53rd NCGA Four-Ball Championship | Spyglass Hill GC | May 10-12, 2019
2018 champions Austin Fox and Casey Scott
The NCGA Four-Ball Championship began in 1967 at Spyglass Hill golf course and has been played at the Robert Trent Jones layout ever since. The 54-hole competition consists of two-man teams in which both players play their own ball and the lowest score of the two is counted on each hole.
Only five teams have ever won the event more than once, with Tom Culligan III and Dan James (1968/1975), Casey Boyns and Joey Ferrari (1994/1996), Darryl Donovan and Randy Haag (2000/2010), Ryan Sloane and Taylor Travis (2008-2009) and Danny Paniccia and Mike Stieler (2013/2014). Haag has won the event a record four times as an individual, playing with Donovan (2000, 2010) and Bob Blomberg (1987, 1993).
The lowest 18-hole score ever posted was 62 by RC Orr and Scott Roak (2011), Brett Viboch and Bobby Bucey (2016) and Nick Moore and Matt Cohn (2016). The lowest 54-hole total of 195 was recorded in 2016 by Bobby Bucey and Brett Viboch.
In recent years, more than 200 teams have attempted to qualify for the championship which is played annually in early May.
Qualifying Information
ENTRIES CLOSE: March 24, 2019
Qualifying for the 2019 Four-Ball Championship takes place April 11-19 at the following courses:
Metropolitan April 11 | Ancil Hoffman April 12 | Baylands April 19 | Del Monte April 19 | Paradise Valley April 20
Format: 18 holes qualifying four-ball stroke play. 88 teams, including exempts, advance to the championship. The championship proper will be 54 holes of four-ball stroke play, 18 holes per day. After 36 holes, the field is cut to 40 teams and ties. One partner may represent the team for any part or all of a stipulated round.
Exemptions from qualifying: Champions prior to 2004 have a lifetime exemption with the same partner. Champions from 2004 and beyond are exempt for 10 years with the same partner. The top 10 teams and ties from the preceding year, with the same partner. Both partners must meet eligibility requirements, holding a handicap index of 5.4 or less. Each exempt team is required to submit an entry prior to the closing date. Four-Ball Exemptions
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About Spyglass Hill
Spyglass Hill No. 14
Ranked number 11 on “America’s 100 Greatest Public Courses” list by Golf Digest for 2011-2012. Spyglass Hill was designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr., as a part of the master plan for the Pebble Beach ocean front between Cypress Point and Pebble Beach. Opened in 1966, the design features two distinctly different kinds of terrain that influence the way the holes look and play. The first five holes roll through sandy seaside dunes challenging the golfer to carefully pick the safest path. The following 13 holes are cut through pine trees with elevated greens and strategically placed bunkers and lakes to grab the errant shot.
Spyglass Hill is rated one of the toughest courses in the world from the Championship tees, boasting a course rating of 75.5 and a slope rating of 147. The PGA Tour consistently lists Spyglass Hill’s holes 6, 8 and 16 among the toughest on the tour, and during the 1999 United States Amateur, the stroke average of the field during medal play was in excess of 79. 2017 champions Cole Nygren and Grady Smith won by a record 10 shots.
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Tournament Recaps
A pair of Tigers came up the biggest when it counted the most. University of Pacific seniors and Youth on Course alums Austin Fox and Casey Scott came roaring out of the gates and never looked back, posting a final
round 8-under 64 Sunday to capture the annual NCGA Four-Ball Championship at par-72 Spyglass Hill. The duo finished with a 54-hole total of 18-under 198 to defeat tough luck runner-ups Jason Anthony and Randy Haag. Read Full 2019 Recap | View 2019 Photo Gallery
Jeffrey Yamaguchi and Michael Jura were clutch when it mattered the most. The CSU-Stanislaus teammates played their last four holes at 2-under en route to a final round 3-under 69 to win the annual NCGA Four-Ball Championship by a shot over the runner-up team of Randy Haag and Jason Anthony on a breezy Sunday at par-72 Spyglass Hill. While they’ve both won NCGA junior events, it was the first time Yamaguchi and Jura have won an NCGA championship. Read Full 2018 Recap | View 2018 Photo Gallery
Immediately after the conclusion of Sunday’s final round, Cole Nygren got a phone call from his mother. “She must’ve seen the 
scores posted online,” Nygren said with a smile. Stephanie Smith, meanwhile, had earlier told her son Grady. ‘What I want for Mother’s Day is for you to win.” In Nygren and Smith’s case, the weekend didn’t just start perfectly, it ended that way too. The Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo teammates shot a final round 4-under 68 Sunday at Spyglass Hill, rolling to a record 10-stroke win at the annual NCGA Four-Ball Championship. Read Full 2017 Recap | View 2017 Photo Gallery
