Tournament Recaps

The Senior PGA Professional Championship wrapped up on Sunday, October 29 at PGA Golf Club. It was another exciting championship, as 264 of the best PGA professionals from throughout the 41 PGA Sections battled it out. In the end Bob Sowards of the Southern Ohio PGA would come out on top and earn his second Senior PGA Professional Championship victory. Over course of the four days the Wisconsin PGA was well represented by Mick Smith, Brad Lanning, Michael Crowley and Kurt Mantyla.

After forty plus events the 2023 Wisconsin PGA tournament season came to a close on Monday. From mid-March until mid-October the WPGA conducted a wide range of event offerings, which were attended by WPGA members and associates plus amateurs and unaffiliated professionals. Over 3,300 participants teed it up along the way, with more than seventy-five of them being recognized as champions with trophies from Sterling Cut Glass.

The countdown to the end of the WPGA tournament season continued on Monday, as the always popular Oliphant Golf Management Pro-Am Championship made its visit to The GC’s of Lawsonia. For the eighth straight season the event put a cherry on top of another successful WPGA Four-Player Pro-Am Series. It brought together the top finishing teams from throughout the nine regular season events, to see who could take home this year’s title.

The Premier Golf & Utility Vehicles Fall Pro-Pro Better Ball made its annual appearance on the WPGA tournament calendar on Monday. A definitive sign that the tournament season was winding down. However with the misleading weather, the 98 WPGA professionals in the field would have thought there was a least a few more months left in the tournament season. The first Monday of October would produce an absolutely gorgeous day in the mid 80s. Starting out as an ideal day for scoring, it would get more challenging as the winds would pick up as the day went on.

Another great day of golf and camaraderie was had as the regular season of the WPGA Four-Player Pro-Am Series came to a close on Monday. The ninth and final regular season event of 2023 would visit Hidden Glen Golf Club in Cedarburg. A sold out field of twenty-nine teams would gather for Monday’s event, as they’d look to tackle the always challenging P.B. Dye layout.

The coveted Manuel de la Torre Trophy was the focus again on Monday, as the WPGA Pro-Assistant made its annual appearance on the tournament calendar. It was a beautiful day for golf as a large field of WPGA professionals ventured to the Northwoods to enjoy the day. In keeping with tradition, Minocqua CC would play host to the day and offer a preview of what will be in store for the participants of next year’s Wisconsin State Open.

The stage was set for a trio of the top players in the Wisconsin Section to battle it out for the Wisconsin PGA Professional Championship title on Tuesday. After opening with a bogey-free 6-under-par 66 in round one, Michael Crowley would take a one-shot lead into the second and final round on Tuesday at the Links Course at The Golf Courses of Lawsonia. His nearest pursuers just happened to be the two individuals that won the last three championships, Mick Smith and Jamie Christianson.

The busy stretch of WPGA pro-ams continued on Tuesday as the Wilson Golf Pro-Am visited The Legend at Bergamont. It marked the third straight week of pro-am action for the WPGA. It also was the first time the WPGA Four-Player Pro-Am Series visited the Madison area in 2023. The series is always well supported by the Madison area clubs and this pro-am was no exception. Twenty-six teams came out to enjoy the day. A very solid showing, considering the event was going up against the Wisconsin State Senior Open at Maple Bluff CC.

Two Wisconsin natives now living out of state battled over the final holes of the 39th Wisconsin State Senior Open Wednesday afternoon at Maple Bluff CC in Madison. Tony Rohlik, who grew up in the Chippewa Valley but now lives in Arizona, defeated Derek Stendahl, formerly of Middleton but now a Minnesotan, by one stroke to win the title.

After almost a four-month wait the 2023 TaylorMade Pro-Am was finally able to be completed on Tuesday at Oconomowoc Golf Club. Originally scheduled for May 1, the first go round featured a postponement due to some awful spring weather. For everyone’s sake, sunny and breezy on Tuesday was a whole lot better than the cold and sleet that showed up on May 1. Only one team that originally had intended on playing canceled after the event was postponed. They were quickly replaced and a sold-out field would enjoy a great day on the Donald Ross layout.