Emrick’s Love Playing At The Hick
St. Peters natives Dan and Sam Emrick (Old Hickory Golf Club) used their home course advantage to post the best score of the day at six-under par 66 to capture the 19-24 year-old flight at the St. Louis District Golf Association (STLDGA) Salomon Parent/Child Championship at Old Hickory Golf Club in St. Peters, Mo. on Thursday, Aug. 7.
The championship features a two-person team in a modified selective drive/alternate shot format. One player must be a male member of one of the STLDGA District Clubs. Flights are by age group of the youngest player.
The Emricks played steadily with two birdies each on the front and back nine, plus an eagle on the 511-yard, par five 14th hole. “We had a stress-free round, no bogeys, good combo between us,” said Dan, who is a Lindenwood University alum where Sam is a senior on the Lions’ golf team. “He’s a better iron player than I am and longer than I am.
“So, it worked out that when we were able to use my drive, he hit the approach. I’m a little bit better putter, so a perfect combination. We didn’t have any situations where we were in trouble.”
Sam got his start in golf when his dad was running the St. Peters golf course. “I would play in the junior league with my cousins, so that’s how I got started,” Sam explained. “I went to high school (Francis Howell Central) to play basketball, but I gave that up to focus on golf, and I’m in my fourth year at Lindenwood, so that’s nice.”
Dan now oversees the City of St. Peters Recreation Department and distinctly remembers the first time that Sam beat him in a round. “Of course I remember that, but it was a proud moment, though,” Dan stated. “He was probably 16 or 17, started hitting it a little bit further and scoring better.”
Neil and Alex Gellman (Westwood Country Club) posted a 1-under 71, but couldn’t make a charge at the Emricks. Nevertheless, Neil gave his son all the credit, “He’s our club champion, so I’ve got a coach who is with me regularly.”
“Father and son chemistry” according to Alex. “I was able to drive a few par fours today, which helps” he said. “He put me in the fairway every time, which gave me confidence.”
13-and-Under
Pat and Jack Britt (Norwood Hills Country Club) finished one-over par 73 to handle Randy and Hank Graham (Algonquin Golf Club), who were four-over. The Britts rebounded from a double bogey on Hole No. 4 and a bogey at No. 7 to card birdies on the 9th, 10th and 17th holes to claim the victory.
“I’m a righty, he’s a lefty, so it worked out pretty well … made some good putts, had a good time,” Pat analyzed. “Tough course, gotta keep it in play. We had a few mishaps, but got through it pretty well, had some good birdies.”
14-16 Year-Old
John and Austin Larson became the second Old Hickory members to prevail as they were the scorecard playoffs winners over Grant and Palmer Masson (St. Louis Country Club) as both posted one-under 71s.
Another eagle on the 511-yard, par five 14th hole sparked the Larsons. “I hit driver off the tee, tried to actually cut the corner, but accidentally flared one a little right, and it turned out fine,” Alex described. “My dad hit an eight iron up there. I used a 60-degree and tried to run it into the hill, hoping it would stop and it happened to fall in.
“After that, we fed off each other’s momentum, made three birdies in a row and never looked back from there.”
John thought their Old Hickory experience was a factor. “We have a lot of blood, sweat and tears out here,” he acknowledged. “I think I carried us for the most part, but he did eagle that one hole!”
Patrick and Colin Buchanan (Old Hickory Golf Club), Ryan and Andrew Behrmann (Bogey Hills Country Club), and Brian and Colin Parsons (Algonquin Golf Club) were all even par, one stroke off the pace.
17-18 Year-Old
Rhoads Hall and son Rhoads III (Algonquin Golf Club) carded a three-under 69 to hold off Matt and Mason Holmes (Sunset Hills Country Club) who were even at 72. The Halls drilled three birdies on both the front and back nine to offset three bogeys.
“We clutched up when we had to,” said the elder Rhoads. “We had a good day, had a great time at a great event.”
The younger Rhodes summed it up succinctly, “We hit some bombs and that putter was rolling!”
The highly competitive flight had Andrew and Max Roth (The Legends Country Club), Kyle and Blake Laramie (Lake Forest Golf & Country Club) all at one-over.
25-36 Year-Old
More Old Hickory dominance as member and three-time STLDGA Men’s champion Chris Kovach and his father, Steve, claimed the trophy at two-under 70, holding off fellow Old Hickory members Gregory and Andrew Ewald, who were one-over.
The Kovachs bounced back from bogeys on Holes 9 and 10 to drain three birdies among the final six holes to claim the victory.
For the Kovachs, it was role reversal. “Generally, he hits the shots off the tee, and I hit the shots on the greens, but today it didn’t work like that,” Chris noted. “Today, it was my drives, and he was hitting his irons the best I’ve seen. We had some good looks and made a couple putts.”
Steve simply enjoys the opportunity to play with Chris in a competitive environment. “It’s nice to have a chance to play with him, because I watch him all the time as he’s playing around town,” Steve said. “So, it’s nice every once in a while to play with him.”
37-and-Older
Kris and Tim Jakes (Sunset Hills Country Club) had the highest score among the winners at four-over 76, which was enough to slip past Jim Roth and Kyle McGee (The Legends Country Club), and John and Jonathan Prange (Bogey Hills Country Club) who were both a shot back at plus-five.
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