Craig Davis of Chula Vista held on down the stretch to beat Michael Rowley of San Luis Obispo by one stroke and win the 40th Southern California Golf Association Senior Amateur Championship at Hacienda Golf Club in La Habra Heights.
Davis posted a score of 72-71-73–218, 5-over-par, while Rowley finished at 73-73-73–219.
“It feels great to pull out a victory at an event like this,” said Davis, who got up-and-down for par from a greenside bunker on the 17th hole and two-putted from 25 feet for a winning par. “It’s a very difficult golf course. It was very stressful out there. Almost any hole can be double bogey with a bad swing.
“The greens dried out a little bit and I had trouble with the speed. Seemed like I was coming up short or going long on almost all of my first putts. I was obviously a bit shaky down the stretch, but I held on for the win and that’s all that matters, right?”
Terry Foreman of Brentwood shot 71-77-74–222 and finished four strokes back in a tie for third with Michael Turner of Sherman Oaks, who totaled 72-72-78–222, while Craig Steinberg of Agoura Hills shot 75-72-76–223 to wind up another shot back in a tie for fifth with Rick Doebler of Fullerton, who came in at 73-70-80–223.
Kenneth Noonan of Pacific Grove carded a score of 76-73-75–224 and was six strokes back in seventh, while Craig Calkins of Manhattan Beach posted a score of 76-76-73–225 to finish one more stroke down in a tie for eighth with John McClure of Los Angeles, who wound up at 77-72-76–225, and John Mack of Alta Loma, who shot 74-72-79–225.
