Budzik Repeats as CGA Match Play King

K.C. Budzik wanted it bad.  Stealing a page from The Bear's book on how to win a major, Budzik showed up early in Johnstown for the 2003 CGA Match Play Championship.  According to some unconfirmed reports, he played as many as four practice rounds at Clover Valley in the weeks leading up to the event.  His preparation paid off Sunday as Budzik became the first two-time major winner in league history with a stunning defense of his CGA Match Play title at Clover Valley Golf Club.

In perhaps the most thrilling and closely contested major the league has seen, Budzik brought the same steady game from tee to green that won him his first CGA Championship last year at The Player's Club.  He also brought nerves of steel and a clutch short game that he needed to make it to the final match.  Budzik defeated Schoemer in his first round match, and then got by Sadd in the second round to make to the Final Four.

Meanwhile, Joe Ayers had people believing that the day belonged to him.  By shooting a combined 85 in his first two matches, Ayers blew past Doug May and Pete Ebel to make it into the Final Four, and had Ebel shouting to anyone that would listen that "the computer is wrong", a reference to Ayers bulbous 10 handicap.

The Commash endured a thrilling first round match with Undy that resulted in the first putt-off tiebreaker in tournament history.  After getting his putt five inches closer to the hole than Undy, The Commash promptly disposed of Ozzy in the second round to make his second trip to the Final Four.

But the fireworks for the tournament were provided by Freiburger.  After narrowly defeating Southworth in the first round in the second ever putt-off in tournament history, Fry came to the last hole in his second round match with Webb up one.  His drive appeared to have found the tall grass left of the fairway.  Instead his ball came to rest several feet from the nasty stuff in normal rough.  When Webbie discovered Fry's ball was safely in play, all Webbie could do was shake his head and utter "You lucky bastard."  Little did he know.  With a throng of 8 players gathered around the 18th green, Fry deposited his nine iron shot in the hole for an eagle while a stunned Webb stared at the hole in disbelief.

In the semifinals, Ayers continued his hot streak while The Commash struggled early in the round.  By the time the Commash righted himself and his game, he was three down and was never able to mount a comeback.  The match between Budzik and Fry was a completely different story.  With two holes remaining and Fry up one, it appeared that Budzie's run as CGA Match Play Champ was about to end.  A clutch 10 footer for bogey on the 8th hole tied Fry and sent the match to the final hole.  Fry found the green in regulation and was lining up a 15 foot birdie putt.  Once again, it appeared to be over when Budzik blew his fourth shot over the green, leaving him a ghastly downhill lob shot that would give Phil Mickelson gastro-intestinal problems.  Budzik's flop shot was uncanny as it bounced once in the tall rough, once ever so softly in the fringe -- almost coming to a stop there -- and then took one last quarter-turn onto the green, picked up speed and finished 8 feet from the cup.   When he made the bogey putt, and Fry narrowly missed his birdie effort, the third match of the day went to a putt-off.  There, Budzie bested Fry by half a foot.

In the championship match, Ayers took an early lead, but Budzik was not flustered.  He quickly came back and built a two-up lead after four holes.  For the first time all day, Ayers found himself in a hole, and began to show signs of fatigue.  Despite a spirited effort that saw Budzie's lead shrink to one with four holes to play, Ayers could not loosen Budzik's grip on the Championship.  When both players carded bogey's on the seventeenth hole, Budzik won 2 and 1.   Fry defeated the Commash in the consolation match 3 and 1 to claim 3rd place.

Congratulations to K.C. Budzik on back-to-back CGA Match Play Championships.  And congratulations to Joe Ayers on an excellent run, and for getting his name on the Career Money List for the first time.

To view the 2003 CGA Tournament Bracket, click here.