FC EDGES YOSEMITE IN RYDER CUP FORMAT–April 19
Coming into the day trailing 5 1/2-3 1/2 to Yosemite through the power play portion of the teams’ two-part match, the Eagles came back to edge the Badgers 11-10, April 19.

FC took advantage of the Ryder Cup format, and also had the advantage of playing on their home course, Riverside Golf Course. Playing in foursomes, the players competed in alternate shot, best-ball, and singles match play for 6 holes each.

“This was an idea (head Yosemite coach) Rusty Oetinger and I hatched this off-season so that we could get some 18-hole experiences that were competitive but fun,” Eagles’ head coach Jeff Hopper said. “This turned out to be great fun, with the two-day competition coming down to the final putts on the final hole. Of course, a win makes it more fun still.”

Playing in the No. 1 group, sophomore Jeff Roseth teamed with sophomore Tyler Zaentz to win their alternate-shot match 3&1 over Yosemite seniors Tyler LaQuay and Jameson Schwab. Roseth bombed his opening drive off the 1st tee straight down the middle and Zaentz hit a wedge to three-feet for birdie and the win.

FC seniors Spencer Lee and Clark Jacobson also prevailed 1-up over the Badgers’ senior Hunter Williamson and freshman Chris Wick, but juniors Tim DeGroot and Alex Campama fell 3&2 in their opening match. Through the first 6 holes, FC had cut their deficit to 6 1/2-5 1/2. The teams then transitioned to best-ball on the 7th hole.

After hitting his approach 30 yards over the 7th green, Jacobson punched a 5-iron under trees to 5 feet and converted the putt for par to win the hole for his team.

Roseth and Zaentz finished their match off early, coasting to an easy 2&1 victory. However the second group had to work a little harder for their 1-up win.

With both of their opponents in close for par on the par-4 12th and his teammate in with bogey, Lee poured in a 12-footer for par to win the match. The putt came moments after he bladed his green-side chip too far past the cup for his liking.

“I was not happy at all after hitting that chip,” Lee said. “But i didn’t let it show because I knew I still had a putt to win the match. It was probably the most important putt I’ve ever made and really pumped me up going into singles play.”

DeGroot and Campama reached the 12th tee trailing 1-down. Unfazed, DeGroot hit the green in regulation and got his 2-putt par to half their best-ball match. Through 12 holes FC had taken a 8-7 lead over the Yosemite going into the 6 holes of match play.

Zaentz pushed his match to 18 before losing 1-down to LaQuay. The Badgers’ No. 1 player bogeyed the 18th but won when Zaentz failed to get down in two from just off the green.

“I was upset after bogeying the 18th,” Zaentz said. “On my chip shot, I took the club back a little too far and tried to compensate for it by sliding the club under the ball. But it just stuck in the ground and came up short.”

Lee hit his tee-shot on the par-3 15th to 2 feet to set up a birdie. With that, he took a 1-up lead and 2 holes later finished off Williamson on the 17th green 2&1.

Jacobson encountered some trouble on the par-5 14th hole. After hitting his drive near a bee-hive, he was swarmed by hundreds of bees and was forced to run over 200 yards, twisting his body and rolling on the ground to escape. Jacobson, who says his biggest fear is of bees, also ripped off his shirt because one bee had made its way inside of it.

“I hit my shot and looked over and there was a huge swarm of bees,” Jacobson said. “I completely panicked because I am deathly afraid of bees. I couldn’t get the bee out of my shirt, so I just took it off. Finally when I had regained my composure from my severe panic attack, I went over to my shirt which was laying on the ground and a bee flew out of it, and I almost relieved the same experience again.”

Despite his traumatic experience, Jacobson ended up making bogey to halve the hole with Wick.

With DeGroot and Campama both dropping their matches 4&3, the No. 2 singles match ended up determining the outcome of the match. Roseth took a 3-up lead through 3 holes over Schwab, but went on to lose the next two to set up a wild finish. With Roseth leading 1-up, both players found the fairway.

Schwab then hit one of the most important shots of the day to 8 feet, giving him a reasonable uphill putt for eagle. Roseth left his ball 40 yards short of the pin, but hit his chip to 5 feet and, after Schwab missed, drained the putt to win the match for the Eagles. He was promptly mobbed by his teammates on the 18th green.

“I had a three shot lead in the beginning of the match so I didn’t want to lose to this guy,” Roseth said. “When I stepped up to my third shot (on the 18th) I knew I had to hit it close. After i hit it I was like ‘I hope thats close enough.’ When I hit the putt, my heart was racing and I knew that it was gonna matter.”

Hopper was pleased not only with the strong play of his top players but also with the clutch efforts from the bottom half of the lineup.

“In singles, we got strong performances from Jeff and Spencer, who shot 36 and 37 on the back nine,” Hopper said. “Clark’s winning birdie on the last hole from a very difficult spot, was truly incredible and turned a halve into a win. But most pivotal may have been Tim’s par at the twelfth that notched a comeback halve of the match for him and Alex. That halve equaled the one-point difference in the end.”