Robert Gautney: Pitts adds Sundale record (62) to his collection
| Wednesday, Aug 05 2009 09:04 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Aug 05 2009 10:50 PM
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Henry A. Barrios / The Californian Justin Pitts'<CQ> watches his shot during the last round of the Kern County Amateur Golf Tournament Sunday at Buena Vista Golf Course.
Justin Pitts has established a few records at golf courses in and out of Bakersfield. You can now add another one to the list as the former Bakersfield College golfer and current professional carved out a 10-under 62 last week at the Sundale Country Club to establish a new course record.
Pitts made four birdies and had one bogey to make the turn at just 3-under and it didn't appear that he was on course to even get close to the old record of 9-under 63.
But seven birdies and no bogeys later in an inward half of 29, Pitts had his 62 and another record.
The old mark was 9-under 63, established the day before the Bakersfield City Amateur (July 24) this year by Matt Picanso. It was actually reported in The Californian on Monday that the record was 8-under 64 by Dale Keene in the 2002 City Amateur.
In reality, Keene had shared the mark with Brady Baguio, who shot 64 in the final round of the 2006 City Amateur and current Rio Bravo pro Jim Kiger before Picanso. Kiger established the mark back in the 80s when he was the pro at Sundale.
Among others, Pitts has a 9-under 61 at Foss-Kern River, an 11-under 61 at Mifflin-Buena Vista and a 9-under 63 at Sycamore Canyon. Out-of-town, Pitts still holds the course record at Goose Creek in Corona with a 9-under 63.
BALFANZ TO PLAY IN SCGA MATCH-PLAY AT SANDPIPER
Seven Oaks CC member John Balfanz will play in the second SCGA Match-Play Championship at the Sandpiper Golf Club in Goleta next week.
The top 32 from the 2008 and 2009 SCGA Player of the Year points list are eligible to compete in the event by invitation only from the SCGA. Players that do not accept an invitation then allow players from 33 and down to play. Balfanz qualified as the No.31 player on the list.
It is not known whom Balfanz will play as Wednesday was the cut-off for accepting a spot and the pairings will not be revealed until the players pre-tournament party on Aug. 9. The tournament runs Aug. 10-12.
Bryan Hogan was actually 24th on the points list, but had not accepted a spot as of Monday, while Tyler Hurst at 46 might have a chance to play.
In the senior division, Jim Seymour is 25th on the list, but only the top 16 get in, so a few declines would have to unfold for Seymour to get a spot.
FERNANDEZ HELPS SO CAL JUMP TO THIRD
The Southern California boys team in the Junior America's Cup golf tournament sat in fifth place after two rounds at the Annandale GC in Pasadena last week.
But Stockdale High's Pete Fernandez, Jr., fired a 2-under 68 to help his team leap over two other teams and into third place in the final round.
British Columbia won with a three-round total of plus-2, while the San Diego section was the runner-up at plus-10, four better than the So Cal team.
Overall, Fernandez went from 36th to a tie for 23rd with his 68. The winner was Justin Shin from British Columbia, who fired a 5-under total of 205 to beat the 60-player field.
Fernandez will be competing in the California Boys State Championship at the PGA of Southern California in Beaumont next week, Aug.10-12.
Fernandez qualified by winning the regional event at San Luis Rey Downs on June 30 with a 3-under 69.
HUSER MISSES FINAL ROUND AT OPTIMIST
Recent BHS graduate Connor Huser shot rounds of 80-76-78 at the Optimist Junior International Championship in Palm Gardens, FLA, last week and missed out on the final round by five shots.
Playing the Champions and Palmer Courses at the PGA National Resort, Huser competed in the boys 16-18 age flight that was won by A.J. Crouch of Jacksonville, Fla., who fired rounds of 71-68-71-71 for a 7-under total to win by one stroke.
It took a plus-13 to make the top 54 and ties after 54 holes. There were more than 80 competitors in the event, which was the conclusion of a week and a half of play by junior boys and girls ages 18 and under from all over the world.
U.S. AMATEUR SECTIONAL RESULTS
Fresno State sophomore Bhavik Patel won't have a running mate in the U.S. Amateur Championship later this month at Southern Hills GC in Tulsa, Okla., as Bakersfield's other participants in sectional qualifying came up short in their bids to join Patel.
At Big Canyon in Newport Beach, John Balfanz was equal 19th with a 150 and Steve Roodzant was equal 46th with a 159. There was a playoff at 144 to decide the third and last spot from a field of 69 players.
At Red Hill GC in Rancho Cucamonga, Bryan Hogan shot 77-75 to finish equal 24th in a field of 71 players. It took a 1-under 143 to qualify.
