Ron Hiestand - 2013 Two-Stick Classic champ

Borgia Graves became the 4th rookie to win in 2013 after beating the Tour's top ranked player in a playoff at the Big Dog Pro-Am on Sunday.   One of eleven players starting the round at even par after the pro score from round 2 of the British Open, Graves shot a 3-under 69 on Riverview Highland's Gold & Red nines to finish at 140.   He waited in the clubhouse thinking he would fall short, but Kelly Arnold needed birdie on 18 to tie Graves and send the tournament to a playoff.

They both 2-putted the opening hole, but the 2nd hole was crucial. Arnold left his putt well short and Graves went long. Arnold's aggressive 2nd putt missed and left a 5 foot come-backer that he also missed. Graves would 3-putt but take a 1-stroke lead with 2 to play. The 3rd hole was well judged by Graves with an eventual 2-putt, but again Arnold was aggressive missing long and recording a 3-putt that put the Tour's #1 2-strokes behind with 1 hole left.   Going for broke Arnold ended up 3-putting the 4th hole as well leaving Graves with his first win.

A 3-way tie for 3rd place included Charlie Roy (71-71 - 142), Tim Jakubowski (71-71 - 142) and the defending champ Patrick Craig (71-71 - 142).   Craig scorched the Gold nine with a 7-under 29 and led the tournament by 4-strokes at one time.   But a 42 on the Red nine left Craig 2-strokes out of the playoff.

Borgia Graves - 2013 Big Dog Pro-Am champ

Making his 2nd start after recovering from a leg injury, Steve Bisson won the 2013 Crazy Brit on Saturday - his first career victory. Bisson scored points on all but 1 hole in the British Stableford scoring format and amassed 40 points total from an eagle (4 points), 6 birdies (3 points each), 8 pars (2 points each) and 2 bogies (1 point each). Bisson is the 8th first time winner in 2013.

Another promising rookie finished in 2nd place. Gregg Nothdurft (38 points) posted his first top-4 in only his 7th start on Tour. Charlie Roy and Greg Kline tied for 3rd with 37 points.

Steve Bisson - 2013 Crazy Brit champ

Recording 3 birdies and 3 eagles on her way to a 3-under 69, Samantha Kellstrom won her 3rd consecutive Indigo Ladies Open title on Sunday at Pheasant Run Golf Club. The 14-year old from Ann Arbor has won 6 times in her 3 years on Tour and has risen to 3rd on the latest MT World Ranking.
Barb Hoelzle, the 2010 Ladies champ, had her best finish (37-39 - 76) since the tournament moved to Pheasant Run. Gail O'Brien (40-39 - 79) took 3rd place and Jan Crawford placed 4th (41-40 - 81) in her return to the Tour after knee surgery.

No let down for Jeff Klipa, Doc's Quad-Tour is 3rd win of the year
July 15, 2013

Taking a 3-stroke lead into the playing round of the Doc's Quad-Tour Challenge, Jeff Klipa shot a 2-under 69 at Fox Creek GC and won by 5-strokes over Erik Meland. Klipa's 3rd win of the year was keyed by his Champions Tour selection of Michael Allen (63) to go along with a 64 from Catorina Matthew and a 66 from Zach Johnson. The 4 round total of 262 sets a new aggregate scoring record in the Quad-Tour Challenge.
Klipa, the 2007 QTC champ, carded 5 birdies on the opening 9 holes to increase his lead. Meland posted a 1-under 70 to finish at 16-under 267. Joe Robar had the best 4th round score (68) and finished in 3rd at 270. Greg Kline (72 - 273) rounded out the top-4.

The inaugural Red Oaks Shootout title was claimed by Erik Meland after outlasting Steve Villerot and Dennis Lemaitre in sudden death last Friday. Meland finished the regulation 9-hole round with a tournament best 4-under 27 to be the first qualifier for the Shootout. Dan Michalski (28) and Lemaitre (29) were the 2nd and 3rd qualifiers. Villerot's 1-under 30 tied for 4th with Barb Hoelzle and Chris Dunmore as the trio made it 6 players participating in the Shootout.
Meland and Villerot 2-putted all 5 Shootout holes (15 points) and Lemaitre 1 putted the last hole to join them in sudden death. Lemaitre dropped out after the 3rd extra hole and then Meland won on the 4th extra hole when Villerot could not match Meland's 1-putt.

