Mulligan Tour News

Scott Wilsey topped a field of 15, including four past winners, on a mild day at Harbour club. His even par round topped Jon Heikkinen by 1 shot with Eric Birkle tying David Martin for 3rd at 2 over par.

Jon Heikkinen led a strong performance from Team West with a 3-under par tour of the Farmington Hills Golf Course. West had 3 of the 4 low scores of the day with Jeff Klipa shooting even par and Charlie Roy posting 3-over. David Martin and Tom Hoelzle led the Central and East teams who tied for 2nd.

No Skills
October 18, 2015
Due to a lack of the minimum needed participants, The Mulligan Tour Skills Challenge was not held this year.

Team Labor out-negotiated Management for the first time in their six year contract, taking 5 1/2 points at the Fellows Creek labor friendly course. Andrew Wilson and Foreman Jon Heikkinen led the negotiations with 2 1/2 points, including the contract clinching putt on the 27th hole by Wilson. Barb Hoelzle attempted to save Management at the 11th hour, but her last shot clanked off the flag stick.

R. Dunmore, Hesse, and Cooley take the Skins

Rich Dunmore defended his Central Skins title at Mt. Brighton with $40 from 8 skins including 7 in a row on the back nine. Willi Hesse took the West Skins with $38 off 6 skins. Chris Cooley was the big winner of the day with $50 in the East Skins game from 6 skins which included 2 three hole pushes.

Only 2?

October 3, 2015
Due to the lack of the needed minimum participants, the Ménage à Trois Classique was cancelled this year.

East Upsets Central for First Comm. Cup Win
September 25-27, 2015

Barb Hoelzle made an 8 footer on the 18th green to complete the fantastic East comeback and wrest the cup from Central's grasp. The final putt capped a great putting display by Barb that ended the 10 year singles win streak of Captain Kline. The win is the East team's first in three Commissioner's Cup appearances.
After a first day's matches that saw heavily favored Central take a 6-2 lead with only the East team of Rich Dunmore / James Vickey saving two points, East shuffled their lineup and rallied on day two, with every player earning at least 1 point, to take a one point lead into the final day. The first four matches of the singles were split by lopsided scores with Michael Lum and Chuck Withey banking wins for the East team and Eric Birkle and #1 Mike Prieskorn keeping the Central teams hopes alive. Rich Dunmore, who finished 5-0 for the weekend, gave himself a little self pep talk halfway thru the front nine and then dispatched his opponent handily to take the 8th match early. Jason Rectenwald topped Captain Tom Hoelzle next to leave the Central team needing a win and a halve in the final two matches to retain the cup. Barb's emotional victory left a fine match winning final putt by Jeff Klipa for naught. The one point victory for East is the closest Commissioner's Cup match since 2007.

Chris Cooley (36-33, 6 birdies, 3 eagles, 8 fairways) sank his 3rd eagle of the day on the 18th hole at the Fortress to top vets Rich Dunmore (35-35) and Rick Persichetti (34-36, 5 birdies, 2 eagles, 7 fairways) by 1 shot. Willi Hesse (36-35) finished 4th. Cooley capped a great rookie season with his 4th victory and 2nd Major Title of the year. Cooley set the scoring record for the Tour Championship at 3 under par, took the Tour 2015 Money Title, setting a new rookie earnings record, and cracked the top 50 in all-time career earnings.

Ned Loving (41-40-37-34, 9 Greens, 8 Birdies in final) mastered cool temps, wind, and a tough 'major' course set up to pace the field on HPO Day 2 with the only sub-par round of the day. Defending Champ Ray Nadell (40-46-35-37, 7 Fairways, 11 Greens in final) made a run from 7 shots back and came within one of Loving at mid-round, but his bid for a three-peat was turned back by Loving's 4 birdies on the back nine. The win is Loving's first on Tour and he is the 13th player in Tour history to make a major his first win. Rich Dunmore (40-42-40-39) improved two places on Day 2 to take 3rd. Andrew Wilson (35-45-41-42, 10 Fairways), the Day 1 co-leader, held on for 4th. Erik Meland reached a career milestone with his 300th start at the HPO, the 1st in Tour history to play in 300 events.

Day 1 recap:
For a while it looked like a replay of the Senior Open with Andrew Wilson and Tom Sachs doing battle again at Eagle Crest. But in the end Phil Johnson, Christopher Cooley, and Greg Kline may have more to say as Cooley and Johnson are tied with Wilson at the half way point and Kline is one back. Ned Loving, Rich Dunmore, Jeff Pasz and 'The Godfather' are all still in the mix. Actually the whole field has a shot at victory as the cut was only 7 shots off the lead. #1 Mike Prieskorn, Steve Bisson, Chris Japhet, and Tom Moran are all 5 back, Willi Hesse is 6 back and defending champ Ray Nadell, Seth Erskine, and Gregg Nothdurft are 7 back. Kline and Wilson have a shot at taking the Tour #1 World Ranking if they pull out the win. Jeff Klipa, Mike Nicholas, and #2 Chuck Withey had the hard luck of the day when Willi Hesse birdied his final hole and knocked them below the cut line.

