The only time Russ Clark (at left in photo) has competed in a USGA championship, he played a practice round with a guy named Jack Nicklaus, who would go on to win his fourth and final U.S. Open that week at Baltusrol in New Jersey.
“I was an assistant pro at the time, and (Nicklaus) said, “˜You should quit your day job and play more,'” Clark recalled of their interaction in 1980. “That was pretty special. We both shot 71 (in the practice round). I was thinking, ‘This can’t be that hard.'”
Alas, playing golf at the highest competitive level is that hard, but that hasn’t kept Clark from trying periodically over the years. And persistence paid off Monday for the 52-year-old from Aurora as he earned medalist honors in qualifying for the U.S. Senior Open. Also earning a Senior Open berth Monday at Fox Hill Country Club was 51-year-old John Ward of Denver (at right in photo).
The two will be among the field of 156 for the U.S. Senior Open, which will be held July 30-Aug. 2 at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Ind.
On a day in which the average score posted at Fox Hill was a 78.7, Clark was the lone player out of a field of 80 to break par, carding a 3-under-par 67. The instructor at GolfTEC in Cherry Creek hit the flagstick on No. 1, birdied his first two holes and finished with five birdies for the day. Ward, 51, a teaching professional at South Suburban Family Sports Center, gained the second and final national berth with a 70, thanks largely to needing just 24 putts on Monday.
“I didn’t hit the ball well at all, but I made my share of putts and somebody else’s too,” said Ward, who estimates he drained seven or eight putts of more than 8 feet.
Ward is perhaps best known as a swing instructor for Derek Tolan, who’s qualified for 10 USGA championships and who won as a pro for the first time over the weekend, at the San Juan Open. But on Monday, Ward accomplished the highlight of his own competitive golf career by qualifying for his first USGA championship.
“I gave up playing (much competitively) to have a family,” he said. “That was 30 years ago. Now I play maybe once or twice a week.”
Clark likewise doesn’t play a lot these days — he estimates he’s gotten in six or seven rounds this year — but you wouldn’t have known it Monday by his stellar performance at a Fox Hill course that proved very formidable.
“It was a good test,” said Clark, who played the PGA Tour briefly in the early 1980s. “The greens were almost perfect, but probably a little quicker than we expected.”
But when approach shots on the first two holes finish 6 inches and 3 feet away from the cup, respectively, that certainly makes the game a little easier. Clark’s driver had been giving him fits recently, so his solution was to use the club minimally on Monday — a strategy that worked like a charm.
When Clark qualified for his only other USGA championship 29 years ago, “I thought I could win the U.S. Open,” he said. “But now I’m older and more mature, and I’ll be happy to go and enjoy the experience” at the U.S. Senior Open.
Tom Woodard of Denver shot a 71 Monday to earn the first alternate spot from the Fox Hill, while Ken Krieger of Cheyenne, Wyo., won a playoff at 72 to gain the second alternate position.
Charles Fisher of Westminster and Kent Jesperson of Cheyenne shared low-amateur honors at 73.
