Ave Maria, Fla. – Over the course of three days, more than 120 players took on Panther Run Golf Club and The National Golf and Country Club. After the final round, Abbie Valentine made history as the first player to successfully defend his title since 1993.
Round One
As the sun rose on Friday, competitors started arriving to Ave Maria to play in the first round of the Forty & Over Championship knowing they had to go low with both golf courses having wide fairways yet challenging greens.
Defending champion Abbie Valentine did exactly that getting off to a hot start with birdies on the first two holes. After a front nine three-under, Matt Giovannelli did the exact same thing, matching Valentine on the first nine holes. After a bogey on 10, Giovannelli rattled off four more birdies to fire a first round 66, tied at the top with the defending champ.
Round Two
The second round showcased the best golf of the week, with multiple players taking advantage of moving day. Bill Castleman and Bill Mallon teed it up together and fed off of each other’s momentum all day long. Castleman shot a second round 64, the round of the tournament while Mallon fired off a round of 66.
Although Valentine was the first round leader, his second round score of 69 was somewhat overshadowed by all of the low scores around him. Only one back heading into the final round, Valentine knew he was playing some great golf and wanted to make sure he stuck to his gameplan heading into the final round at Panther Run on Sunday.
Round Three
With weather incoming, getting off to a fast start was crucial for the players at the top of the leaderboard before conditions would deteriorate. At 11:27, the inevitable happened and the horn was blown, causing any momentum the players had to be halted for about 45 minutes before going back out.
Before the delay however, overnight leader Bill Castleman struggled out of the gates, being five over through five holes, and never recovered. This series of events left the door wide open for Valentine and Giovannelli.
With only nine holes to play, Valentine found himself in a familiar spot, looking to seal the deal for the second year in a row. Extending his lead to three with three holes to play, he was on cruise control until nerves got the best of him and he three-putted the 16th hole.
The long par three 17th was playing heavy into the wind, and a hybrid into the left rough caused another bogey, cutting his lead down to one.
Giovannelli not knowing what just happened, felt he needed to force a birdie to tie Valentine. He attempted to go for the par 5, 18th in two, however it resulted in a bogey that would leave Valentine only needing a par to win. Hitting his approach shot to 15 feet, Valentine calmly two putted, giving him his second Forty & Over Championship in a row.