Tom "The Godfather" Sachs led most of the morning on the way to his 3rd Senior Title until the red hot Andrew Wilson (36-35, 9 fairways, 11 greens) cut him down with an eagle on the 18th hole. It was Wilson's 2nd win in as many weeks, with only Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Wednesday in between. He moves to 3rd in the MT World Rankings with his 3rd career win. Phil Johnson (34-36, 9 greens) birdied the last to take 2nd. Eric Birkle (38-35, 8 fairways, 10 greens) tied Scott Freude (40-33, 8 greens) for 3rd.

In a back nine shootout between two players with 17 major titles between them, Rick Persichetti (37-33) got the 18th with an 18th hole birdie to top Greg Kline (35-38). The win is Persichetti's 8th Major, 3rd Western Division Title and Tour leading 23rd career victory. In the match within the match, Mike Prieskorn (35-39) birdied the 17th hole to post early, take 3rd place, and keep the #1 World Ranking by 1 shot over Chuck Withey (36-39). Another notable performance was Gregg Nothdurft who finished in the money with his 11th top ten finish of the season and got off the bubble to secure the final West Division spot in the Tour Championship.

Seth Erskine (33-34, 9 fairways, 8 Greens) rode 7 birdies and an eagle to overcome a sterling round by Joe Robar (36-32 net, 74 gross, 8 fairways, 12 greens). The two essentially lapped the field on the back nine and matched shot for shot. Erskine recovered from a near fatal 13th hole at the Orchards Course to string 3 straight birdies on holes 15 thru 17 to get the win. He becomes the 12th player to get his 1st win in a Major. Chuck Withey (38-38, 8 greens) held on for 3rd place and came within decimal points of taking the Tour #1 World Ranking. Scott Wilsey (39-37) took 4th. Jeff Klipa hit 12 of 14 fairways in his round. Rich Dunmore's excellent season was rewarded with the East Division Money Title.

With the Blue Angels flying overhead on the back nine, Andrew Wilson (33-40) kept his concentration and held formation long enough to secure his first major title. Chris Japhet (35-40, 8 fairways) eagled the 1st hole and shadowed Wilson throughout the round, but couldn't gain ground on the tough back nine. Eric Birkle (39-37) finished with 3 birdies in the last 4 holes to tie for 3rd with Erik Meland (37-39) and Chris Dunmore (34-42), whose title holes both disappeared in the marsh on the 15th hole. Wilson's 2nd career victory also gave him the Central Division Money Title by $1 over Mike Prieskorn.

Fantasy League Season Ends with 3rd Winner
August 24, 2015
The Mulligan Tour Golf Channel fantasy league ended Sunday with Mike Lum winning the final Late Summer segment of the season. Previously Bill Gordon won the Summer segment and Greg Kline won the early Sawgrass segment. All three players win a dozen golf balls and a berth in the Mulligan Tour Skills Challenge in October.

Scott Wilsey (38-35) shot the only under par round of the day that included 4 birdies on the back nine to get his first career victory at the other tournament postponed from June, the Cherry Creek Classic. He is the 5th rookie and 8th first-time winner of the season . Seth Erskine (36-36, 2 eagles, 9 greens, 9 fairways) took 2nd for the second day in a row. Klaus Juska (36-37, 10 greens, 10 fairways) showed his back is back by taking 3rd. Ed Campbell (37-37, 2 eagles, 11 greens) finished in the money for the second day in a row at 4th. On course prizes went to Todd Weakley and Willi Hesse.

Phil Johnson (33-32) finally got his 3rd Career win at the Dudlee's Plymouth Open. The tournament had to be postponed from June due to rain. But the delay gave Johnson just enough time to heal from his dramatic 2014 injury (with the emphasis on drama) when he was struck in the shoulder by an errant shot. As seen in the photo above, Phil is still unable to lift his arm well enough to hold up his trophy and winner's check. What a gutsy performance! Fortunately Phil had lots of friends willing to hold his trophy and check for him. No word on if he got them back. Johnson's round included 6 birdies and an eagle and he closed with 4 birdies on the back nine. Seth Erskine (35-32) had 6 birdies, and eagle and 29 putts to place 2nd. Dave Oliver (36-33, 9 greens) and Don Morris (34-35, 1 eagle, 29 putts) tied for 3rd. Erskine, Oliver, Rick Persichetti, and Chris Japhet took the on course prizes. John Lennane won the club house prize. Little Dudlee's tournament raised $500 for the Friends of Dearborn Animal Shelter charity.

Jack Craig (30-34) got his 3rd career win by matching the Tour's season-low round of 64 at the Go Blue Classic with a circuit that included 6 birdies and 2 eagles. Dave Oliver (33-36) went 6 under par in his first 4 holes and hung on for 2nd place. Jeff Pasz (35-35) finished with 3 birdies over his last 5 holes to finish 3rd. Clint Bell (35-36) got his first career top 4 finish and tied Rich Dunmore (35-36) for 4th. Craig also won 2 on course prizes and John Lennane took the 3rd.