(a) — indicates amateur
Qualifiers
Russell Clark, Aurora, Colo., 33-34–67
John Ward, Denver, Colo., 34-36–70
Alternates (In Order)
Tom Woodard, Denver, Colo., 34-37–71
Ken Krieger, Cheyenne, Wyo., 37-35–72
Failed to Qualify
Rick Cole, Eaton, Colo., 37-35–72
Barry Jennings, Longmont, Colo., 36-37–73
Charles Fisher (a), Westminster, Colo., 36-37–73
Kent Jesperson (a), Cheyenne, Wyo., 35-38–73
Tom Nosewicz, Aurora, Colo., 37-36–73
Michael Zaremba, Pueblo West, Colo., 39-35–74
Mike Brummer (a), Rapid City, S.D., 35-39–74
Robin Bradbury (a), Superior, Colo., 39-35–74
Stephen Bell (a), Denver, Colo., 39-35–74
Glynn Hopkins II (a), Parker, Colo., 38-37–75
Greg Adams, Moundsview, Minn., 38-37–75
Juan Blanco (a), Windsor, Colo., 38-37–75
Kary Kaltenbacher (a), Englewood, Colo., 38-37–75
Kelly Crone (a), Littleton, Colo., 37-38–75
Doug Perry, Fort Collins, Colo., 35-41–76
Grant Porter (a), Castle Rock, Colo., 40-36–76
John Hoge (a), Parker, Colo., 39-37–76
Patrick Bowe (a), Denver, Colo., 39-37–76
Randy Miller (a), Boulder, Colo., 38-38–76
Bill Boyd (a), Greeley, Colo., 37-40–77
Bill Loeffler, Castle Rock, Colo., 41-36–77
Bruce Hogg (a), Colorado Springs, Colo., 38-39–77
David Delich (a), Colorado Springs, Colo., 38-39–77
Don Powers, Colorado Springs, Colo., 38-39–77
Kenneth Sady (a), Vail, Colo., 37-40–77
Scott Radcliffe (a), Golden, Colo., 38-39–77
Sean Forey (a), Morrison, Colo., 37-40–77
Brian Mooney (a), Westminster, Colo., 40-38–78
Daniel Perdue (a), Cheyenne, Wyo., 37-41–78
Guy Mertz (a), Longmont, Colo., 39-39–78
Mike McCutchen, Aurora, Colo., 38-40–78
Robert Cloud (a), Denver, Colo., 38-40–78
Ron Vlosich, Lakewood, Colo., 37-41–78
Charlie Post (a), Castle Rock, Colo., 38-41–79
Dave Arbuckle, Colorado Springs, Colo., 40-39–79
Frank Fager (a), Centennial, Colo., 39-40–79
James Lemar (a), Littleton, Colo., 40-39–79
John Olive (a), Colorado Springs, Colo., 39-40–79
Mark Franz (a), Aurora, Colo., 40-39–79
Rick Gorbell (a), Colorado Springs, Colo., 38-41–79
Ross Chessman (a), Erie, Colo., 41-38–79
Ted Warner (a), Greeley, Colo., 39-40–79
Bruce Hayes (a), Niwot, Colo., 38-42–80
Dean Sessions, Westminster, Colo., 38-42–80
Kent Moore (a), Greenwood Village, Colo., 41-39–80
Mike Klein, Mitchell, Neb., 37-43–80
Robert Polk (a), Parker, Colo., 38-42–80
Scott Walter, Franktown, Colo., 37-43–80
Todd Novak (a), Vail, Colo., 39-41–80
Audie Dean, Centennial, Colo., 42-39–81
Craig Stephens, Frederick, Colo., 39-42–81
Gregg Jones, Colorado Springs, Colo., 38-43–81
Richard Renneisen, Cheyenne, Wyo., 40-41–81
Steve Szekula (a), Morrison, Colo., 40-41–81
Tom Turner (a), Fort Collins, Colo., 42-39–81
Rick Cunha (a), Plymouth, Mass., 38-44–82
Robert Clark (a), Boulder, Colo., 44-38–82
Robert Mintz (a), Denver, Colo., 41-41–82
Tim McAdam (a), Scottsdale, Ariz., 41-41–82
Jim Johnson, Golden, Colo., 41-42–83
John Meredith (a), Fraser, Colo., 41-42–83
Paul Surniak, Colorado Springs, Colo., 42-41–83
Willard Benner, Denver, Colo., 40-43–83
Greg Dillon, Canon City, Colo., 40-44–84
Ronald Perry (a), Arvada, Colo., 38-46–84
Rick Uhlir, Boulder, Colo., 44-41–85
Tom Lawrence (a), Denver, Colo., 42-43–85
Bruce Black, Denver, Colo., 44-42–86
Gary Borgese (a), Niwot, Colo., 42-44–86
Frank Tracey, Cheyenne, Wyo., 44-45–89
Dan Grigsby (a), Thornton, Colo., 45-47–92
Kronin Kelley (a), Arvada, Colo., 45-47–92
George Henson, Blanca, Colo., NS
Jim Hardy, Houston, Texas, NS
Mark Cohen (a), Fort Collins, Colo., WD
Scott Crone (a), Denver, Colo., NS
