Player Information Pairings/Results Poppy Hills Yardage
October 31, 2015
Champs Jim and Terry Knoll, second place Linda DeLong and Bob Fleming and third place Arlene and Frank Yost (left to right)
Chardonnay Flight
Record five-time NCGA Senior Player of the Year Jim Knoll got some help from his wife, Terry, as the duo edged out a win in the Chardonnay Flight (handicap index 11-below) at spooktacular par-71 Poppy Hills Golf Course.
The Knolls, who won last year’s Merlot Flight, shot an 8-under 63, highlighted by an eagle and seven birdies to go against one goblin…err, bogey.
The two came in with a two-day total of 12-under 130. They’d defeat the runner-up tandem of Bob Fleming Linda DeLong, who fired a 66, by one shot.
“Terry putted really well today,” Jim Knoll said.
Placing third at 132 were Arlene and Frank Yost after a final round 67. The defending champion squad of Dorothy and Steve Donnelly took fourth at 133 following a 67.
Merlot Flight champs Scott and Mary Ann Taylor and co-runner-ups Pat Goodman and Nansea Russ and John Lee and Kimlien Tran (left to right)
Merlot Flight
The team of Mary Ann and Scott Taylor could have been wearing superhero costumes.
The Taylors posted their second straight 67, finishing at 8-under 134 to defeat both the tandems of John Lee/Kimlien Tran and Nansea Russ/Pat Goodman by one and win the Merlot Flight (handicap index 12-17). For the Taylors, it marked a completion of the ‘Tandem Grand Slam.’
They also won last year’s inaugural NCGA Scramble and the Mixed Team Spring title.
“We hit some stinkers, but we also hit some good ones too,” Scott Taylor said.
A big difference came on the closing 18th, where Lee and Tran took a 7 while the Taylors made par for a net birdie.
Lee and Tran made a push with two eagles and seven birdies, but they also carded four bogeys and two double-bogeys for a 68 and 135 total. Coming off a first round 72, Goodman and Russ made even more of a charge, shooting a 63 that featured an eagle and eight birdies to go with just two bogeys.
Zinfandel Flight champs Jim and Sasa Puchbauer and co-runner-ups Kelly and Belinda Kendle and Judy Schroder and Robert Adra (left to right)
Zinfandel Flight
Over in the Zinfandel Flight (handicap index 18-above), the tandem of Sasa and Jim Puchbauer played the role of slashers.
The two followed up an opening round 64 with a screaming 14-under 57 to come in at 121 and win by eight strokes. In their 57, the two posted three eagles and nine birdies to go against a lone bogey.
The Puchbauers also won the Zinfandel Flight crown in the Mixed Team Spring Championship.
“We really ham and egged it. Sasa was putting like crazy, plus I putted well today,” Jim Puchbauer said. “It was a real team effort.”
Things went so right for the duo that Sasa sank a 66-foot putt on the par-3 15th.
Both the teams of Judy Schroder/Robert Adra and Belinda and Kelly Kendle finished tied for second at 129 after final rounds of 65 and 69, respectively.
The format for the championship is Chapman, where both players tee off, they switch and then they choose the ball they want.
October 30, 2015 
There was a ton of fun on Halloween eve as the annual highly popular Mixed Team Fall Championship got underway Friday on a spectacular fall day at par-71 Poppy Hills Golf Course. As for who came out ahead on the course, in the Chardonnay Flight (handicap index 11-below) three teams–Terry Leach/Diana McInnis, Bob Fleming/Linda DeLong and Arlene and Frank Yost–all grabbed a share of the lead after coming with matching scores of 6-under 65. The format for the championship is Chapman, where both players tee off, they switch and then they choose the ball they want. The trio has company at the top, however, as the tandem of defending Chardonnay champions Dorothy and Steve Donnelly are only one shot behind after a 66. Also lurking is the team of Terry Knoll and Jim Knoll, who are alone in fifth after a 67. Jim Knoll is the five-time defending NCGA Senior Player of the Year. There’s also a logjam over in the Merlot Flight (handicap index 12-17). There, the teams of Mary Ann and Scott Taylor, Mark Hawley/Susan Schutz and John Lee/Kimlien Tran are all tied for the lead after identical opening scores of 67. Just a stroke behind the leaders at 68 is the team of Terry and Mike Brown. Only two behind is the tandem of Michelle and Tashi Sherpa. In the Zinfandel Flight (18-above), the leaders have a lot more breathing room. The tandem of Belinda and Kelly Kendle took the lead with a sizzling 60 after penciling in four eagles and six birdies to go against just three bogeys. Still, there’s another round. Among those who could make a move are Sasa and Jim Puchbauer and the Judy Schroder/Robert Adra squad, who both opened with 64. Here’s a photo gallery from some of Friday’s action.
