By Chris Dortch, Staff Writer
last updated 03/15/06 04:55 PM

Only 1 of Top 6 Seeds Survive First Round of TPC

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The first round of match play in the Chattanooga TPC has been anything but routine over the years. Friday was no exception.

Who, for example, would have predicted that matches involving the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds wouldn’t make it past the 13th hole—and that the lower seeded players would win both times?

Probably no one, but then again, 16th-seeded Matt Mathis’ 6 and 5 victory over No. 1 Ricky Honeycutt and No. 15 Mitch Hufstetler’s win over No. 2 Tyson Elliott by the same score illustrated yet again how deep the amateur golf talent pool is in Chattanooga.

Honeycutt, in fact, had come into the tournament playing well and could have walked away with Chattanooga player-of-the-year honors had he won this tournament. But a poor start left him in a hole from which he never could escape.

Honeycutt’s early ouster means that UTC sophomore Bryce Ledford, who defeated Mike Jenkins 5 and 3 on Friday, is the city’s player of the year.

"I’m excited," Ledford said of winning the award. "I’ve put in about eight months of hard work, and it’s nice to see it starting to pay off."

Ledford has been working with Atlanta-based teaching professional Danny Elkins, and the results have been impressive. Make no mistake, Elkins had plenty of talent to work with from the beginning, but he’s helped Ledford become more consistent with his setup and getting the club on plane. Always a long-ball hitter, Ledford is now off the charts—witness the 352-yard drive he hit at No. 15 on Friday.

With that length, and improved putting he attributes to some sage advice given him by Council Fire pro Richard Rebne, Ledford has put together a great season. He won the Red Bud, Don Malarkey Open and Bear Trace Invitational, finished fifth in the Tennessee Open after taking the lead into the final day, Monday qualified for the Nationwide Tour’s Chattanooga Classic and, two weeks ago, won his first college tournament.

"I’ve gotten a lot more confident," Ledford said of his extended run of solid play. "And I’ve learned to be more patient. When I played in the Classic, I found out how bad I was. Those guys are patient, and the short game is so important. Learning to be more patient and working hard on my short game has really paid off."

Ledford’s UTC teammate, Elliott, has also played some good golf this year, as evidenced by his 2-under-par 70 in Thursday’s stroke-play qualifying round. But like Honeycutt, he got off to a bad start and Hufstetler wouldn’t let him recover.

"It started at No. 1," Hufstetler said. "He just got a bad break. We both drove it in the rough, but I had a good lie and he didn’t."

Elliott bogeyed the hole to go 1 down, then conceded a four-foot birdie putt at the par-5 No. 2 hole to go 2-down. Elliott dropped another hole when he hit his drive into the left hazard at No. 3.

As if Hufstetler didn’t have enough momentum at that point, he picked up more when Elliott three-putted No. 4 from 20 feet and Hufstetler drained a 15-foot par putt to go 4-up. He went 5-up by winning the par-5 sixth, but Elliott won his first hole of the match at No. 7 and thought he had a chance to cut into the deficit further when Hufstetler faced a 25-foot par putt at No. 8.

But Hufstetler struck again, knocking in the putt and putting the pressure on Elliott to make a 15-footer for par. Elliott made the putt, but the damage had been done.

"That putt at No. 8, that’s where he put the dagger in me," Elliott said. "If he’d missed, it might have been different, but after he made it, I was finished."

It wasn’t a good day for the top-seeded players. No. 4 Philip Guess was beaten 1-up at No. 18 by Pat Corey, No. 5 Lex Tarumianz—who’s headed later this month to the U.S. Senior Amateur in Los Angeles—lost 5 and 4 to Chris Treadway and No. 6 Jay Potter lost to Neil Spitalny, 4 and 3.

The only player seeded in the top six who managed to win was Gary Ferguson, who out-lasted Derek Rende, 2 and 1.

Friday’s Matches

No. 16 Matt Mathis def. No. 1 Ricky Honeycutt, 6 and 5.

No. 15 Mitch Hufstetler def. No. 2 Tyson Elliott, 6 and 5.

No. 3 Gary Ferguson def. No. 14 Derek Rende, 2 and 1.

No. 13 Pat Corey def. No. 4 Philip Guess, 1-up.

No. 12 Chris Treadway def. No. 5 Lex Tarumianz, 5 and 4.

No. 11 Neil Spitalny def. No. 6 Jay Potter, 4 and 3.

No. 7 Bryce Ledford def. No. 10 Mike Jenkins, 5 and 3.

No. 8 Patrick Williams def. No. 9 Greg Privette, 1-up.

Saturday’s Matches

1:30 p.m.—Mathis vs. Williams.

1:40 p.m.—Corey vs. Treadway.

1:50 p.m.—Hufstetler vs. Ledford.

2:00 p.m.—Ferguson vs. Spitalny.

 

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