AKRON: Two players added to their tournament resumes and another became a first-time winner in the final rounds of the 52nd Denny Shute Match Play Championship at Portage Country Club on Wednesday.
Pepper Pike Club professionals Rob Moss and DJ Holub added to their past successes in the event, while Michael Balcar won his first Shute championship to cap an outstanding 2026 season.
Moss, the head professional at Pepper Pike and a member of the Northern Ohio PGA Hall of Fame, won the Senior Division by outlasting Foxy Golf instructor Tony Adcock in 19 holes, making par on the first extra hole. It was the third Senior title for Moss, 58, and his fourth overall. He won the Regular Division championship in 2014 and Senior titles in 2019 and 2021.
Holub, who won this event in 2022, defeated Brookside Country Club Assistant Professional Blake Sattler, 4-and-3, in their 36-hole Associate Division final. The win marked a distinct turnaround for Holub, who had struggled most of the season.
Balcar, an assistant at Brandywine Country Club, won his first Shute title in the Regular Division by beating Canterbury Assistant Professional and 2023 champion Anthony Panepento, also by a 4-and-3 score.
The win was Balcar’s third NOPGA major title this season, following a seven-shot victory in the Section Championship in August at Tippecanoe Country Club and a remarkable 11-shot victory in the Mitchell-Haskell Tour Championship last month at The Country Club.
The Denny Shute, named after the former Portage Country Club head professional and 16-time PGA Tour winner, is the final major event in the NOPGA’s 80th season.
FINAL RESULTS: Northern Ohio PGA
NOPGA 52nd Denny Shute Match Play Championship
Portage Country Club, Akron
Monday, October 12 – Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Blue Golf Bracket Results >
FINAL RESULTS
Senior Division: Rob Moss (Pepper Pike Club) def. Tony Adcock (Foxy Golf-Canton), 19 holes.
Associate Division: DJ Holub (Pepper Pike Club) def. Blake Sattler (Brookside Country Club), 4-and-3.
Regular Division: Michael Balcar (Brandywine Country Club) def. Anthony Panepento (Canterbury Golf Club), 4-and-3.
