Earning Optimist International Junior berths on Thursday were, in the boys 16-18 division: U.S. Open Sectional qualifier Daniel Pearson of Longmont (1-under-par 69), John McGinley of Casper, Wyo. (69), Marcus Tait of Littleton (70), Noah Vrencur of Boulder (70), Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins (71) and TJ Shehee of Mead (71).

The boys 16-18 tournament will be held July 30-Aug. 2 in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Nine additional players qualified from the boys 14-15 division: Connor Jones of Westminster (even-par 70), Jack Hughes of Aspen (70), Walker Franklin of Broomfield (71), Jaren Calkins of Lander, Wyo. (71), Dawson Hussong of Montrose (72), Ben Zimmerman of Englewood (73), Ryder Heuston of Louisville (75), Brayden Weiss of Superior (76) and Hardy Johnston of Thermopolis, Wyo. (76).

The boys 14-15 Optimist International tourney is scheduled for July 25-28, also in Palm Beach Gardens.

Another Optimist qualifier — for five other gender/age divisions, will be held Friday at Fitzsimons Golf Course in Aurora.

For complete results, click on the following: BOYS 16-18, BOYS 14-15
 

The international tournaments will be held in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., July 20-25 (boys 10-11 and 12-13 and girls 10-12), July 25-30 (boys 14-15 and girls 13-14) and July 30-Aug. 4 (boys 16-18 and girls 15-18).

Here’s the rundown of who qualified Thursday at Flatirons Golf Course in Boulder and last Saturday at Fitzsimons Golf Course in Aurora.

JUNE 16 AT FLATIRONS GC
Boys 16-18
Marcus Tait of Littleton 70
Timothy Amundson of Littleton 70
Coby Welch of Highlands Ranch 70
Daniel Pearson of Longmont 70
Cameron Nagel of Fort Collins 72 (won playoff)

Girls 15-18
Julia Baroth of Denver 72
Mary Weinstein of Highlands Ranch 72
Erin Sargent of Longmont 75
Jaclyn Murray of Grand Junction 76
Alexis Chan of Highlands Ranch 77

Boys 14-15
Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins 70
Cade Kilkenny of Centennial 72
Connor Jones of Westminster 72
Liam O’Halloran of Colorado Springs 72
Michael Perea of Arvada 72

JUNE 11 AT FITZSIMONS GC
Girls 13-14
Amisha Singh of Greenwood Village 74
Brittlynn Jade O’Dell of Grand Junction 75
Charlotte Hillary of Englewood 77

Boys 12-13
Jordan Jennings of Montrose 72
Jeffrey Zhou of Greenwood Village 76
Thomas Hicks of Greenwood Village 77

Girls 10-12
Katelyn Lehigh of Loveland 84
Sofia Choi of Littleton 88

Boys 10-11
Parker Paxton of Riverton, Wyo. 77
Gage Messingham of Arvada 84
Traejan Andrews of Windsor 84
 

Kent Moore started making a name for himself state-wide when he won the 1973 CGA Junior Match Play at Flatirons Golf Course. So it’s little wonder why he has a fond place in his heart for the Boulder venue.

“I really, really like this place, and I always have,” said the Colorado Golf Hall of Famer from Cherry Hills Village. “It’s in great shape and it’s really fun.”

Jeff Reich feels likewise about Flatirons, having basically “lived here” from age 12-17, with his mom dropping him off at the course on the way to work and picking him up there on the way home.

Both golfers, now in their late 50s, had their good feelings about the Boulder course reinforced on Thursday as they qualified for the U.S. Senior Amateur there. And Thomas Roos of Centennial no doubt also finds himself taking a shine to Flatirons after joining Moore and Reich in punching their tickets to the national championship for amateurs 55 and older.

Of course, Flatirons was where players such as three-time U.S. Open champion Hale Irwin and 1972 U.S. Junior Amateur champion Bob Byman cut their teeth, golf-wise, so there’s some history to draw upon.

On Thursday, Coloradans Moore and Roos shared medalist honors in the qualifier, and Reich, who moved to Arizona at age 17, secured the third and final berth available for the national championship.

Moore and Roos matched 1-under-par 69s to land the top two spots, and Reich, a reinstated amateur, shot 72 and prevailed in a playoff. (Roos, in red shirt, and Moore are pictured together above.)

By finishing in the top three Thursday out of a field that originally numbered 47, Moore, Roos and Reich will advance to the U.S. Senior Amateur, which will be held Sept. 26-Oct. 1 in Egg Harbor Township, N.J.

It will be the first U.S. Senior Amateur for each of the three.

“It’ll be great,” said Roos, 56, whose first USGA championship was last year’s U.S. Mid-Amateur. “To get to go to another one is just a bonus. Not many people get to go at all. (USGA championships) are the top of the food chain. It is. It’s so much fun.”

Moore (left) knows something about that as this will be his 10th USGA championship, having previously gone to three U.S. Amateurs, five U.S. Mid-Ams and a USGA State Team.

“I’ve always really wanted to do this,” said the 59-year-old, who has twice been an alternate in U.S. Senior Amateur qualifying. “I missed the Junior Amateur, but I will have played in the Amateur, Mid-Amateur and Senior Am. That’ll be really run.”

Reich, who was a PGA club professional for 24 years, has never had the pleasure of competing in a USGA championship, but has long had qualifying as a major goal.

