3-Stroke Reversal on 72nd Hole Costs Polland at National Club Pro Tournament; Helminen, Snyder Make Top 20

PHILADELPHIA -- They can be the saddest nine words known to man -- "It seemed like a good idea at the time" -- and that was essentially what Ben Polland said Wednesday afternoon after his two-stroke lead was transformed into a one-stroke loss -- and a victory for Matt Dobyns -- on the final hole at the 2015 PGA Professional Championship.

The three-stroke reversal came on the 467-yard, par-4 18th hole at the Philadelphia Cricket Club. Polland, a former No. 1 player for Bloomington Jefferson (he tied for eighth in Class AAA at the 2008 state high school tournament), hit his 3-wood tee shot into a bunker, but it skipped out onto the the front bank of the bunker. It was a really awkward lie. He was going to have one foot 10 inches above the other and both hands gripping down on the steel of the shaft of whatever club was going to use for the next shot. And there was a water hazard looming up ahead. Rather than pitch out, back to the fairway -- and away from the water hazard -- Polland made the ill-advised decision to hit a 7-iron and go for the green.

"I thought I could clear the water fairly easily," he explained later. "It was only about 100 yards." 

That set the stage for disaster. He dumped his second shot into the water and ended up making a double bogey.

Dobyns, a 37-year-old head pro from Lake Success, N.Y., who was two behind standing on the 18th tee, blasted a 310-yard drive and hit his short-iron approach to within 3 1/2 feet of the hole. After Polland's 12-foot putt for bogey just missed -- it looked pretty good with 2 feet to go, then veered across the front of the cup -- and he tapped in for his 6, Dobyns made his short birdie putt. He signed for a 70 (even par) and claimed his second PGA Professional title -- along with the $75,000 first-place check. Dobyns won the tournament for the first time in 2012 -- by eight strokes.

His winning total this year was 279. Polland finished alone in second at 280.

Grant Sturgeon, another New York pro, was tied with Polland for the lead going into the final round, but he shot 74. That put him in a tie with Alan Morin for third place at 282. Morin closed with a 68.     

This tournament used to be called the National Club Pro Championship, a more accurate title because that's what it is. It's the biggest and most prestigious event for guys who make their living working in golf shops and giving lessons on practice ranges. These aren't tournament pros, but they can play. 

And Polland was playing better than anyone else in the field for most of the week. 

On Wednesday, at the 540-yard, par-5 12th hole, Polland ripped a 290-yard drive against a stiff breeze and followed that with a gorgeous 3-wood to the front of the green. He nearly made his eagle putt and settled for an easy birdie. That gave him a five-shot lead with six holes to go. He was 6 under par for the tournament, and seemingly on his way to becoming the youngest winner in the 47-year history of the Club Pro Championship.

The 24-year-old Polland, who is an assistant at the Deepdale Club in Manhasset, N.Y., (where Dobyns used to work), had a chance to reach 7 under at the 448-yard, par-4 13th, where his 315-yard drive set up a  wedge to 10 feet. But he left the birdie putt short.

Meanwhile, Dobyns did make a birdie, from 6 feet. He then saved par from a bunker at the 14th (431 yards, par 4). Polland made a bogey at the 14th, after an errant iron shot found an ugly lie in a bunker and he had to blast away from the pin. He did well there just to two-putt for his 5. Dobyns salvaged another par after missing the green at the 188-yard, par-3 15th. Polland hit the green, and it appeared that he, too, would make par, but he three-putted, missing a 3-footer for par -- and suddenly the deficit facing Dobyns was down from five strokes to two.

It seemed that Polland had weathered the storm and re-established his grip on the trophy when he matched Dobyns' pars at the 16th and 17th holes. But the 18th, which was the hardest hole on the course Wednesday, changed all that.

One consolation for Polland is that by finishing in the top 20 in the Club Pro tournament, he qualified for the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in August.

Also earning a place at Whistling Straits was Ryan Helminen, the Wisconsin teaching pro who won the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am for the third time earlier this month. He posted a 70 and finished in a tie for 10th at 284. This is the fifth time he's qualified to play in the PGA. He's made the cut once, and last year he missed by a single stroke. 

Another pro who works in Wisconsin, Troy Burne teaching pro Brent Snyder, cracked the top 20. But Snyder, who shot 74 and tied for 16th at 285, is a member of the Minnesota Section of the PGA -- and was the 2013 Minnesota PGA Player of the Year. He was the only Minnesota Section members to qualify for Whistling Straits.


2015 PGA PROFESSIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
PHILADELPHIA CRICKET CLUB
PHILADELPHIA, PA.
6,816 YARDS, PAR 70

FINAL RESULTS
1. Matt Dobyns, Lake Success, N.Y., 72-69-68-70—279
2. BEN POLLAND, MANHASSET, N.Y., 68-67-73-72—280
T3. Alan Morin, Royal Palm Beach, Fla., 70-72-72-68—282
T3. Grant Sturgeon, Port Chester, N.Y., 70-69-69-74—282
T5. Brian Cairns, Walled Lake, Mich., 74-69-73-67—283
T5. Austin Peters, Thousand Oaks, Calif., 68-74-72-69—283
T5. Brett Jones, Basking Ridge, N.J., 72-73-69-69—283
T5. Omar Uresti, Austin, Texas, 70-73-71-69—283
T5. Sean Dougherty, Overland Park, Kan., 73-74-67-69—283
T10. Ryan Kennedy, Ventura, Calif., 74-72-72-66—284
T10. Adam Rainaud, South Hadley, Mass., 76-70-70-68—284
T10. Charles Frost, Johns Island, S.C., 72-67-75-70—284
T10. Johan Kok, Brentwood, Tenn., 72-71-71-70—284
T10. RYAN HELMINEN, MENASHA, WIS., 71-74-69-70—284
T10. Bob Sowards, Dublin, Ohio, 72-71-70-71—284

T16. BRENT SNYDER, HUDSON, WIS., 72-69-70-74—285
T52. EDDIE WYNNE, OAKDALE, MINN., 72-70-73-76—291

Missed 36-hole cut (147)

PAUL SPELTZ, BIWABIK   77-71--148
TIM BROVOLD, COON RAPIDS  77-71--148
DON BERRY, ROGERS    78-72--150
DAVE TENTIS, HUDSON (Wis.)   78-74--152
CHRIS PETERSON, WHITE BEAR  77-78--155
JOHN KENDALL, ROSEVILLE   79-76--155
DALE JONES, MENDOTA HEIGHTS 81-77--158





For complete tournament results go to: www.pga.com/nationalchampionship/scoring/leaderboard