2017 Stocker Cup champion Tyler Crawford
by Scott Seward, for AmateurGolf.com
CARMEL, Calif. (October 21, 2017) -
Tyler Crawford might never give back the borrowed putter he used to capture the 26th Stocker Cup.
Carmel resident Jeff Britton put together a set for Crawford after the the Indio resident’s clubs didn’t make it to Carmel. Using a put-together set, including a putter from Britton’s wife, Crawford fired a first-round 68 at the par-72 Preserve Golf Club. The pink lady Scotty Cameron putter was covered with fleur-de-lis, which inspired the New Orleans Saints fan.
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The champion followed with rounds of 73 and 74 to capture the title at 1-under in his fourth playing of the venerable mid-amateur event. Crawford’s previous Stocker Cups all resulted in top-10 finishes. Earlier this year
he won the prestigious Kelly Cup.
“I played my best round today,” the champion said, “though I got clobbered on No 4.”
On the surface, this seems surprising given his stellar opening round where at one point he stood at six under using the borrowed clubs, but Crawford acknowledged that his opening 68 was due to putting using a club he had never played with before.
The double bogey he made on the fourth hole in the final round was offset by four birdies on the day, reflective of stellar ball striking on the challenging Preserve Golf Club layout.
Second round co-leader
Billy Williamson of Cincinnati, Ohio and
Reid Hatley finished in a tie for second, two back of Crawford at 1-over.
“I’d like to really thank
Joe Sanders and
Jerry Ledzinski. Joe got me in touch with Jerry who connected me with Jeff Britton. And, of course, without Jeff and his wife’s putter, I wouldn’t have won.” Sanders is a former Stocker Cup champion and is a four-ball partner of Crawford’s.
TEAM EVENTS
Colby Harwell and Jason Goble also won the gross team title wire-to wire, but it was the opening 64 that lead the way. The Texas duo won by seven strokes over
Patrick Christovich and Andew Rosenberg.
Harwell and Goble also were low net, but are only eligible in one division.
That was okay with everyone at The Preserve, because it meant that
George Kelley and partner
Joe Deraney won the net division title, the only division that saw come-from-behind winners. Kelley is a co-founder of the Stocker Cup championship and was a longtime friend of the tournament’s namesake, Peter Stocker. Kelley and Deraney carded an impressive 64 to leap into first place. The result clearly meant the world to Kelley, and the assembled tournament field graciously saluted him and partner Deraney, who
won last year's Stocker Cup.
Birmingham’s
Steve Hudson won the Sandy Tatum Trophy, for competitors over age 50. Hudson finished in a tie for 10th. The award, named for the highly respected former USGA President, took on special meaning this year since Tatum passed away in June. He left behind a legacy that includes consulting on the design of The Preserve Golf Club (with architect Tom Fazio) and leading the drive to bring San Francisco's Harding Park Golf Course back to its former glory.
ABOUT THE
Stocker Cup
The Stocker Cup was founded in 1991 to
honor
the
memory of Peter Stocker. Peter and his
partners Bill
Harlan and John Montgomery founded San
Francisco's
Pacific Union Company, a highly successful
real
estate
development company. The firm initiated the
development of The Santa Lucia Preserve, a
20,000
acre residential and golf community located
above
Carmel. Meandering through the winding road
to
The
Preserve's centerpiece -- the top-100 rated
golf
course -- has been described as "driving
through a California postcard." The Stocker
Cup
was played from 1991 to 1999 at Pebble
Beach
and
its
surrounding golf courses, before moving to
the
Tom
Fazio and Sandy Tatum designed Preserve
G.C.
In
the
words of former USGA President Tatum:
"Peter
Stocker was the quintessential amateur golfer.
He
loved golf with a passion. He would have
loved
this
tournament."
FORMAT:
54-hole individual
competition
with
a
simultaneous best-ball event, similar to the
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Invited Mid-
Amateur
players are either paired with a single digit
amateur
or
can propose their own partner to be
introduced
and
invited by the Committee.
View Complete Tournament Information