Jon Heikkinen, new to the 50 and over segment, won the 2013 MT Senior Open on Sunday at Willow Metropark. Heikkinen hit 50% of his fairways and 50% of his greens in regulation on his way to a 1-under 70 and a 1-stroke win over Klaus Juska. The win is Heikkinen's first victory on Tour coming in his 35th career start. The first place check is worth $28 and comes with an exemption into the TOUR Championship in September.
Juska (37-34 - 71) notched his first top-4 finish of the year. Rookie Ed Wolfe (39-33 - 72) collected his first top-4 finish while the 2011 Senior champ, Ray Collins, tied for 4th with Tim Jakubowski at 3-over 74.

Dave Oliver, a 4th year pro from Ann Arbor, captured his first career win at the Strokes on a Rope on Saturday. Oliver set a new scoring record at the SoaR by shooting a 3-under par 68 at Hunter's Ridge GC, hosting this "string & scissors" tournament for the first time.
Eric Birkle (37-36 - 73) was the best-of-the-rest and secured his first career top-4 . John Raymond (40-34 - 74) settled for 3rd while Rich Dunmore (36-40 - 76) and Joe Brandenburg (38-38 - 76) shared 4th place.

Ray Nadell notched another major triumph for the 2013 rookies. After Tour freshmen Darren Hamman and Jeff Howey took the Green Towels in May, Nadell fired a calm 69 on a tough Lakes of Taylor layout that concluded with a Commercial Underwriters Harbour Pointe Open win.
Nadell finished the 36-hole championship at even par 144 and a 3-stroke win over the Tour's #1 ranked player and first round leader, Kelly Arnold. Nadell becomes the 8th player in history to get his first win in a major championship.

A Saturday 69 gave Arnold a 1-stroke lead over 2 Tour rookies - Hamman and Eric Birkle. Arnold hit 11 of 14 fairways on Sunday but only found 3 greens in regulation on his way to a Sunday 78. Hamman shot a final round 81 to slide back to 5th place and Birkle followed his 70 with an 86 to finish in 11th place. John Raymond, another rookie showing promise for a bright Mulligan Tour future, recorded 4 birdies over his last 6 holes to capture 3rd place alone at 4-over 148. Ned Loving made a charge with back to back eagles on 14 and 15 to shoot a 73 and finish in 4th at 6-over 150.

Jeff Klipa won for the 2nd time in 9 days after cashing in at the 2013 Casino Classic on Sunday. Winner of the Par-54 Classic on June 14th, Klipa cruised around Twin Lakes in 35-34 - 69 for a 2-stroke win over Ron Hiestand and Tim Jakubowski. The win gives Klipa 11 career titles tying him with Thom Bales for 5th in all-time victories. It also moved Klipa into first place on the Money List with $155.50 earned in 2013.
Hiestand (36-35 - 71) netted his first top-4 of the year and Jakubowski (35-36 - 71) had his best finish since the playoff loss at the Memorial. Chris Dunmore (38-36 - 74) capped a nice weekend with 2 top-4's in 2 days.

Rich Dunmore claimed the 2013 Real McCoy Classic on Saturday firing a 32-32 - 64 on Farmington Hills' par-71 layout beating his brother Chris by 3-strokes and Tom R Litzler and Ray Nadell by 4. Dunmore hit 8 fairways and 8 greens and led the field in putting (28) on his way to his 5th title in 82 career starts. The win, worth $36, moves Dunmore into the top-10 on the Money List with $76.71 in earnings in 2013.

Chris Dunmore (31-36 - 67) led the field in driving accuracy (12/14 fairways) as the brothers finished 1-2 while playing with their father, Bob. Litzler (37-31 - 68) posted his 2nd top-4 of the year and the rookie Nadell (32-36 - 68) secured his first career top-4.

Gail O'Brien won the 2013 Fox Hunt on Friday capturing 54 points on the Strategic Fox course at Fox Hills in Plymouth. O'Brien hit 13 greens totaling 41 points and added 13 points from putting. The Fox Hunt is her 2nd career win following her victory at last year's Western Swing.

John Raymond (52 points) hit 9 greens and settled for 2nd place. Tim Markel (49) and Jason Rectenwald (45) rounded out the top-4.

In his 2nd year on Tour, Glenn Boyer broke through at the 2013 Holy Grail for his first win. Boyer needed a sand save on the last hole - a 177-yard, par-3 - to preserve the 1-stroke win. Six birdies and an eagle allowed Boyer to post a 1-under 71 on St.John's Mark & Luke nines.
One week after getting his first win at the East Side Charity Classic, Scott Fuller put himself in contention again. He finished in 2nd place this time shooting a 39-33 - 72 for an even par tournament. Charlie Roy (37-37 - 74) took 3rd and Gail O'Brien (37-38 - 75) collected her first top-4 of the year.

