RGA
ANNOUNCES 2015
SCHEDULE
the Richmond area on the slate for the 2015 Richmond Golf Association tournament season. Participants in Richmond Golf Associa- tion tournaments can expect to drive a little in 2015 as several events are on the outer edges of town. But they can also expect some great venues that haven’t been seen on the RGA schedule in quite some time. Headlining that list is Lake Chesdin Golf
A
Club, which will host the 2015 RGA Amateur Championship. It will be Chesdin’s first time hosting the city championship since opening in 1999. Lake Chesdin is located in the southwest corner of Chesterfield County. “It’s hard to bypass that good of a golf course,” said Arthur Utley, who takes over as president of the Richmond Golf Association in 2015. Lake Chesdin was home to an annual event on the NGA Tour shortly after opening and has played host to several collegiate events as well. Another top golf course on the 2015 schedule is the Country Club of Petersburg, which will host the Four Ball Championship. The tourna- ment, which has been a one-day event since its inception in 1972, will now be played over two days. Petersburg is a hidden gem in the Rich- mond area that often gets overlooked because of its location, about 30-minutes south of town. The Senior Four-Ball Championship will visit the formerly named Westham Club, which of- ficially changed its name to Magnolia Green to start the 2015 season. The facility has been a 9-hole layout since opening in 2010, but comple- tion of all 18 holes is expected by the end of summer.
As it has for the past several years, the Broach Memorial will kick off the 2015 season at the popular, always well-conditioned Federal Club. The two-man team event incorporates two differ- ent formats of team play—four ball stroke play and modified alternate shot. Two of Richmond’s old classics, CCV’s West- hampton course and Jefferson Lakeside CC, are back on the RGA schedule in 2015. Westhamp- ton will play host to the Senior Championship
nother year and another solid schedule with some of the top golf courses in
Kinloch GC will host the 2015 RGA Tournament of Champions.
while Lakeside will host the Mid-Am Champion- ship. Both golf courses have undergone recent renovations and are in top form to challenge the best players in Richmond. Mill Quarter GC will host the RGA Junior Championship for the first time since 1993, when current RGA vice-president Larry Loving etched his name on the championship bowl. Utley and the RGA board is making a concerted effort to attract more girls to this championship after starting a division for them in 2010. Last year’s girls champion, Peyton Durham, set a tourna- ment scoring record after rounds of 75-72. Back for the second year is the aptly named
Tournament of Champions. Last year the event was held at The Foundry. This year area club champions as well as RGA champions, will get to play Kinloch GC in Manakin, the exclusive club that hosted the 2011 U.S. Senior Amateur and was recently named #30 on Golf Digest’s Top 100 Golf Courses in America list. It’s a one day tournament that crowns a senior, junior and open champion. Jordan Utley, who plays out of Independence GC, won last year with a two-un- der par 70. RGA officials are also pleased with the new Fall Classic tournament which made its debut in 2014 and was an overwhelming success. The two-man team event was played at The Dominion Club last year and moves to The Foundry this year. Part of the reason for the success was allowing area professionals to play in the tournament.
“We did a nice job getting the pro’s involved
again,” said Utley, about the tournament that he called a “revival” of the once very popular closing scramble that had lost its luster in recent years. The tournament is comprised of two-man teams which can consist of two amateurs or a professional and an amateur. There were 40 teams entered last year. The 2014 season also saw the inception of the
“Player of the Year” award based on a season- long points list. Ben Keefer, who won his second RGA Amateur title in 2014, was the runaway winner of the regular division while Leon Roday, the RGA Senior champion, took home senior honors.
“I think it created a lot of buzz for us last
year,” said RGA vice-president Larry Loving about the new award. “Guys knew they had to play to build up their point totals and that helped drive participation.” Utley and Loving are joined on the RGA board by Greg Bales (treasurer) and Steve Serrao (secretary). Past officers who still play a huge role in the successful running of the organization and tournaments include immediate past president David Kopsick, Bob Efird, Van Williams and Bert Wilson. The RGA website,
www.RichmondGolf.net, is set up to take online entries and does a wonderful job of updating tournament scores and results.
Virginia Golf Report • Spring 2015 •
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