The worst of the weather typical for this time of the year finally reared its ugly head on Wednesday, as the Northern Ohio Golf Association kicked off the 5th Annual Lewis Cup. Twelve Amateurs and twelve Senior Amateurs came together at one of the most prestigious clubs in Northern Ohio, The Country Club in Pepper Pike, for a chance to compete in the biggest team event of NOGA’s season.
To start, six teams of two from each side played a 9-Hole Four-Ball match, immediately followed by a 9-Hole Foursomes match against the same set of competitors.
The two sides finished the morning Four-Ball matches locked at 3 points each, splitting the contests evenly 2-2-2.
The Amateurs gained a full point from the pairings of Brian Smith + Ben Hogan and Captain Vaughn Snyder + Jack Garswood.
The Senior Amateurs picked up their two full points in the first and third matches of the morning, with Howard Clendenin + Jeff Semple and Dean Cutlip + Mike Belacic getting the job done.
Each team seemed to understand what was at stake heading into the second set of nine-hole matches. Only one match (versus to two in the morning) finished in a tie.
Only two teams, one from each side and the first matches out, were able to win both matches on Wednesday: Brian Smith + Ben Hogan for the Amateurs, and Howard Clendenin + Jeff Semple for the Seniors.
Following those two matches, the next three matches deadlocked the scoreboard again. Of note was the tie between Snyder + Garswood vs. Baugh + Skidmore, as both teams had a putt on the last green to win the match outright but instead picked up a half point each for their teams.
After two wins for each side and the tie, the afternoon tally sat at 2.5 points for each. The final match of the day, between Andrew Grayson + Lucas Liberatore vs. John Toth + Greg Myers, also came down to the final hole.
With both teams looking on from the windows of the clubhouse (it was just too cold and wet to be greenside!), Toth + Myers made a tap-in par after a great approach shot to claim a full point for the Seniors.
That final group win gave the Seniors the lead and the momentum heading into tomorrow’s individual Singles Matches.
THURSDAY SINGLES MATCHES
Thursday’s 12 singles matches, worth one point each, will decide which side claims the Lewis Cup for 2025. Given that the Amateurs currently hold the Cup, the Seniors can only afford to drop a half-point tomorrow.
The Amateurs hold a 3-1 edge in victories over the first four competitions.
The match-ups, which begin at 11 a.m. at The Country Club in Pepper Pike, are as follows:
AMATEURS vs SENIORS:
Paul Krueger vs Christopher Brown
John Toth vs Andrew Grayson
Mark Guadagni vs Andrew Malkus
Jim Durr vs Shaun Kloetzer
Greg Myers vs Lucas Liberatore
Mike Belacic vs Colin Burns
Dean Cutlip vs Rick Deichert
Jeff Semple vs Ian Hardesty
Tom Skidmore vs Brian Smith
Allen Freeman vs Jack Garswood
Tom Baugh vs Ben Hogan
Howard Clendenin vs Vaughn Snyder (CAPTAIN)
STARTING TIMES: SINGLES MATCHES >
PHOTO GALLERY: 2025 Lewis Cup Day 1 >
DAY 1 RESULTS: Northern Ohio Golf Association
2025 Lewis Cup Matches
The Country Club, Pepper Pike
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
Golf Genius Hole-by-Hole Results >
Four-Ball Match Results:
Howard Clendenin + Jeff Semple (SR) won 1 up over Ian Hardesty + Andrew Malkus (AM)
Brian Smith + Ben Hogan (AM) won 2 & 1 over Allen Freeman + Paul Krueger (SR)
Dean Cutlip + Mike Belacic (SR) won 1-up over Colin Burns + Rick Deichert (AM)
Christopher Brown + Shaun Kloetzer (AM) TIED with Mark Guadagni + Jim Durr (SR)
Vaughn Snyder + Jack Garswood (AM) won 2 & 1 over Tom Baugh + Tom Skidmore (SR)
Andrew Grayson + Lucas Liberatore (AM) TIED with Greg Myers + John Toth (SR)
FOUR-BALL TOTALS: 3.00 Amateurs, 3.00 Senior Amateurs
Foursomes Match Results:
Howard Clendenin + Jeff Semple (SR) won 3 & 2 over Ian Hardesty + Andrew Malkus (AM)
Brian Smith + Ben Hogan (AM) won 2 & 1 over Allen Freeman + Paul Krueger (SR)
Colin Burns + Rick Deichert (AM) won 2 & 1 over Dean Cutlip + Mike Belacic (SR)
Mark Guadagni + Jim Durr (SR) won 4 & 3 over Christopher Brown + Shaun Kloetzer (AM)
Vaughn Snyder + Jack Garswood (AM) TIED with Tom Baugh + Tom Skidmore (SR)
Greg Myers + John Toth (SR) won 1 Up over Andrew Grayson + Lucas Liberatore (AM)
FOURSOMES TOTALS: 3.50 Senior Amateurs, 2.50 Amateurs
