Grand Cypress Golf Club, in Orlando, was in prime condition for the competitors in the Men’s Net Championship held on October 3-4. Tournament rounds were played on the difficult North/South courses for the first round and the driver friendly New Course for the final round. Three separate divisions competed in the event, the Under 50 age division, 50-64 age division, and the 65 and older age division.
Beautiful weather for the opening round allowed for some great scoring conditions. The North and South Courses provided a very difficult test for players in all divisions. Tight windows for tee shots and challenging green complexes confused the players throughout the day. It was Bruce Moskovciak in the 65 and older division whom had the round of the Championship. Bruce, of Jacksonville, posted a net 63, giving him a six stroke lead over Tom Weber, of Mount Dora, heading into the final round.
The players faced breezy and rainy conditions, perfect for the links style New Course, in round two. Moskovciak fired a second round, 75, to seize a wire-to-wire victory in the 65 and over age division. Bruce made an impressive 35-foot putt for birdie on hole number nine to stay ahead of Buzz Van Dyke who was trying to catch first place. Van Dyke, of Valrico posted an impressive 66 to finish one-stroke behind in second place. Consistent rounds of 71, tournament total 142, by Kevin Hyman earned him third place, followed by John Hasty in fourth place.
In the 50-64 age division, there were ten players within five strokes of the lead after the first eighteen holes of play. Ken Wilson, one of two players to post a net under par round held the lead with a net score of two-under par, 70. Tim Woodward, the other player to post an under par net score, trailed Wilson, of Spring Hill, by one shot after posting an opening round 71. Round two saw a change in the top of the leaderboard as Wilson struggled in the tough conditions to post a 76, tournament total 146, and finish in fifth place. Charlie Waters, of Jacksonville, came from behind to win with an impressive second round 69 (72-69—141). Waters’ birdied hole number ten to earn a one-stroke lead over David Norka who fired rounds of 74-68—142.
The North and South Course set-up played extremely hard for the Under 50 division, as after round one it was a three man race for the title. Andrew Gordon, of Tampa shot a net three-under par 69 to take the lead over Andy Weber and Shane Fairchild. Weber, of Lake Mary and Fairchild, of Bradenton posted respective scores of 70 and 71. No other players from the Under 50 division posted a net score under 77 in round one. Andy Weber broke free of his tie for second place after carding three birdies on holes seven, ten, and eleven during round two. His strong play propelled him to a first place victory with a tournament total 141. Gordon could not hold onto first place and fell one stroke behind Weber with rounds of 69-73—142. Shane Fairchild shot a round two 78 to capture third place with a tournament total 149.
