Reuben Rivera (left) and Dave Green compete at AGA Finals.
Howie Tiger
Dave Green and Reuben Rivera, PCMGA members, came in 7th place in the all-age division of the Arizona Golf Association Club Team Championship. The format was a 2-man scramble. There was a 6-drive minimum for each player. The championship final round was played at Seville Golf & Country Club in Gilbert on Dec. 7.
In the finals, Dave and Reuben competed against eight other teams, mostly consisting of players in their thirties. They said the course was in great shape and the weather was terrific, once the 1.5-hour frost-delay passed. They also said the event, sponsored by the AGA, was well organized.
They shot 69 gross with four birdies and one bogey. Reuben said, “We played good from tee to green, but couldn’t make the putts.” The winning teams both shot 61 gross (11-under par). Dave and Reuben witnessed several 350-yard tee shots from their competitors. Dave did hit a couple of drives passed their playing partners, and these 30-year-olds certainly were impressed!
Dave and Reuben want to thank the PCMGA for their support in this statewide tournament. They said it was a great experience.
The AGA Club Team Championship qualifying process began on Sept. 3 with a local event held at our Tuscany Falls West golf course. Fifty teams competed for low gross and low net scores. Two teams in the all-age flight and two teams in the super senior flight advanced to a regional qualifier. The all-age teams that advanced included Bill McKinney and Brian Lorenzo and Dave and Reuben. The super senior teams that advanced included Bruce Carlyle and Rich Jesko and Dan Graville and Dick Wiederhold.
All four PebbleCreek teams gave it their all and well represented our community at the regional events, however, only Dave and Reuben advanced to the championship final round.
In order to advance to the finals, Dave and Reuben had to compete against 10 other teams from all over Arizona in the Regionals played at Dove Mountain in Tucson on Nov. 11. They played the Saguaro and Tortolita nines, which was the same course the PGA played the Accenture Match Play event. They shot 67 gross with six birdies and one bogey. Two other teams had tied for low gross with a score of 64. Dave and Reuben’s net score was 65.28, which was low net. The highlight of their round was hole 18. On the tee, they found themselves tied with their playing partners. On their second shot to this 330-yard par-4, Reuben, under pressure, hit a gap wedge to within tap-in distance for the birdie. They tied their playing partner’s gross score but eked out the net win based on the handicap differential.
Congratulations to Dave and Reuben on their performance and representing PebbleCreek well!