WISCONSIN STATE SENIOR OPEN
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Write-Up provided by Gary D’Amato (garydamatogolf@gmail.com) and Wisconsin.Golf
MENASHA — If you weren’t there to see the shots and just looked at the hole-by-hole scores in the final round of the 40th Wisconsin State Senior Open, you might conclude that Mick Smith simply outlasted the competition and was the last man standing.
That would be, oh, so wrong.
Smith, 51, of Summit, is fast acquiring a reputation as one of the best closers in the Wisconsin PGA Section. He was at his rock-solid best Wednesday at North Shore Golf Club, performing flawlessly down the stretch to pull away to a three-stroke victory.
He played the final 11 holes in 4-under, birdied Nos. 15 and 17 to break out of a three-way tie for the lead and shot a 2-under 68 to finish the 36-hole tournament at 3-under 137. He was the only player under par.
Smith already had won the WPGA Professional Championship and the WPGA Senior Professional Championship twice each, but this was his first victory in the State Senior Open. He earned $2,000.
“It’s the first time I’ve won a state title, so it’s a thrill for me,” said Smith, a native Australian who owns Mick Smith Golf. “It’s great to be able to say I’ve done it. I’m very happy.”
Three players finished T-2 at even-par 140: first-round leader Derek Stendahl of Maple Grove, Minn., Brad Lanning of Hortonville and Michael Crowley of Fox Point. Crowley closed with a 70, Lanning shot a 72 and Stendahl had a 74.
With four holes left, Stendahl and Lanning shared the lead with Smith, but both made crucial mistakes down the stretch.
After Smith made a five-footer for birdie on the par-5 15th hole, Lanning missed his own birdie attempt from four feet. Stendahl also settled for par.
“I kind of blanked on the par-5,” Lanning said. “That putt was straight in and I missed it to match (Smith’s) birdie. We would have been square. Straight uphill, you feel like you should make those, especially when you‘ve got a few holes left and you’re right there.”
Smith took a one-stroke lead to the 16th hole, a par-3 that was playing 203 yards and into the wind. He hit a beautiful shot to eight feet and although he missed the birdie putt, he widened his lead.
That’s because Stendahl needed two shots to get out of a greenside bunker and made a bogey and Lanning made an ugly double-bogey, blading a chip and then three-putting from 40 feet.
“I haven’t bladed one all year,” Lanning said. “If you asked me what the strength of my game is, it’s been the short game and putting.”
Smith made it academic when he rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole to take a comfortable three-stroke lead to the final tee. He closed it out like a champion, splitting the fairway with his drive and stuffing his approach to eight feet. He missed the birdie putt, but it was of no consequence.
“Yeah, it would have been great to make that putt,” Smith said. “But, look, if someone said on the tee, ‘You’re going to make a par,’ I would have said that’s great.”
Stendahl, a Middleton native and the general manager at Rush Creek Golf Club northwest of Minneapolis, now has back-to-back runner-up finishes in the State Senior Open. He finished one stroke behind Tony Rohlik at Maple Bluff CC in Madison last year.
After a double-bogey on the par-4 third hole, Stendahl rolled in a monster eagle putt on the par-5 fifth — it had to be at least 80 feet — to get back to even-par for the round. At that point, he held a three-stroke lead.
But the wheels came off with four consecutive bogeys. First, he missed a three-foot par putt on No. 9, then he chunked a wedge shot on 10, then he failed to get up and down from a bunker on 11 and finally he caught a greenside bunker shot thin on 12 and had to make a 45-footer just to avoid another double.
“Bad stretch right there,” he said. “Just a bad stretch. Kind of a power outage on the short putt on (No.) 9. I didn’t hit it. One more roll and it goes in and who knows? Your whole demeanor changes.”
Crowley, the head PGA professional at Morningstar Golfers Club, made four birdies on the inward nine and shot a 33, but it was too little, too late.
“Obviously, you always want to win,” he said. “In golf, you’re going to lose more than you’re going to win. You just have to be OK with the result, and I am. I never gave up.”
Stendahl, Crowley and Lanning each earned $1,033.
“I’m still trying to learn,” said Lanning, a two-time U.S. Senior Open qualifier who played golf at Stanford University and graduated one year before Tiger Woods arrived. “Right there in the moment, I hit a lot of good shots but I came up short. I’m still learning.”
Brookfield native Tim Cantwell of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and amateur JT Johnson of Sparta tied for fifth place at 2-over 142.
As for Smith, the victory gives him momentum going into several big tournaments. First up is the WPGA Professional Championship, Monday and Tuesday at The Wisconsin Country Club. He won the title in 2020 and 2021.
Then he’ll tee it up Sept. 26-29 in the Senior PGA Professional Championship at Sunriver (Ore.) Resort. He finished T-7 last year to earn an exemption into the 2024 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, where he made the cut and went on to finish T-75 in May at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md.
Finally, he’d like another crack at PGA Tour Champions Q School. In the final stage last year, he opened with a 67, but tore a ligament in his wrist while hitting a shot on the second hole of the second round and was forced to withdraw five holes later.
“That’s definitely a goal,” he said of qualifying for the Champions tour. “I know when I’m playing well I’m good enough to do that. I’ve played in two (Champions tour) majors now, and I’ve played well with good players. Oh, I believe I can do it for sure.”
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A great deal of gratitude goes out to our the three supporting partners of the Wisconsin State Senior Open. The Suter Ward Group at Morgan Stanley, Sentry, and TaylorMade Golf, are a key component of the Wisconsin State Open Series. They help enhance the events in many ways.
The Wisconsin PGA would also like to express our appreciation to the staff and members at North Shore GC. The course was in primetime shape and once again proved to be a major championship worthy venue.