The First Tee Quad-Cities Amateur Tour: Newsroom

Palmer Hills Amateur crowns co-champions
By Craig DeVrieze, Quad-City Times
Monday, May 5, 2003

The race for a John Deere Classic exemption is off to a dead-heat start.

A weather-shortened Palmer Hills Amateur resulted in two championship flight winners Sunday, as Mike Jump and Tim Flaherty wound up tied at two-over-par 108 after the tourney was shortened to 27 holes when thunder showers interrupted the final round.

Jump and Flaherty will split first- and second-place points in the First Tee of the Quad-Cities Amateur Tour standings.

The Palmer Hills Amateur is the first of nine First Tee Tour events, and the tour’s year-end winner will receive an exemption to play with the PGA Tour pros in September’s JDC.

Chris Wilkins finished a shot back at the Bettendorf course.

Tom Miler, David Holmes and Dave Waugh tied for fourth.

Jump, the defending Palmer Hills champion and a first-round co-leader after a 1-under round of 69 on Saturday, had mixed emotions in Sunday’s aftermath. He wondered what might have been after bogeying the last four holes on the Palmer front nine. But he also felt fortunate to escape with a share of first because Flaherty was leading outright when the weather stopped the tourney several holes into the back nine.

“I feel lucky to be where I was,’’ Jump said, “but it certainly could have been better.’’

Flaherty, who shot 71 on Saturday, was a little surprised to make up the two-shot deficit to Jump over the first nine.

“Mike is a hell of player,’’ Flaherty said. “I was very lucky, really.’’

No one was particularly fortunate to be playing in Sunday’s wet and windy conditions, although Jump welcomed the challenge.

“I consider myself a good crappy-weather player,’’ he said. “I can grind out a few pars and try to be patient.’’

He was doing fine — 1-under for the day — until he hit those final four holes. He bogeyed Nos. 6 and 7 with three putts.

“I just couldn’t get the ball to the hole,’’ he said.

Jump, the course manager at Golmohr golf Course in East Moline and the first winner of the Q-C amateur points circuit in 1999, is playing on the tour for the first time in three years.

He’s back because the JDC exemption — formerly awarded to the winner of the Quad-City Amateur tournament — is in on the line for the tour’s champion.

Flaherty thinks that’s a good change, too.

“By the end of the year, you are going to see the player who is playing best (in the JDC),’’ he said. “I would love to see our best player get in there and make the cut.’’

The seniors did go the full 36 holes. Ron Rode won by three shots with back-to-back 75s. Barry Black finished second, and Bill Brewster and Jack Groves tied for third.

Dean Pearson and Derek Sandknop tied for first place in the B Flight of the Championship division.

The next First Tee Amateur Tour event is the Muscatine Amateur, May 17-18.

Craig DeVrieze can be contacted at (563) 333-2610 or cdevrieze@qctimes.com.