Brett Viboch and Bobby Bucey got the warm-up for Winged Foot they wanted and picked up some gifts for their moms along the way. A day after carding a championship record-tying 10-under 62, Viboch and Bucey were again in a groove, posting an 8-under 64 to win the 50th NCGA Four-Ball Championship by five strokes on a beautiful Mother’s Day at Spyglass Hill. The pair, who in two weeks will take their game to the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship in New York, finished the 54-hole championship with a record score of 21-under 195. Read Full 2016 Recap | View 2016 Photo Gallery
The message that Davis residents Ben Corfee and Scott Raber got from their moms on Mother’s Day was, ‘Win a title for us.’ The two ended up fulfilling the requests. Corfee and Raber shot a final round 6-under 66, coming alive on 
the back-nine, to hold off a slew of challengers and win the 49th annual NCGA Four-Ball Championship on Sunday at par-72 Spyglass Hill. The duo, who defeated co-runner-ups Matt Cohn and Nick Moore and Jason Anthony and Randy Haag, finished the 54-hole event at 17-under 199, just two shots off the championship record for low winning score. Read Full 2015 Recap | View 2015 Photo Gallery
Danny Paniccia and Mike Stieler always wanted to win the NCGA Four-Ball Championship. They’ve now done it twice in a row. Paniccia and Stieler shot a final round 69 Sunday at par-72 Spyglass Hill to finish at 9-under 207, edging the co-runner up tandems of Cameron Champ and Gary Dunn and Jeff Gilchrist and Steve Woods by one stroke. Paniccia and Stieler, who used to work together at Riverbend Golf Course in Madera, become the first team to repeat as Four-Ball champions since Travis Taylor and Ryan Sloane nabbed back-to-back title in 2008 and 2009. Read Full 2014 Recap | View 2014 Photo Gallery
Danny Paniccia and Mike Stieler came away victorious on Sunday, winning the 47th Annual NCGA Four-Ball Championship with a 54-hole score of 200, 16-under par. The 36-hole leaders followed rounds of 68 and 65, with a 67 on Sunday to edge out Randy Haag and Jim Knoll at 201, 15-under par. On Friday and Saturday it was Paniccia, who did most of the heavy lifting, accounting for all but two of the better-ball scores over the first 36 holes. However, on Sunday, it was Stieler who came through in a big way. Read Full 2013 Recap | View 2013 Photo Gallery
Past Champions
| 1967 | Ross Randall and Bob Smith. | 75-69-69—213 |
| 1968 | Tom Culligan III and Dan James | 74-68-72—214 |
| 1969 | Tom Culligan III and Terry Small | 69-70-71—210 |
| 1970 | Artie McNickle and Dennis Braden | 70-69-70—209 |
| 1971 | Doug Nelson and Skip Thompson | 70-69-72—211 |
| 1972 | Bob Enslow and Sandy Galbraith | 70-68-72—210 |
| 1973 | Mike Brannan and Jim Lathum | 69-71-69—209 |
| 1974 | Sandy Gillespie and Gary Conti | 69-69-72—210 |
| 1975 | Tom Culligan III and Dan James | 70-72-70—212 |
| 1976 | Scott Hoyt and Mike Barr | 74-69-71—214 |
| 1977 | Roger Armstrong and Steve Gazzaneo | 64-71-74—209 |
| 1978 | Dana Booth and Mike Chapman | 67-64-73—204 |
| 1979 | Larry Cartmill and Tom Castello | 72-71-69—212 |
| 1980 | David Larson and Matt Bloom | 71-71-71—213 |
| 1981 | Armando Claudio and Joe Tamburino | 71-71-71—213 |
| 1982 | Bill Corbett and John Susko | 70-73-72—215 |
| 1983 | Michael Blewitt and Dan Thurston | 71-74-68—213 |
| 1984 | Guy Bill and Bill Malley | 72-73-69—214 |
| 1985 | Rick Gordon and Bill Paulson | 72-67-73—212 |
| 1986 | Michael Barr and Conrad Nilmeier | 70-74-69—213 |
| 1987 | Bob Blomberg and Randy Haag | 69-72-72—213 |
| 1988 | Tom Culligan and Bob Callan | 73-68-70—211 |
| 1989 | Ken Webb and Jeff Burda | 68-69-70—207 |
| 1990 | Robert Olds and Scott Anderson | 68-70-68—206 |
| 1991 | Mike Lane and Jeff Thomas | 70-69-69—208 |
| 1992 | Tad Buchanan and George Kelley | 73-65-71—209 |
| 1993 | Bob Blomberg and Randy Haag | 68-68-68—204 |
| 1994 | Casey Boyns and Joey Ferrari | 69-67-67—203 |
| 1995 | Joel Kribel and Andy Barnes | 69-72-67—208 |
| 1996 | Casey Boyns and Joey Ferrari | 69-70-70—209 |
| 1997 | Cliff Davis and Eddie Davis | 70-71-68—209 |
| 1998 | Brady Stockton and Matt Larson | 68-71-68—207 |
| 1999 | Scott Watson and Ray Otis | 71-69-70—210 |
| 2000 | Darryl Donovan and Randy Haag | 66-66-71—203 |
| 2001 | Robert Hamilton and Phil Cuthbertson | 69-64-67—200 |
| 2002 | Phillip Huff and Rob Martin | 67-69-69—205 |
| 2003 | Todd Barsotti and Jeff Wilson | 66-66-65—197 |
| 2004 | Jason Boyd and Scott Gordon | 67-64-66—197 |
| 2005 | Scott Hardy and Rick Reinsberg | 68-63-68—199 |
| 2006 | Cliff Smith and Jamie Looper | 70-71-66—207 |
| 2007 | Kevin Kobalter and Zack Miller | 67-66-73—206 |
| 2008 | Taylor Travis and Ryan Sloane | 65-66-69—200 |
| 2009 | Taylor Travis and Ryan Sloane | 67-69-66—202 |
| 2010 | Darryl Donovan and Randy Haag | 69-66-79—204 |
| 2011 | Jason Higton and J.R. Becko | 68-68-69—205 |
| 2012 | Russell Humphrey and James Watt | 66-70-69—205 |
| 2013 | Danny Paniccia and Mike Stieler | 68-65-67—200 |
| 2014 | Danny Paniccia and Mike Stieler | 71-67-69—207 |
| 2015 | Scott Raber and Ben Corfee | 69-64-66—199 |
| 2016 | Bobby Bucey and Brett Viboch | 69-62-64—195 |
| 2017 | Grady Smith and Cole Nygren | 64-66-68—198 |
| 2018 | Michael Jura and Jeffrey Yamaguchi | 69-67-69—205 |