Good day for the Beach

By Matthew Digiacomo

August 02, 2008 11:47 pm

— COCHRANTON — Oakland Beach needed to make a move Saturday in the fourth round of the 2008 Crawford Cup men’s competition at Island Green in Cochranton.
The Beachers entered the round trailing Mt. Hope by 101/2 points. To make matters worse, the Hopers had been dominant in the three previous rounds, winning five out of nine flights. But Terry Tidball and Jim DuPont Jr. turned that trend in their favor at the 5,295-yard par 70 course.
Tidball turned in a stellar 72 to tie for medalist honors at IG. One of the keys to his round was the par 4 third, which is the courses signature island green hole. And since the course is just nine holes, everyone had to tame the beast twice — once from the blue tees and once from the whites. Tidball did it better than almost anybody, notching a pair of pars.
“I was very pleased with my round,” said Tidball. “I really like the course. It’s definitely worth the ride out here.
“Coming out and playing (a practice round) really helped. These are some tricky greens and you really have to know where to hit it. That is what I learned from the practice round, positioning. You have to be below the hole.”
Tidball’s teammate, DuPont, was the only player to play the hole better.
On the front nine, DuPont hit a masterful shot to the green and walked away with the only birdie the hole gave up in the round. He returned nine holes later and notched a par. That was good enough to fuel a 74 and tie for top score in Flight B.
With 21/2 points from Glenn Dillon in Flight C, OB tied for most points of the round with 131/2.
“Anytime you pick up points on Jared (Schmader) and Mike (Pero), that’s a good day,” said Tidball. “That is a tough tandem. And we needed to (make up the deficit) in two days. We couldn’t make up the difference in one day.
“Hopefully we can do it (at Venango Valley).”
Mt. Hope tallied 101/2 points for the round, but saw its lead taper to 71/2 with one round remaining.
Pero led the Hopers, tying DuPont for the lead in Flight B with a 74. Schmader didn’t finish on top of Flight A for the first time in this year’s Cup competition.
However, he still carded a 74, good for third place and four points.
Country Meadows continued to impress, with Randy Wright posting a 72 to tie Tidball for medalist honors and the Flight A lead. Mark Shapiro added six more points with an 81 to win Flight C. Tim Hahn collected two points in Flight C as CM finished with 131/2 on the day.
Mt. Hope still holds a large lead heading into Round 5 at Venango Valley on Aug. 17. The Hopers currently have 531/2 points, followed by Oakland Beach (46) and Country Meadows (431/2), which are locked in a great battle for second place.
The Country Club, a perennial power and five-time Crawford Cup champion, jumped into fourth place. The Clubbers scored 111/2 on the day, giving them 371/2 for the competition. Whispering Pines (31), which fell from third to fourth last week, now finds itself in fifth. Venango Valley (271/2) is sixth, while Island Green, playing in its second Crawford Cup, posted its best day ever (91/2) and is in seventh with 121/2.

Matthew Digiacomo can be reached at 724-6370, ext. 278 or by e-mail at mdigiacomo@meadvilletribune.com.