LEBANON – Lebanon County and the Lebanon Country Club are so desperate to link the championship of their most prestigious golf tournament they’ll search seemingly anywhere. Meet Brady Goodling, Lebanon County’s newest adopted son.
Goodling is the final connection between Lebanon County and the 68th annual W.B. Sullivan better-ball-of-tournament, being contested on the Lebanon Country Club’s 6,562-yard, par-72 layout. With the locale’s participation down and Lebanon County suffering three opening-round losses, Goodling and Monmouth University golf teammate Kyle Deisher won two matches in the championship flight’s match-play format on Saturday.
Goodling and Deisher, the number-two seed, reached the semifinals with a 4&3 defeat of Dave Marshall and Andy Beittel during their afternoon quarterfinal match. In their morning opener, Goodling and Deisher shaded the local tandem of Ryan Weaber and Stu Hanford by an identical 4&3 final.
When the event resumes with Sunday morning’s semifinals, Goodling and Deisher will square off against the Berks tandem of Bryan Ott and Jim Rattigan, who downed Brixton Albert and Casey Osborne, 3&2 in a thunderstorm-interrupted quarterfinal. In the other semi, Harrisburg’s Scott Mayne and Derek Price will battle the Lancaster-Harrisburg combo of Griff Baeshore and Conner Lefever, who were seeded 12th.
The semifinal survivors will meet for all the marbles in the finals match at 2 p.m.
“There is kind of that stuff,” said Goodling of the unspoken rivalry between local and out-of-town competitors. “I’ve got both. There’s a lot of local pride in it. The club (LCC) would take pride in it if we won.”
A 2011 graduate of Manheim Central and a junior-to-be at Monmouth, Goodling has been a member at Lebanon Country Club for the past five years. Last weekend, Goodling captured LCC’s men’s club championship for the third straight year.
At last year’s Sullivan, Goodling and Deisher advanced to the final match, where they were defeated by the Lebanon County twosome of Andy Gibbons and Jimmy Gardner.
“When I’m home for the summer, I play almost every day,” said Goodling of his membership. “I try to play at least nine holes a day.
“Last year, we didn’t lose, we got beat,” Goodling continued. “We didn’t play bad. They (Gibbons and Gardner) just played better. I know we can go low here. That experience and being the medalists (with a 64 during qualifying) fired us up.”
Against Marshall and Beittel, Goodling and Deisher got off to a fast start, made the turn at three-up and then ended the match at the 523-yard, par-five 15th hole. Through 15 holes, Goodling and Deisher were seven-under to par.
“I am pleased with how we played,” said Goodling. “We ham-and-egged it pretty good today. Every time I was out of a hole, he (Deisher) stepped up. And every time he was out of a hole, he stepped up.
“The field is great,” Goodling added. “There’s a lot of talent in this tournament. There’s a lot of local guys who are good. This tournament pulls in a lot of talented players.”
Mayne and Price, the final qualifiers for the championship flight, reached the quarterfinals with a 2&1 first-round upset of Gibbons and Gardner, who were defending their 2012 crown. Then in the afternoon, Mayne and Price bested Brian Golembiewski and Rod James, 3&1.
After dispensing Gregg Hostetter and Zach Fausnaught one-up in their opener, Baeshore and Lefever handled Grant Skyllas and Mike Hyland, 4&3 in the quarterfinals. It was Skyllas and Hyland who had ousted the Lebanon County 13th-seeded duo of Cody Kersey and Jesse Brown, 3&2, after their opener had been all-square through 13 holes.
“It was going back and forth and Jesse and I made the mistake of hitting it into the bunker to the left on 14,” said Kersey. “It was weird that we halved every hole through 13. The match was a lot closer than it ended up.
“Today, I thought we played OK, definitely not the way we should’ve played, but we didn’t play horrible,” Kersey added. “And they played solid. That’s one of the great things about this tournament, it’s so much fun playing matches in the championship flight.”
W.B. SULLIVAN Better-Ball-of-Partners
at Lebanon Country Club
CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHT
First Round
Scott Mayne-Derek Price def. Jim Gardner-Andy Gibbons, 2&1
Brian Golembiewski-Rod James def. Ryan Orcutt-Nick Lukow, 4&3
Grant Skyllas-Mike Hyland def. Jesse Brown-Cody Kersey, 3&2
Griff Basehore-Conner Lefever def. Gregg Hostetter-Zach Fausnaught, 1-up
Brady Goodling-Kyle Deisher def. Ryan Weaber-Stu Hanford, 4&3
Marshall-Beittel def. Lewis Sofield-Bill Burke, 20 holes
Brixton Albert-Casey Osbourne def. Philip Cillo-P.J. Tighe, 1-up
Bryan Ott-Jim Rattigan def. Steven Chandler-Jim Chandler, 3&2
Quarterfinals
Mayne-Price def. Golembiewski-James, 3&1
Basehore-Lefever def. Skyllas-Hyland, 4&3
Goodling-Deisher def. Marshall-Beittel, 4&3
Ott-Rattigan def. Albert-Osbourne, 3&2