Westwood Hills wins another Cup

~ The Poplar Bluff club topped Kimbelandby two strokes.

Being the host team for the SEMO Cup golf tournament was a mixed blessing for the Kimbeland Country Club team Saturday.

Kimbeland did play within two strokes of defending champion Westwood Hills Country Club in the event that pits 10 area golf clubs' squads in a four-format, 36-hole competition.

But as members of the Westwood team surmised while picking up their winnings from the pro shop, members of the host club will be thinking of the shots that could have been in their next few trips over their own course.

"They did play good," Kimbeland pro Jim Davey said of his team. "Sometimes it's hard to survive in those last two formats."

Kimbeland came out strong in the scramble format to start the day. Todd Ladd and teammate Todd Smith scored a 30 and were matched for the best round by Kimbeland teammates Mark McDowell and Kent Phillips. Davey and his partner, Harold Schott, shot 31.

But Westwood Hills had the top four-ball duo and came back to post a total score of 684 to win the SEMO Cup for the third straight year. The Poplar Bluff club has claimed the Cup six times in the last nine years, with Dalhousie Golf Club winning the other three.

Kimbeland's 686 was followed by Bent Creek's 691 and Dalhousie's 694.

"Most people don't take it as seriously as we do," Westwood Hills pro Jim Sides said. "We just play really hard and we practice really hard. We played eight practice rounds at this golf course, and it paid off today for us."

Johnny Shock and Ben Godwin of Westwood Hills tied for the best score in four-ball, while Bobby Godwin and Brandon Lee led the team through the four formats with a 134 score, one ahead of Shock and Ben Godwin.

The Godwins have three state amateur titles between them with Ben capturing two state am titles and Bobby winning the state stroke play once.

"It helps when you have people like that on your team," Sides said.

Bent Creek's third-place finish was paced by Zach Decker and Mark Schmitz, who tied for top honors in both the four-ball and Chapman fomats. Decker and Schmitz had the best overall score for a duo with 130.

Kimbeland was led by the duo of McDowell and Phillips, who teamed up for a 132. Ken Hosea and Ben McKuin were next at 134 and Davey and Schott finished at 135. Ladd and Smith fell back to 140.

The course, which has yielded more holes in one in recent years than any in the Cape Girardeau area, surrendered three Saturday.

David Hopper from Bent Creek aced the eighth hole with a 5-iron for his first career hole in one.

Mike Newman of Boot Heel had one on the 12th hole, and Donnie Brittain of Sikeston had one on the first hole, which was his finishing hole for the day.

Results

Team scores -- Westwood Hills 684, Kimbeland 686, Bent Creek 691, Dalhousie Golf Club 694, Sikeston 715, Boot Heel 731, Hidden Trails 732, Kennett 749, Cape Girardeau Country Club 751, Cape Jaycee Municipal 755.

Top scores

Scramble -- (Tie) Todd Ladd and Todd Smith, Kimbeland; Mark McDowell and Kent Phillips, Kimbeland, 30.

Four-ball -- (Tie) Johnny Shock and Ben Godwin, Westwood Hills; Zach Decker and Mark Schmitz, Bent Creek, 31.

Chapman -- (Tie) Brevin Giebler and Brian Sheehan, Dalhousie ; Zach Decker and Mark Schmitz, Bent Creek, 31.

Scotch -- Bryan Johnson and Mark Unger, Dalhousie, 34.

Individuals for top two teams

Westwood -- Bobby Godwin and Brandon Lee, 134; Johnny Shock and Ben Godwin, 135; Derek Rahlmann and Greg Ford, 138; Jimmy Vernon and Jerrod Murphy, 136; Chris Love and Jim Sides, 141.

Kimbeland -- Todd Ladd and Todd Smith, 140; Mark McDowell and Kent Phillips, 132; Jim Davey and Harold Schott, 135; Ken Hosea and Ben McKuin, 134; Gary King and Bob Englehart, 145.