Jeff Klipa birdied the 18th hole on the Strategic Fox and posted a 1-under 53 that was good for a 1-stroke win over Mike Prieskorn and Erik Meland in the 2013 Par-54 Classic. Klipa won the tournament with his flat stick - his 26 putts was 5 fewer than the next best putter in the field. The win is Klipa's 10th career title - making him the 6th player in Tour history with 10 wins. As the only player to have started all 13 tournaments so far this year, Klipa has amassed $83.50 in prize money and ranks 2nd on the Money List.

Prieskorn (24-30 - 54) and Meland (26-28 - 54) shared 2nd place while Phil Johnson (26-29 - 55) and Dennis Lemaitre (27-28 - 55) finished in the top-4.

In the 4th tournament from the last 6 on Tour to need a playoff to decide a winner, Scott Fuller beat Ed Campbell for the 2013 East Side Charity Classic title. Fuller (35-35 - 70) eagled the 18th after a hiccup at the 17th (triple-bogey) to post a 1-under par 70. One stroke back with 4 to play, Campbell (37-33 - 70) birdied the home hole to force the tie.
On a crowded Sanctuary Lake practice green, Fuller took a 1-stroke lead on the first playoff hole and held on for a 11 to 12 win in the 4-hole aggregate score playoff. The win is Fuller's first on Tour in his 20th career start.
The 2nd place finish pushes Campbell back to the top of the Money Standings with $102.75. Erik Meland (36-37 - 73) finished in solo 3rd while 5 players tied for 4th.

Samantha Kellstrom was the beneficiary of an 18th hole double-bogey by Mike Geisser and won her 5th Mulligan Tour title in only 19 starts. The 2-time reigning Ladies Open champ, Kellstrom hit 11 of 18 greens in regulation and carded 6 birdies to post a 3-under 69 on the historic Salem Hills course.

Five consecutive birdies to start the back nine pushed Geisser (35-35 - 70) to 6-under par and a 4-stroke lead. But a bogey - bogey - double-bogey finish kept Geisser from collecting his first career win. Geisser received consolation in the form of first place money - Kellstrom is abstaining from prize money - and a win in the Zoo Putt-Off beating Eric Morris, Tom Sachs and John Raymond for the $30 Dick's gift card.

Lou Acosta (35-36 - 71) and Jeff Klipa (37-34 - 71) shared 3rd place while Morris (33-39 - 72), Tim Markel (36-36 - 72) and Ray Nadell (38-34 - 72) tied for 5th.

Darren Hamman, one day after a top-4 at the Dudlee's and 8 days removed from a major championship at the 2-man Memorial, added an individual win to his resume Sunday at the Dudlee's Plymouth Open. Hamman shot a 4-under 66 and tied Dave Oliver on the Fox Hill's Classic course (Hills and Woodlands). With the playoff experience gained at the Memorial, Hamman calmly shot 2-putt pars in the 4-hole playoff. Oliver was able to match Hamman for the first 2, but a 4-putt 3rd hole created a big hole for the Ann Arbor resident still looking for his first Tour win. Absolutely needing a 1-putt on the 4th, Oliver converted, but it left Hamman with 2 putts for the win.

Rich Dunmore (35-33 - 68) finished in solo 3rd place and rookie John Raymond (35-34 - 69) posted his first top-4 on Tour. Host Karl Carter finished in 22nd place with a 79, but was happy to see the Tournament raise $308 for the Michigan Humane Society.

Bill Gordon shot a 3-under par 69 to win the 2013 Cherry Creek Classic by 3 strokes. Gordon hit 8 of 13 fairways and 6 greens in regulation to help record 5 birdies and an eagle. The win is Gordon's 3rd career victory and pushes him up to 3rd on the current Money List ($69.00).

Jeff Klipa (36-36 - 72) birdied 2 of the last 3 holes to secure solo 2nd place. Rich Dunmore (38-35 - 73) secured 3rd place while Memorial champ Darren Hamman (38-36 - 74) took 4th.

Darren Hamman and Jeff Howey, each less than 2 months into their rookie seasons, paired up to win the Green Towels in the 2013 Memorial Tournament on Saturday. They netted a 6-under par 66 to finish regulation play tied with Bill Gordon and Tim Jakubowski and the Memorial required a playoff for the 2nd year in a row and 6th time in tournament history.

Both teams traded 2-putt pars for the first 3 holes of the 4-hole playoff. But the 4th hole was a lengthy up hill putt that the Gordon-Jakubowski team rarely saw during the regulation 18. They chose a downhill come back putt for their 2nd and, when each missed, Hamman sunk a 2 footer for the win.

Hamman and Howey are the 6th and 7th players in Tour history to make a major championship their first win. The $40 first place checks place them 3rd on the current money standings and gets them automatic invitations to the TOUR Championship.

A 5-year veteran of the Mulligan Tour, Charlie Roy collected his 4th career win on Sunday with playoff win over Mike Pearcy. Roy netted 6 birdies and an eagle and finished regulation at 5-under 67. Pearcy was on his way to his first career win, getting to 11-under par thru 14 holes played, but stumbled on his final 4 holes and fell into a playoff.
Both players 3-putted the opening hole and 2-putted the 2nd and 3rd holes of the 4-hole playoff. In the decisive 4th hole, Roy made a 2-putt and Pearcy 4-putted during the only time that the 3-putt max rule is temporarily suspended.

Ed Campbell's winter practice regimen continues to pay dividends in the early 2013 Tour season. The 2nd year pro from Berkley dedicated himself to regular practice sessions in the off-season and has now made 3 top-4's in his first 5 starts this year - the latest, a 3-stroke win in the Sparty Classic after shooting a 37-31 - 68. Campbell hit 6 of 13 fairways and 9 of 18 greens. His 33 putts yielded 2 eagles and 7 birdies. The $32 first place check gives him $75.75 for the year to lead the Tour.
Jeff Klipa (35-36 - 71), Tom Moran (36-35 - 71) and Gerry Sawchuk (33-38 - 71) shared 2nd place.

Lou Acosta shot a 2-under 71 at Reddeman Farms on Sunday and won the 2013 Chelsea Classic by 6-shots, his 5th career victory. He made a double-eagle at the newly anointed par-5 9th hole and was the only player to finish in the red. Acosta hit 10 of 14 fairways and 7 greens in regulation while needing 31 putts on those greens. A foursome of players tied for 2nd at 4-over 77, including the defending champ Jeff Kellstrom. Joining him were Phil Johnson, Ed Campbell and rookie Borgia Graves.

Young Tom Litzler picked up career win #5 at the 2013 Train with Tami Tin Cup. Litzler hit 12 of 14 fairways and 9 of 18 greens while shooting 37-36 - 73, good for a 1-stroke win over Greg Kline and Mike Prieskorn - both former champs here at Hickory Creek. Barb Hoelzle and Bill Gordon shared 4th place at 4-over 76.

Dan Michalski threw out 2 of his 3 bogies and finished with a 16 hole score of 6-under par to win the 2013 Sweet Sixteen on Sunday. Michalski hit 8 fairways and 8 greens and took 34 strokes with the flatstick. It was Michalski's 2nd career win following his Carrington title from his rookie season a year ago. John Powell finished 2nd (-5), Charlie Roy 3rd (-3) and Chris Dunmore 4th (-2).

Ed Campbell collected his 2nd Tour victory by outlasting Ned Loving and 38 others in the season opening Pine View Classic on Saturday. Campbell, the 2012 Two-Stick Classic champ, finished at 3-over par 75 despite 6 birdies and an eagle. He hit 6 of 14 fairways and 5 greens in regulation while needing 34 putts. Loving, a 4 year Tour pro, was looking for his first win but came up 1-stroke short of forcing a playoff. Glenn Boyer, Erik Meland and Jason Rectenwald shared 3rd place at 79.

Ed Campbell - 2013 Pine View Classic champ

Brave members slosh through wet and windy Q-Schools
April 20, 2013

The 2013 season started with 2 Qualifying Schools on April 13 and 20 at Whispering Willows and Fox Creek in Livonia. Both courses were saturated from recent rains and both rounds experienced below average temperatures and wind chills. A 10 minute snow/sleet squall appeared early in Q-School 1 and below freezing conditions at Q-School 2 had many withdrawing in favor of warmer and dryer conditions that must be on the horizon.

Eric Messner was medalist at Q-School 1 and John Raymond was low score at Q-School 2.
Complete results below.

The Mulligan Tour's 2013 season, the 15th since it's creation in 1999, will look very similar to previous seasons as the Tour settles into a period of familiarity. Members will easily recognize most of the regular Tour stops while only 2 new courses will host the Mulligan Tour for the first time in 2013 (Sanctuary Lakes and EASTERN Championship host course, TBD).

The annual membership fee will remain the same for the 5th consecutive year. And again, the $120 membership fee is discounted ($100) if paid before April 1st. New for 2013 however, will be a tournament entry fee plan that has unique costs for each event. This is expected to help with the tracking of payments through the Tour's accounting department.

Tournament winners will continue to get a first place check at the tournament. Prize money for 2nd, 3rd and 4th place will be accrued during the season and awarded back to the members with a single check at the end of the season. This too is meant to help with the Tour's week-to-week activities and keep the cost to the members from increasing.

The Mulligan Tour will again exhibit at the Michigan Golf Show (March 1-3 at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi). Stop by and visit. Click on www.michigangolfshow.com for details on the annual golf show.