With the LPGA playing their first major of the year just 20 minutes down the road, some of the nation’s best senior amateurs descended upon PGA West in La Quinta, California, for the Golfweek Senior National Championship.
In the senior division, Robert Funk claimed top dog with a final-round 1-over 73 on Saturday. Rounds of 73, 71, 73 (217) were good for a three-shot victory for the Canyon Lake, California, native.
“I played very consistent until the back nine,” Funk told Golfweek.
Funk was 3 under at the turn before crawling in with two bogeys and a double on the par 5 7th. However, a 73 was all Funk needed to hold onto his lead he started the day with. One of the key pieces to Funk’s win? His flatstick.
“What turned my game around is my new putter,” Funk said. “I guess it gives me confidence that I can hit it online.”
Unable to catch Funk, Billy Mitchell. Twice a bridesmaid on the west coast swing, Mitchell heads back to Atlanta with two top-3 finishes under his belt. Firing a 1-under 71 to add some pressure, Mitchell was unable to fully recover from his opening 77 which left a three-stroke difference between him and Funk.
Rounding out the podium was Don Whittemore who tied with Mitchell at 4 over while last week’s winner Jerry Gunthorpe racked up a T-6 finish at 7 over.
Super senior Jeff Burda had himself a fantastic week, running away with the 65- to 69-year-old age bracket by 13 strokes. Playing in his hometown, Burda used his local knowledge to go wire-to-wire and close the tournament in style with an event low 67.
With one bogey on No. 1, Burda kept the rest of his card clean with six birdies on Saturday, leaving no doubt among the super senior division. Burda’s 7-under 209 would’ve been good for a win in any age division and his 14 birdies in 54 holes also led the entire field.
Rounding out the top-5 were Gary Albrecht (6 over), Larry Vaughan (7 over), John Armstrong, and Curtis Worley (8 over).
After taking the lead through two rounds, Evan Long never looked back. His 54 hole total of 6 overtook the cake in the legend division as he cruised to a six-shot victory over Don Donatoni. Mickey Jones (+13), Peter Van Ingen (+14) and Rick Lawrence (+18) rounded out the top-5.
In the super legend division, John Seehausen and John Banks needed three holes to declare a winner where Seehausen claimed the championship. Beginning the day two back of Blank, Seehausen came in clutch down the stretch with an eagle on the par-5 15th en route to a final round 73 to help force the playoff.
Golfweek has amateur events for juniors, amateurs, mid-ams, and seniors all throughout the year. If you are interested in teeing it up in one of Golfweek’s amateur events, head on over to our events page here to see if you meet the criteria.