At El Cabalerro, Scott Anderson shot 73-75 for a 148 total, good enough for equal 17th, but it took a 4-under 140 just to make a playoff for the last of three spots. There were 72 players in the field.
DEADLINE THIS WEEKEND FOR TAFT CITY AMATEUR
Saturday will be the deadline for entry into the 2nd Taft City Amateur golf championship which will be played Aug.15-16 at the Mifflin-Buena Vista golf course.
Entry is $100 and includes two rounds of golf, a Saturday lunch, range balls and prizes. Call 398-9720 to enter.
The tournament is the fourth of the Sports Authority/Michelob Ultra Player of the Year events in which the top 10 and ties in the championship flight earn points towards the 2009 Player of the Year title.
Currently, Scott Anderson leads with 46 points and is followed by Bhavik Patel and City Champion Danny Hoff with 30 points each and Nick Vallejo and Michael Gideon with 27 apiece.
Last year, the inaugural Taft City tournament, Brady Baguio shot rounds of 68-67 for a 9-under 135 total to beat Anderson by four shots.
Patel and Bill Frankhouser Jr., had matched Baguio's opening round of 4-under 68, but both shot 73 in the final round to tie for 4th. Ron Kilmer shot a pair of 70's to finish a shot back of Anderson.
FORE KIDS GOLF UP AND RUNNING
In last Thursday's print of the Sports Section in The Bakersfield Californian, there was an article by Steven Lynch about the new "little league" of golf.
Fore Kids Golf is for juniors age 8-18 and will have golf leagues and practices, tournaments and in the future will have traveling teams to compete against other sections from around California.
Kids can join for $100/year membership dues and then pay $5 for practice sessions and $10 for tournaments. In addition, members can earn certification into the SCGA Foundation where they can receive discounts on range balls and greens fees at other participating courses through Southern California.
Currently, North Kern, Buena Vista, Kern River and RiverLakes Ranch are on board with most courses including the country clubs set to be on line shortly. Aug. 22 will be the first tournament.
This is a great way for kids to participate in golf, just like they do in baseball, football, volleyball and other sports in our area. For more information visit the club website at www.forekidsgolf.com or at emailus@forekidsgolf.com. You can also log onto the SCGA;s foundation at SCGA Foundation.org, to gain more information about the program.
Kern County Champions Dinner
If you haven't heard by now, the Kern County Amateur Dinner of Champions, the bi-annual brainchild of former major leaguer George Culver, is expanding beyond anyone's expectations.
Culver started the event in 2000 to pay tribute to the champions of the Kern County Amateur. Champions received a "Blue Blazer", just like that of the green jacket at The Masters. Each player also received a pin with the year of their title and in the years 2002, 2004, 2006 and last year, former champions came to the dinner to honor not only themselves, but the current KC Am champion.
Last year, a pair of scholarships for $500 were awarded to two BC women's golf team players. From there, the scholarship part of the event just took off. With the help of 1964 champion Steve Hughes among others, a non-profit organization was established and the event will now be an annual affair with a golf tournament preceding the dinner following the Kern County Amateur.
This year, BCC will host the event on Oct. 19 with a golf tournament and then an awards dinner. The KC Am will be contested Oct.10-11 and not only will past and current champions be honored, but there will be special awards as in the past and the Sports Authority/Michelob Ultra Player of the Year and the Pro Shop Golf/Tee to Green "Performance of the Year" awards will be handed out.
But the big kicker will be the thousands of dollars in scholarships that will be awarded to local high school and college student/golfers.
I'm not sure how many spots are available for the golf tournament, but entry is $150 and includes the awards dinner, while dinner reservations only can be made for $75.
If you want more information on this event, contact Steve Henry at henryland@aol.com, or contact Culver, Larry Lazane, Bud Ardell or CSUB golf coach Dave Barber. There are a maximum of 20 teams that will be allowed to compete.
KERN COUNTY WOMEN'S AMATEUR
Entries are now underway for the Sept. 9-10 Kern County Women's Amateur Golf Championships. The tournament will be played at Haggerty-North Kern and Rio Bravo CC, with the awards reception following the final round at Rio Bravo.
Entry is $125 and includes fees, carts, range balls, prizes and the awards luncheon.
Players age 16 and older by Sept. 9 are eligible to compete and must have a USGA index at a Kern County golf course in compliance with Rule 6. The maximum allowed index will be 36.3 and the August index will be the guideline.
Last year, Meggan Bellows shot an 85 at Kern River and a 75 at Sundale CC to win the title.
For more information, contact Susan Gilbert at 246-6157. The deadline for entry is August 31 and entry forms can be obtained at all area courses and clubs and golf pro shops.
Tee to Green appears weekly at Bakersfield.com/sports. You can reach Gautney at: rgautney@bak.rr.com.
