It rained the only way it can in October in Central Ohio: steady, patient, and entirely unbothered by whatever plans were set for the day. The fairways at Wedgewood Golf & Country Club darkened as the hours passed, and before long, players in the 29th Ohio Cup were swinging in soaked sleeves and squishing shoes. But nobody quit. Nobody even thought about it. This is the Ohio Cup, after all, a match that lives somewhere between friendly and fierce, where the pride of a Section and the quiet joy of team golf find common ground.
By Tuesday evening, roughly 27 holes had been completed, the day shortened by the ever-encroaching October sunset. The Southern Ohio PGA leads the Northern Ohio PGA 5.5 – 3.5 after a full morning of four-ball play and a partially completed afternoon of foursomes. The charge was led by captain Bob Sowards, PGA, and his partner Mike Thomas, PGA, who provided a steady, confident start.
Sowards and Thomas took up the baton in the morning four-ball, taking the first match against Scott Pollack, PGA, and Gary Rusnak, PGA, of the Northern Ohio Section. Sowards and Thomas started red hot, winning the first two holes to take a 2-up lead they never relinquished. They won 2&1.
In match two, Chase Wilson, PGA, and Jeff Olson, PGA, halved their contest with Anthony Panepento, PGA, and Nick Gustin, PGA. Just behind them, Joe Moore, PGA, and Sam Arnold, PGA, turned a 2-down deficit on the back nine into a thrilling win over NOPGA Captain Mitch Camp, PGA, and veteran Tony Adcock, PGA.
Any hopes of a morning rout were quickly dampened as the defending champions from Northern Ohio battled back through the worsening rain. Mark Sierak, PGA, and Jordan Paolini, PGA, edged out Michael Auterson, PGA, and Ohio Cup rookie Andrew Martin, PGA, after a late birdie. The Southern Ohio duo had fought back from 2-down, highlighted by a spectacular approach from the wrong fairway by Auterson, but it wasn’t quite enough. Behind them, Mike Stone, PGA, and Jon Jones, PGA, cruised past Dave Bahr, PGA, and Chad Ammer, PGA, of Maketewah Country Club.
The back and forth affair continued. Danny Sorgini, PGA, Corey Weckerling, PGA, the latter making his Ohio Cup debut, secured a 3&2 win over Adam Lewicki, PGA, and Nick Paez, PGA, to extend Southern Ohio’s lead. Northern Ohio responded quickly as Jansen Hansen, PGA, and Jim Troy, PGA, won 1-up against the considerable team of Andy Montgomery, PGA, and Ben Kern, PGA. Southern Ohio’s Jared Jones, PGA, and Chris Muse, PGA, closed the morning with a victory against Randy Dietz, PGA, and Cory Kumpf, PGA, giving the hosts a narrow 4.5 – 3.5 advantage heading into the afternoon.
Enter Sowards. Off like a light in foursomes, he and Thomas weathered an early storm from Pollack and Rusnak, but with wins on the seventh and ninth holes, they turned all square. The back nine belonged entirely to the captain. Four consecutive wins sealed a commanding 5&3 victory–the only foursomes match completed before darkness fell.
Tomorrow, the singles will have to wait. With all foursomes matches through the first nine holes, Wednesday’s normal singles-only schedule is now slightly condensed to accommodate wrapping up those matches. Play is set to resume at 8 AM along with fall announcing its presence in the high 40s players can expect in the morning. There should be no rain, hopefully, because the Ohio Cup should be decided under autumn skies and that soft light only Ohio can show off this time of year.
LEADERBOARD: 29th Ohio Cup Matches >
