LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. — Two-player teams came together to deliver exciting, low scores today at Lakewood National’s Piper Course. At the conclusion of an excellent final round, it was the team of Daniel Eggertsson and Derek Hurwich who shot a stellar 62 to take home the trophy by one stroke. In the Senior Division, champions William Mallon and Bobby Bird secured the title with a 10-under-par performance.
The first round provided plenty of opportunities to go low and take advantage of the beautifully conditioned course. By day’s end, 12 teams had posted scores of 64 or better. Sharing the lead at 11-under par were the teams of Richard Donegan/Joseph Latowski and Daniel Eggertsson/Derek Hurwich. Both teams caught fire on the back nine, carding seven birdies each and shooting matching 29s to pull ahead of a tightly packed leaderboard. This gave them a one-shot lead heading into the final round, with many teams still within striking distance.
The final round began with Eggertsson and Hurwich getting off to a blazing start, making birdie on each of their first four holes and extending their lead to four shots. However, the team of Jimmy Anderson and Jimmy Kozikowski had other plans. They responded with four straight birdies of their own on holes 8 through 10, then added an eagle on the 15th to tie the lead with three holes to play.
Both groups continued to battle down the stretch, standing tied at 19-under par on the 16th tee. But Eggertsson and Hurwich made a clutch birdie on the 17th to regain a one-shot advantage. From there, a steady par on the final hole sealed the victory after an outstanding final round.
In the Senior Division, William Mallon and Bobby Bird cruised to a comfortable three-shot win after posting back-to-back rounds of 67. The two took a share of the lead into round two and were in a battle for the majority of the morning before eventually pulling away. Atarting on the back nine each day, the pair played the front nine, their closing nine, beautifully on both days, not carding a single bogey while tallying four birdies and an eagle overall. This is the third consecutive Senior Division title for the team.