Mike Prieskorn (33-35) shook off a tee time delay, started fast and finished strong to win the Little Diablo Salsa Western Swing. His round included six birdies and an eagle on the 14th hole that gave him a lead too spicy to beat. The win is his 2nd of the year and 10th of his career and solidifies his current #1 World Ranking. He becomes the 6th multiple winner this season. Ed Campbell (35-36) had a 2 eagle -birdie finish to jump from 10th to 2nd over the last 3 holes. Erik Meland (33-39) finished with 3 straight birdies to tie Greg Kline (34-38) for third. Kline had 3 eagles in his round.

Rookie Chris Cooley (31-34) dueled veteran Joe Robar (34-34) down the stretch at the Caddyshack Classic and finished eagle-birdie-birdie over his last 5 holes to survive the challenge. Cooley's round included 3 eagles and 6 birdies and is the lowest in 7 years at the Caddyshack. This is his 3rd win in his first season and pulls him ahead of the other Tour rookie star, Chuck Withey, for first on the season Money List. He also moves into the top 5 in the Tour World Rankings. Jeff Klipa played well and finished with his 2nd top 4 of the Southern Swing at 3rd. Charlie Roy (33-41), Mike Harmon (38-36), and yesterday's winner Erik Meland (35-39) all finished T-4. On course prizes went to Cooley and Jim Vickey.

Meland Sets Carrington Record
August 8, 2015
Winning doesn't
suck.

It was vintage El Presidente' on Saturday at the Carrington Classic as Erik Meland (32-32) shot a tidy 64 to get his 22nd career win and set the tournament record. He ties Rick Persichetti for the All-Time Tour lead in wins. His round included an eagle and 7 birdies against only a single bogey and is the lowest score on Tour since Persichetti hung a 62 on the Lake Forest course in 2012. Jeff Klipa (35-32) shot a fine 5 under round but had to settle for 2nd place. Gerry Sawchuck (37-32) finished T-3 with Chris Cooley (36-33) who had an eagle-birdie-birdie finish to get there. On course prizes went to Don Morris, Tim Markel, Cooley and Mike Geisser. Jeff Klipa took the prizes for low gross score and fewest putts.

Town's Albatross a Beauty at the Ugly Pants

An Albatross on the 10th hole proved to be the margin of victory for rookie Steven Town (38-31) who shot a sizzling 5 under par on the back nine at Downing Farms for his first career win. His round also included 2 eagles and 3 birdies. Rookie Ryan Wooton (38-34) and Barb Hoelzle (33-39) tied for 2nd. Hoelzle's round included 2 eagles and 5 birdies. Chris Japhet (35-38) finished 4th. Town's rare bird is the second Albatross of the year, matching Mike Lum's feat on May 8th. Chuck 'The Closer' Withey only parred the last hole, but did finish in the money and took over the West Division Money List lead. Willi Hesse qualified for the Skins Game and pin prizes went to Tom W. Litzler and Gerry Sawchuck. And proving once again that his skills don't extend to fashion, Mike Prieskorn took the Ugly Attire Award for the 2nd year in a row.

Rookie Vickey Gets First Win and Change
August 1, 2015
Vickey's first win

James Vickey (34-35) became the season's 3rd Rookie winner on Saturday at the Fifty Cent Classic. His round included an eagle and 6 birdies. Runner up Ron Hiestand (34-36) matched Vickey's eagle but came up one short with 5 birdies. Rich Dunmore (36-35), Willi Hesse (35-36), and Mike Harmon (35-36) tied for 3rd. Tournament co-host Klaus Juska finished "in the money" at T-8. Vickey survived a brutal bogey fest over the last four holes at the Stoney Creek course that saw only one player in the field manage them under par. With their 1-2 finishes, Vickey and Hiestand may have secured spots on the Eastern Division Commissioner's Cup team. Pin prizes went to Juska, Hiestand, Rich Dunmore and Charlie Roy.

In the Ladies Open, Barb Hoelzle (37-42) had that rare pleasure of walking up the 18^th fairway with the tournament well in hand and was able to acknowledge the cheers of her adoring fans. With the win, Barb defends her Ladies Open title, wins the event for a record tying 3^rd time, and ties several players for 7^th on the All-Time win list with 9 tour victories. Lenna Blanton (42-42), Sue Meland (40-44), and Julie Gardner (43-41) all tied for 2^nd. Hoelzle’s five birdies on the front nine were enough to separate her from the field before the tough back nine.
Rally for the Cure

The Ladies Open also raised $490 for Rally For the Cure.

Mike Prieskorn has held the #1 World Ranking for over a year and showed why with an enduring performance on a hot weekend at the Match Play Championship. Prieskorn ended his first 3 matches in the middle of the back nine, with only defending champ Ed Campbell able to extend to the 17th hole. Prieskorn's early successes may have been enough to save a little energy as his Final opponent played 8 more holes in competition. Prieskorn's win is his 9th career victory (T-7 all time) and 2nd Major Championship win. It is notable that both this year's rookie stars made the final four, along with the defending champ and the #1 ranked player.

Chris Cooley, Ed Campbell, Chuck Withey, Mike Prieskorn

David Martin birdied the first hole to strike fear into #1 Mike Prieskorn, but the stroke differential wore Martin down over time. The Dunmore - Gordon match oscillated between all square and 2 up all day until Gordon found sand on 15 and water on 16 to end the day early. Kelly Arnold had Joe Brandenburg down until Joe made a run late, but Kelly stemmed it at 15 & 16. “The Closer” Chuck Withey parred 17 to close out a disappointed Tom Litzler Sr. Steve Villerot had only praise for Tom Litzler Jr. Cooley-Wilson was only the 2nd match to make it to 17 until.... Tom Sachs had Ed Campbell down 1 going to 18 and Campbell nearly drove the green, then chipped up and in for birdie to send it to extra holes. Likewise, Rick Persichetti won 18 to return to the first hole. But both Sachs and Tim Markel creeked on 1 to end their upset hopes.
The Dunmore - Gordon match oscillated between all square and 2 up all day until Gordon found sand on 15 and water on 16 to end the day early.
Kelly had Joe down until Joe made a run late, but Kelly stemmed it at 15 & 16
The Closer parred 17 to close out a disappointed Litzler Sr.
Steve had only praise for Litzler Jr.
Cooley-Wilson was only the 2nd match to make it to 17 until....
Sachs had Ed down 1 going to 18 and EC nearly drove the green, then chipped up and in for birdie to send it back to 1.
Likewise, Perch won 18 to get to 1.
But both Sachs and Markel creeked on 1 to end their upset hopes. David Martin birdied the first hole to strike fear into #1 Mike, but the stroke differential wore Martin down over time.
The Dunmore - Gordon match oscillated between all square and 2 up all day until Gordon found sand on 15 and water on 16 to end the day early.
Kelly had Joe down until Joe made a run late, but Kelly stemmed it at 15 & 16
The Closer parred 17 to close out a disappointed Litzler Sr.
Steve had only praise for Litzler Jr.
Cooley-Wilson was only the 2nd match to make it to 17 until....
Sachs had Ed down 1 going to 18 and EC nearly drove the green, then chipped up and in for birdie to send it back to 1.
Likewise, Perch won 18 to get to 1.
But both Sachs and Markel creeked on 1 to end their upset hopes.

Ed Campbell and Rick Persichetti had a rollercoaster match that saw them both up and eventually came down to the last putt with Campbell prevailing. Chris Cooley played well and had Steve Villerot down holes all day before winning 2 & 1. Kelly Arnold unfortunately was unable to continue on Saturday, so Chuck Withey advanced without a fight. In a rematch of their duel at the Big Dog Classic the week before, Mike Prieskorn turned the tables on Rich Dunmore, winning this one 4 & 3.
Chris had Steve down all day.
Kelly unfortunately got called into work so Chuck advances without a fight. Chuck was getting strokes so maybe the result would have been the same.
No update on the Mike/ Rich match. Ed and Rick had a rollercoaster match that saw them both up and eventually came down to the last putt.
Chris had Steve down all day.
Kelly unfortunately got called into work so Chuck advances without a fight. Chuck was getting strokes so maybe the result would have been the same.
No update on the Mike/ Rich match. Ed and Rick had a rollercoaster match that saw them both up and eventually came down to the last putt.
Chris had Steve down all day.
Kelly unfortunately got called into work so Chuck advances without a fight. Chuck was getting strokes so maybe the result would have been the same.
No update on the Mike/ Rich match. Ed and Rick had a rollercoaster match that saw them both up and eventually came down to the last putt.
Chris had Steve down all day.
Kelly unfortunately got called into work so Chuck advances without a fight. Chuck was getting strokes so maybe the result would have been the same.
No update on the Mike/ Rich match. Ed and Rick had a rollercoaster match that saw them both up and eventually came down to the last putt.
Chris had Steve down all day.
Kelly unfortunately got called into work so Chuck advances without a fight. Chuck was getting strokes so maybe the result would have been the same.
No update on the Mike/ Rich match.

In the morning Chuck Withey started a little shaky and with steady play Prieskorn found himself 2 up at the turn. Then Prieskorn caught fire birding 10, 11 and 12 and a par on 13 was enough to secure the match 6 & 5, and prevent “The Closer” from getting to the last hole. Ed Campbell could not get more than one up going back and forth 9 times during his match with Chris Cooley.
Withey and Cooley traded blows the same way in the consolation match including a conceded eagle putt on 14 to Withey who reached in two. With the match all square on the 18^th tee, Withey made a great chip in birdie to take 3^rd place.
Prieskorn started a bit slow after a lengthy delay between matches and was 2 down at the turn. Again Prieskorn found the back nine favorable and clawed back to 1 up by 13. Prieskorn's armor cracked on 14 and Campbell made it all square. Prieskorn found the "sand" on par 3 15th, but blasted out to three feet making par to Campbell’s bogey. Campbell finally succumbed to the brutal heat and grueling play finding the trees on 16 leading to a 2 & 1 victory for Prieskorn.

In what could be a preview of next week's Match Play, overnight #13 Rich Dunmore (32-38, -4 team) dueled #1 Mike Prieskorn (34-38, -3 team) to a close 1 shot win at the Big Dog Pro-Am. Mike's Pro picks gave him a tie for the early lead which he held through 8 holes. But Rich who started one back overtook Mike on the 9th hole. Prieskorn fought back to tie on the 11th hole, but Dunmore was 1 shot better over the last 6 holes to take the victory. It's Rich's 2nd win in two weeks and 9th of his career. Barb Hoelzle (40-35, E Team) improved the postion her Pros gave her to finish 3rd at Even Par for her team. Klaus Juska (39-38, +2 team) rode a Pro team tie for first to 4th place.

Ray Nadell (32-31) amassed 43 points to tie Steve Villerot (2010) for 2nd most of all time, behind the late Mary Petree's sensational 49 in 1999, the first year the Crazy Brit was played. Nadell's round included 2 eagles (#1 & #10) and 7 birdies on a very hot and then very windy day. The win is the 3rd of his career and extends his annual win streak to 3. 2012 winner Chris Dunmore (35-33, 38 pts) topped early club house leader Jason Rectenwald (33-36, 37 pts) for 2nd place. Ned Loving (37-34, 36pts) tied Jeff Pasz (37-33, 36 pts) for 4th. Hector Rodriguez took closest to the pin on #17 for a spot in the Central Division Skins Game. "The Godfather" Tom Sachs and Steve Villerot won the gift card prizes.

Chuck “The Closer” Withey (39-35) picked the right clubs (3 wood and 8 iron) and birdied the 18^th hole to win the Two-Stick Classic. Rich Dunmore (37-38) birdied the final two holes to gain 2^nd. Early leaders Patrick Craig (34-44) and Willi "Tin Cup" Hesse (36-42) held on for a tie for 3^rd. Phil Johnson took both closest to pin prizes.

Eric Birkle (31-36) backed his pro team up with a 4 under par round of his own to take the Quad Tour Challenge handily with a team score of 15 under par. Jason Rectenwald (37-39) and Jeff Pasz (36-37) finished in a tie for 2^nd at minus 9 for their teams. One more back at minus 8 was Steve Bisson (40-37) and Willi Hesse (40-34). Birkle started the final round three back of the leaders Bisson, Rectenwald and Giesser who had the best pro teams. Eric Morris, Scott Wilsey, and Ryan Wooton were 1 back after the pro team round. Willi Hesse and Jeff Pasz also started the day 3 back. Ned Loving overcame a tough pro start and shot par with the fewest putts (29) to move up 18 spots in the final round. 13 players in all managed to improved their position in the final round.

Rich Dunmore (31 – 17pts) extended his annual win streak to tie the league lead at 5 years in a row with a walk off birdie putt on the last shootout hole at the Red Oaks Shootout. Dunmore concluded a fine even par stroke play segment with a 20 foot birdie putt that knocked one-over-par rookie star Chuck Withey (32) out of the final shoot off. Ron Heistand (30 -14 pts) took the stroke play segment at 1 under par and Dunmore tied with Barb Hoelzle (31 – 14 pts) and Bill Gordon (31 – 13 pts) at even par to set the 4 player shootout field. In the shootout, all players held serve on the first 2 holes, but on the difficult up hill bending right to left 3^rd hole Dunmore lagged a beautiful putt to tap in range while the other competitors could only manage 3’s. On the 4^th hole Gordon missed his par on the right to fall to 4^th. Then on the final hole, with Hoelzle and Heistand hoping for a read from Dunmore, who was hitting from the less than desirable first position, he slammed the door by sinking the walk off birdie from 25 feet for the win. Heistand, Withey, and Willi Hesse won the closest to pin prizes.

Mother Nature Wins Again! HPO Postponed.
June 27, 2015
Mother Nature rained out the Harbour Pointe Open today, leaving Tour President Eric Meland to say "Ugh".
No date is set yet for a reschedule.

Patrick Craig (39-31) got his 2nd Tour win by drawing 4-of-a-kind birdies on the back nine at Twin Lakes to earn a tie with Willi Hesse (31-39) and Chris Cooley (37-33). Hesse had high cards showing all day after a 5 under par front nine, but his river card was a flop, leaving him in the playoff. Meanwhile, Chris Cooley, playing the last hand of the day, had two-of-a-kind eagles on 12 & 13 to get into the playoff late. In the playoff, Patrick aced the 2nd hole and put his 2nd face down in the 4th hole for the win. Joe Robar (37-34) opened with an eagle and played out to 4th. Prize winners were Joe Brandenburg, Pat Craig and Cooley as well as the net birdie prize winners of B. Hoelzle, Hesse, Eric Birkle, Eric Morris, Klaus Juska, Rich Dunmore and Tom Moran.

Persichetti Wins His 2nd Grail in Overtime

Rick Persichetti (37-32) topped Eric Birkle (38-31) in a playoff to win the Holy Grail and gain The Tour lead in all-time wins. It is Rick's 2nd time to hold the Grail, his first win coming in 2006. Birkle opened with 3 birdies, Steve Town eagled the first and Mike Harmon (32-40) eagled the 6^th to all hold and trade off the early lead. Birkle finished birdie, eagle, birdie over his last 3 holes to take club house lead. Perschetti strung an eagle and 3 birdies over his final 11 holes to tie Birkle late. Mike Harmon went birdie eagle on the back nine to tie for the lead, but then ran out of Holy Hand Grenades on the 17^th and had to settle for 4^th. Scott Freude (36-35) came in 3^rd. Kurt Wilhelm earned the second berth in the West Skins Game and split the other closest to pin prizes with Rich Dunmore.

The two most active Tour players, Jeff Klipa and Rich Dunmore, who have combined to play in 114 events in the last two years, faced off in a playoff showdown to settle the Par 54 Classic. Klipa posted his 1 under par 53 early and waited and watched as Dunmore birdied the final two holes to force a playoff. In the 4 hole aggregate playoff, Rich sank a long opening birdie putt and, after trading pars on the 2^nd hole, was matched by Klipa on the tough downhill third hole. Klipa parred the final hole and Rich’s par putt to match slid by the edge. The leaders also split the closest to pin prizes on the course as well. Jon Heikkinen, Steve Villerot and Chuck (the Closer) Withey (who birdied the final hole) all tied for 3^rd. Sara Japhet had two net eagles in her round and finished in the money at T7.

Mother nature sinks 3rd tournament of the year.
June 14, 2015
The Mulligan Tour Senior Open was postponed due the rain today as several elderly gentlemen hobbled back the their cars to wait for another day.

Gordon Extends Annual Win Streak to 5
June 13, 2015
Gordon wins 5th

Bill Gordon (31-36) had 7 birdies and an eagle on the way to a four shot victory in the Real McCoy Classic over Tom W. Litzler (38-33) and Eric Morris (37-34) who tied for 2nd at even par. Starting on the 16th hole, Gordon bolted to 6 under par thru 7 holes, then played good golf the rest of the way, including saves from trouble on course holes 5 & 6 and fending off the pressure demons down the stretch. Gordon's win extends his annual win streak (5) which is the longest current streak on tour. Morris had an eagle on #10 and Jeff Klipa (36-36) eagled #4 to tie Steve Bisson (35-37) for 4th. John Lennane (2) and Mike Geisser took the on course prizes.

Kline gets Win #21
June 12, 2015
Kline wins #21

Greg Kline (57 points) regained a tie for first in all-time wins with a rare uncontested playoff win. New rookie Howard Meyer (57), in only his second event, completed his round after Kline but had to leave the course before the final results were confirmed. Kline hit 12 all important greens in the unique Fox Hunt format, one more than Meyer. Greg Nothdurft (56) hit 10 greens in finishing 3rd. Erik Meland (55) also hit 10 greens to finish 4th in the high scoring event. Gerry Sawchuck to the closest to the pin prize on #5.

Rookie Chuck Withey (35-34) made another late charge and finished with an eagle on 18 to best fellow rookie Ed Mercadante (36-34) and vet Steve Villerot (33-37) by one shot. Phil Johnson (34-37) eagled the 17th to take 4th place. Playing in the final group, Withey hung around all day and after a birdie on 14 took a peek at the leaderboard and saw he was within reach of the lead. He then birdied 15, made a tough par saving putt on 17. After a good drive on the par 5 18th, he had 180 yards to the green and ran his 2nd to just above the hole. He then made the putt he needed for the win. Villerot and Mercadante had both previously birdied the 18th for the clubhouse lead and a long wait for the last group to come in. Mercadante's disappointment was assuaged by winning the 50/50 closest to the pin prize. Joe Brandenburg won the CtP gift card and Andrew Wilson became the 3rd member of the East Skins Game with a good shot at the difficult 15th.

Withey's Putter Wins it all at the Animal House
June 6, 2015
Animal House Classic Champ

A birdie on 18 to close a 3 under par back nine earned rookie Chuck Withey (37-33) a playoff birth with vet Ed Campbell (31-39). Chuck's steady lag putting on the long playoff holes him to take the title at par. Seth Erskine (32-39) and Andrew Wilson (34-37) tied for third. In the zoo animal putt off Mike Geisser joined leaders Withey, Wilson and Campbell and again Withey's steady putting out lasted the field for the prize. Andrew Wilson gets an honorable mention for gathering only a single zoo animal in his round. The Closet to Pin winners were Eric Birkle, Chris Dunmore, Don Morris, and Mike Prieskorn.
Withey Zoo putt

Withey rolls the winning putt

Mother Nature reminded us that she has the ultimate control of the Mulligan Tour tournament schedule. For the first time in Tour history, two tournaments in one weekend were washed out. Heavy rains forced the late cancellation of the Cherry Creek Classic on Saturday. Continuing rain caused the postponement of Sunday's Dudlee's Plymouth Open.

The Cherry Creek Classic has already been rescheduled for Sunday, August 23, a previously open weekend on the Tour's schedule. The Dudlee's Plymouth Open is rescheduled for August 22.

All players registered for these 2 postponed tournaments will have their entry fee credited back to them. Members using Dwolla will have their fees refunded back thru Dwolla. Registration for the rescheduled tournaments start anew - so players should not think that they are automatically rescheduled to the new date.

Rick Persichetti (41-35) birdied the 18th hole to close the back nine under par and top Jeff Klipa (36-41) for the Strokes On A Rope title. Perch strung together 5 birdies in his round and came through the difficult final 3 holes in even par to best all the contenders. The win is his 21st and ties him for 1st on the all-time list. Mike Prieskorn (40-38) and Kelly Arnold (38-40) tied for 3rd.

Chris Cooley (40-35) made it back to back wins on the weekend with a playoff win over Andrew Wilson (38-37) at the Livonia Kids and Families Classic sponsored by the UPS Store. For the second day in a row Cooley finished with a flourish, this time with 2 eagles late to come from behind and gain the tie. In the playoff he managed to par 3 of 4 aggregate holes to win 9-10. Rookie Joe Mercadante (39-37) came up 1 shot short to finish 3rd. World #1 Mike Prieskorn (44-35) rallied from a slow start to finish tied for 4th with Phil Johnson and Eric Morris. Cooley's double win weekend shoots him to the top of the money list by a wide margin and jumps him all the way to #33 in the World Rankings!

Rookies Chris Cooley and Chuck Withey (33-31) stalked Eric Johnson and Mike Pearcy (30-36) all day at the Memorial and finally caught them with a birdie - eagle finish to set the tournament record at 8 under par. In an intermittent rain Johnson and Pearcy opened with two eagles over their first 5 holes to jump to the lead and held it all day until the sunshine came out for Cooley and Withey as they flipped the leaderboard on their 17th hole. Chris and Chuck become the 10th and 11th players in tour history to make a major championship their first win. Pearcy and Johnson matched their 2nd place finish of 2009 and took low putts among the pro teams. The teams of Chris Dunmore/ Dan Michalski (33-35) and Tom and Barb Hoelzle (34-34) tied for 3rd. Prize winners included Mike Lum and Lenna Blanton- Long Drive, Gerry Sawchuck and Ray Nadell- Closest to Pin.

For the third tournament in a row, a playoff decided the Sweet Sixteen. Last week's winner Eric Birkle (32-37 net 67) posted early at 4 under, only to be topped soon by rookie Christopher Cooley(33-37 net 66) who shook off his 'one bad hole' at the 13th and birdied the 17th hole to get to 5 under. Cooley then hunkered down in the club house to score board watch for an hour while the rest of the field came in. On the course, Mike Lum(38-31 net 66) had overcome his 'one bad hole' at the 9th with an eagle on the tenth. He poured in his second eagle on the 14th to get to net -4 and looked poised for a run. But bogeys on 15 and 16 looked to take him out of it. Then BOOM! A net Albatross on 17! A scoring glitch showed Lum in the lead and almost had Cooley packing his clubs. But a card check at the finish showed a tie. Unruffled, Lum putted clutch and secured the win in the playoff. Gerry Sawchuck (36-34 net 68) got his 2nd top four finish of the year.

Graves Wins the 2nd Playoff in 2 Days
May 3, 2015

Bo Graves(35-34) opened his round with 3 birdies and closed it with 2 in a row to catch Tour #1 Mike Prieskorn(31-38) and force a playoff at the Tin Cup. He then birdied the first playoff hole and hung on as both players parred out the 4 hole aggregate putt off. It is Graves 3rd career win and the first successful title defense since El Presidente' accomplished it last July at Red Oaks. Graves is also the first repeat winner in the 17 year history of the Train with Tami Tim Cup tournament. Greg Nothdurft(33-39) finished 3rd and Rich Dunmore(36-38) finished 4th.

Eric Birkle(33-36) of Ann Arbor and Jeff Klipa(33-36) from Livonia battled on the leaderboard throughout Saturday morning in the Chelsea Classic at Pierce Lake. Klipa birdied the 17th hole to gain a playoff at 3 under par. But Birkle was stronger on the playoff putting green and got his 2nd career win. Mike Geisser(36-34) came out of the chute with a birdie - eagle start but had to settle for 3rd place. Dave Oliver(36-36) was 4th.

Scott Freude became the second 1st time winner of the opening weekend with a great back nine at the Sparty Classic. Steve Villerot birdied his final hole to take the club house lead at 1 under and all eyes were on the leaderboard and Rich Dunmore who was at 1 under on the course. But Freude came charging from the pack with 3 birdies on his back nine and capped it with an eagle on his 17th to leapfrog into the lead! Freude parred his last and Dunmore couldn't convert an 8 foot birdie for the tie. James Vickey became the first of the rookie class to log a top 4 finish. Kelly Arnold and Scott Wilsey took the prizes for closest to the pin and Christopher Cooley won the East Division's first spot in the Skins Game.

Gerry Sawchuck got his first official win today at the Pineview Classic. He had previously won the Runny Nose Open in 2013 during the Tour's fall exhibition season. Greg Kline took the early lead with an eagle on the opening hole, but Sawchuck matched it on the 2nd hole (his 4th) and then birdied the 4th and 5th holes to take the lead for good. Tour #1 ranked player Mike Prieskorn played the difficult middle of the back nine in 2 under par to close the gap, but could had to settle for 2nd place. Jon Heikkinen, Kline, Ned Loving, and defending champ Rich Blanton all tied for 3rd, with Heikkinen posting the lowest number of putts at 27. Patti O'Connor led the rookie class with a T12 finish.

Weather the Big Winner at QS3
April 18, 2015
An outstanding rookie class of 19 new members of The Mulligan Tour were greeted by another fine day at Q-School 3. El Presidente' was quoted as saying during orientation, "This is standard weather for all of The Mulligan Tour events this year. You rookies can count on it. By the way, are all your fees paid?" On the course, World #1 Ranked Mike Prieskorn showed he is ready for the season by taking low net honors with a 1 over par round which included an eagle and 33 putts. Veteran Mike Geisser won the scorecard playoff for low putts (33) with a one-putt par save on hole #3. Steve Bisson recorded 2 Eagles in his round. Cody Husak proved his QS1 score was no fluke by posting low gross for the rookie class for the second time with an 84. Scott Wilsey, Charles Withey, and Ryan Wooton all tied for low putts among the rookie class with 34. 6 rookies have completed all 3 Q-Schools and will have a partial handicap for their first official event.

Q-Schools 1 & 2 in the Books
April 12, 2015
Beautiful weather greeted the opening weekend for the new class of The Mulligan Tour's rookies. 13 new members got their start at Whispering Willows and Harbour Pointe along with a few veterans to show them the finer points of tour play. A pair of veteran major champions showed they are ready to be counted again this season as Greg Kline took low net honors on Saturday and Kelly Arnold followed on Sunday with the same 4 over score. Some early rookie stand outs were Cody Husak who shot an 83 Saturday and Christopher Cooley who toured Whispering Willows with only 30 putts. On Sunday James Vickey was low rookie and Charles Withey took the low putts prize with a sterling 27 at Harbour Pointe. One more Q-School next week and this week is the deadline for entering the first two tournaments of the season in two weeks.

Q-Schools this weekend and next
April 9, 2015
Q-Schools begin this weekend for the 2015 season with a third scheduled for next weekend. Sign-up deadline for the 3rd Q-School is today. Though Q-School is not required before beginning Tour play, well, it sure can't hurt. And it is an excellent way for new Tour members to begin establishing their Tour handicap. Q-Schools are open to all current members as well because, even though the scores don't count for them, well, a little warm up round sure can't hurt. See the schedule link at the bottom of this page or on the home page to sign up!

Fantasy League a fun side-light for The Mulligan Tour
March 17, 2015 (updated April 9)

The Mulligan Tour bids a sad farewell to the ESPN Best Ball Majors fantasy game, which apparently has been given over to the Draft Kings franchise. Somebody outta write a letter.

However, our 'official' weekly league lives on! That is the Golf Channel Fantasy League which begins (officially for our tour) with the Match Play Chapionship the first weekend in May and ends at the Wyndam Championship on Aug 23rd. The season is broken into 3 segments this year, with fabulous prizes awarded for the winner of each segment. When asked about the cost of expanding the fabulous prize pool from 2 segments last year to three this year, league President Erik Meland said, "Eh. Why not!"
Click this link for the details on the Fantasy League. Golf Channel And don't forget to check out The Mulligan Tour Facebook Page where all the Fantasy action is detailed week by week, including the ongoing preseason schedule.

The Mulligan Tour is preparing its 17th season providing tournament golf for southeast Michigan's bogey golfers. The schedule is very similar to the last few years as most tournaments have found their home courses and their place on the schedule. The Mulligan Tour continues to provide the most tournament opportunities in one season schedule. There are over 30 open tournaments and 10 invitationals from April through October.
Click here for the 2015 schedule

The Player Advisory Council convened on January 24th and and made minimal changes to the Playing Rules. And the recurring debate on "pace of play" yielded no new policies. "Enforcement" will be the key to any bouts of slow play, as players finishing their round more than 15 minutes after the group ahead of them will be assessed a "Red X". After 3 Red X's, the player will accrue penalty strokes for further late finishes.

The Mulligan Tour will have an exhibit at the Michigan Golf Show (March 6-8 at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi). Stop by and visit. There will be the usual 2 for 1 membership special for new members.
Click on www.michigangolfshow.com for details on the annual golf show.