“I got my amateur status back six years ago with the whole goal being qualifying for the U.S. Senior Amateur. So this is exciting for me,” said the 58-year-old, who bears a striking resemblence to Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

On Thursday, Moore made four birdies — including three straight starting on No. 12 — offset by a bogey, and a double bogey on No. 16.

Roos eagled the 492-yard, par-5 14th hole from 21 feet and added two birdies — one on the formidable 16th hole — while carding three bogeys.

“It just felt comfortable today,” Roos said. “I played here for a stroke play qualifier a few years ago and I just like the back tees.”

Reich (left), whose brother Bob used to be an assistant pro at Flartirons, was one of four players who tied for third place at 2-over-par 72. Colorado Golf Hall of Famer John Olive couldn’t wait for a playoff because he had to catch a plane, leaving Reich, fellow Arizonan John Hull and Texan Hollis Sullivan to vie for the third national berth.

Sullivan, who could have won the playoff had he made a 4-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole, instead bowed out with a bogey on the second playoff hole. Both of the Arizonans hit their drives on No. 18 — the third extra hole — to the left and had to deal with trees on their second shots. After Hull missed the green and pitched to 8 feet, he couldn’t sink his par putt. Reich, who had punched his second shot through trees to the collar behind the green, putted to 4 feet then sank the par attempt to earn the final spot. It was a similar putt to one Reich had missed in regulation, preventing him from avoiding a playoff to claim the third national berth.

“My brother (Jim) was out following me,” said Reich, a graduate of Centaurus High School in Lafayette. “I told him, ‘I should have done this work earlier.’

“I just had some opportunities and kept playing. I’m very thankful to be in.”

U.S. Senior Amateur Qualifying
At Par-70 Flatirons GC in Boulder

ADVANCED TO NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Thomas Roos, Centennial, Colo., 36-33–69
Kent Moore, Cherry Hills Village, Colo., 34-35–69
Jeff Reich, Chandler, Ariz., 34-38–72
ALTERNATES (in order)
John Hull, Scottsdale, Ariz., 37-35–72
Hollis Sullivan, Westworth Village, Texas, 35-37–72
FAILED TO QUALIFY
John Olive, Colorado Springs, Colo., 36-36–72
Ken Sady, Avon, Colo., 37-36–73
Harry Johnson, Edwards, Colo., 35-38–73
William Farmer, Dallas, Texas, 38-35–73
Sean Forey, Morrison, Colo., 35-38–73
Laird Middleton, Centennial, Colo., 35-39–74
Paul Brown, Grand Junction, Colo., 36-38–74
Robert Polk, Parker, Colo., 38-36–74
Robin Bradbury, Superior, Colo., 36-39–75
Kary Kaltenbacher, Englewood, Colo., 36-39–75
Brad Grogg, Colorado Springs, Colo., 37-38–75
Doug Phelps, Golden, Colo., 38-37–75
Stephen Bell, Denver, Colo., 39-36–75
Robert Cloud, Denver, Colo., 38-37–75
Guy Mertz, Longmont, Colo., 35-41–76
Randy Miller, Boulder, Colo., 36-40–76
David J Brown, Lafayette, Colo., 40-36–76
Roger Gunderson, Aurora, Colo., 38-39–77
Pat Bowe, Denver, Colo., 40-37–77
Daniel Reedy, Boulder, Colo., 37-40–77
Mike Brummer, Rapid City, S.D., 39-38–77
Bruce Hayes, Golden, Colo., 39-38–77
Rick George, Greenwood Village, Colo., 38-39–77
Randy Kippes, Englewood, Colo., 42-36–78
Kelly Crone, Englewood, Colo., 39-39–78
Stephen Barlow, Cherry Hills, Colo., 41-37–78
David Delich, Colorado Springs, Colo., 37-41–78
Bob Chandler, Black Hawk, Colo., 40-39–79
John Hoge, Parker, Colo., 40-39–79
Mark Tolson, Lafayette, La., 40-39–79
Jim Reynolds, Denver, Colo., 38-41–79
Dave Runberg, Centennial, Colo., 40-39–79
Chuck Fisher, Westminster, Colo., 43-37–80
Jim Lemar, Littleton, Colo., 39-41–80
James English, Boulder, Colo., 40-40–80
Mark Barkley, Highlands Ranch, Colo., 41-40–81
Ted Warner, Greeley, Colo., 38-43–81
Paul Yoon, Lamar, Colo., 42-40–82
Frank Wilkinson, Grand Juntion, Colo., 43-40–83
Greg Bjerke, Fargo, N.D., 43-44–87
Duwayne Lewis, Cheyenne, Wyo., WD
Bryan Winnett, Ennis, Texas, WD
 

Harmon was the head professional at Crow Valley Country Club in Davenport, Iowa when Brown worked on the grounds grew at the course as a teenager.

“He wanted me to play,” said Brown, the longtime superintendent at Flatirons Golf Course in Boulder. “He’d give me hats, ball and clubs, but I only played sporadically. Playing golf wasn’t what we did in our high school years. I was into football, wrestling and baseball.”

But that’s changed considerably in the decades since. In fact, a year ago, Brown won a national golf title, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America National Championship. (He’s pictured above with the trophy.) And this weekend (Feb. 25-26), Brown will defend that national title at the Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.

Asked about his chances this time around, Brown said, “I’m liking them. Why not? I need to have a good performance to show I’m not a one-hit wonder.”

Actually, Brown will be defending more than one title this weekend. The 53-year-old has won the senior division of the GCSAA National Championship each of the last two years.

While the national superintendents tournament may not be the U.S. Open, it does feature some high-caliber competition. In winning last year, