104th Westchester Amateur Down to Defending Champion Coughlin and Woods
BEDFORD, N.Y. (July 6, 2023) – After facing grueling heat, a difficult layout and fast greens at GlenArbor Golf Club, the field of 32 golfers in the 104th Westchester Amateur Championship has become two. On Friday, defending champion Ryan Coughlin of Westchester and Jack Woods of Ridgewood (Conn.) will face off in the 36-hole final for the title, while Senior and Super Senior winners will be decided as well.
Related: Brackets | Photos | 2022 Recap
Coughlin defeated Peter Tomlinson of Sterling Farms with a final score of 2 up in the afternoon, following a 3-and-1 morning victory over Erik Stauderman of Casperkill. On the front nine, Coughlin won two of his first four holes, but Tomlinson kept fighting and evened out the match by the ninth. The pair traded Nos. 10 and 11 before tying the next four. In the end, Coughlin prevailed by winning the last three holes to complete the semifinal win. “I drove the ball a lot better than I did yesterday," said the 33-year old Coughlin. "Yesterday afternoon my putter caught on fire a little bit and I have been putting poorly this whole year. It was tough coming down the stretch because I was just it's so hot, and I had some lazy tired swings for sure.”
Coughlin will go on to face Woods of who defeated Jud Langille of Metropolis, 1 up, after his 20-hole win over Ben Loomis of Winged Foot in the morning. Woods won Nos. 15 and 16 but lost 17, leading to a tie going into 18. His approach landed in the middle of the green where he two-putted for the victory. “It went well," said the 22-year-old Woods. "I left a lot of putts out there for sure, had my fair share of mistakes. Luckily, it panned out for me okay.” Woods and Coughlin begin their 36-hole match at 7:30 a.m.
In the Senior Division, Ned Zachar of GlenArbor will face No. 10 seed Patrick Pierson of New York Country Club during Friday’s final round. No. 8 seed Zachar defeated Scott Matthews of Hudson Hills in the morning by a 5-and-4 margin. “I hadn't played in the tournament before," said Zachar. "Of course, when I found out that it was going to be at GlenArbor, I made sure I got myself qualified at the Summit Club to get into tournament because it's a great course. Joe Gikis, our superintendent has done a great job in the last four or five years getting the course to where it is now. It's awesome. And I think the field agrees.” Pierson’s march to the final included close matches against Bart Weissman of Sterling Farms, Frank Geiger of Sterling Farms, and Edward McCann of Wykagyl. The Senior championship match will tee off at 11:50 a.m.
Meanwhile, in the Super Senior Division, Mark Vassalotti of Sterling Farms battled neck and neck versus Rick Blank of Metropolis, winning his match 1-up on the 18th green. “These greens are lightning, and you just must be in the right place," said Vassalotti. "That's easier said than done. We can all put the ball in the place, but the greens have been a real challenge here.” No. 5 seed Vassalotti plans to work on his consistency on the range tomorrow morning before taking on Steve Gersh of Rolling Hills in the final. In the semifinal, Gersh defeated Jeff Reissman of Hollow Brook in 13 holes, winning 5 and 4. Vassalotti and Gersh tee off at 12 p.m.