Belisle Wins Men's Crown as Red Wing Rules at Resorters

ALEXANDRIA  -- The 98th Resorters turned into a kind of extension of the Red Wing High School graduation party. Leah Herzog added a little more luster to what was already a great year for her (she was named Minnesota's Ms. Golf in June)  by winning the Championship Flight in the Women's Division, and another Red Wing grad, Cecil Belisle won the Championship Flight in the Men's Division. 

Belisle, who was a Mr. Golf finalist and won his second state Class AA high school championship in June, capped off his Resorters triumph on Saturday afternoon by defeating Miles McCarthy 4&3 at Alexandria Golf Club. McCarthy will be a junior at the University of St. Thomas this fall. Earlier in the day, Belisle had beaten another college player, Andrew Lindberg, a junior-to-be at Texas-Arlington, in the semifinals, also by a score of 4&3. 

That was a popular score on Saturday, because it was also the score of McCarthy's semifinal victory over Thomas Lehman.

Lehman played a spectacular stretch of golf on Friday in the quarterfinals, as he went 7 under par for seven holes (No. 6 through No. 12), one of which he bogeyed. That assault on par included two eagles. But it was Lindberg who made four birdies in that same span of holes (No. 6 through No. 12) in the semis. He went from 1 down after five holes to 3 up after nine, and he blunted a potential Lehman comeback by matching Lehman's consecutive birdies at the par-4 11th and par-5 12th. 

Belisle, who will be a freshman at Minnesota State (Mankato), birdied three of his first six holes in the match against Lindberg. He did himself one better in the final, making birdies on four of the first six holes against McCarthy. Belisle  was 4 under -- and 5 up -- by the time he made the turn. McCarthy played the next four holes par-birdie-birdie-par to cut the deficit to 3 down, and he made a long birdie putt at the par-5 14th. But Belisle matched his birdie there, and won the 15th with a par to seal his victory.

The records are a little unclear on the subject, but the 18-year-old Belisle could be the youngest player ever to win the Resorters. 


98th Resorters

At Alexandria Golf Club

Par 72

Alexandria

Men's Division

Championship Flight

Match play

Round of 32 

Brian Choe (1) def. Lukas Bigger (32) 1 up

Jacob Kelber (17) def. Charlie Stuck (16) 3&2

Miles McCarthy (8) def. Alex Pries (25) 5&4

Nick Jarrett (9) def. Jeremy Decko (24) 2&1

Thomas Lehman (4) def. Alec Heinen (29) 3&1

Will Freeman (20) def. Bryant Black (13) 1 up

Clay Kucera (5) def. Shay Conder (28) 2&1

Dylan Naylor (21) def. Mason Fiddle (12) 5&4

Ben Sigel (2) def. Jordan Krulik (31) 6&4

Cecil Belisle (18) def. Dawson Wills (15) 3&2

Cade Montplaisir (26) def. Andrew Israelson (7) 

Noah Boraas (10) def. Mack Farley (23) 3&2

Jim Hoselton (30) def. Lincoln Johnson (3) 1 up

Josh Galvin (14) def. Jerry Rose (19) 2&1

Andrew Lindberg (6) def. Peter Wilson (27) 3&2

Nate Adams (11) def. Jack Cummings (22) 6&5

Round of 16

Choe (1) def. Kelber (17) 6&4

McCarthy (8) def. Jarrett (9) 3&2

Lehman (4) def. Freeman (20) 3&2

Naylor (21) def. Kucera (5) 20 holes

Belisle (18) def. Sigel (2) 19 holes

Boraas (10) def. Montplaisir (26) 4&2

Hoselton (30) def. Galvin (14) 2&1

Lindberg (6) def. Adams (11) 2 up

Quarterfinals

McCarthy (8) def. Choe (1) 2&1

Lehman (4) def. Naylor (21) 6&5

Belisle (18) def. Boraas (10) 1 up

Lindberg (6) def. Hoselton (30) 3&2

Semifinals 

Miles McCarthy (8) def. Thomas Lehman (4) 4&3

Cecil Belisle (18) def. Andrew Lindberg (6) 4&3

Final 

Belisle (18) def. McCarthy (8) 4&3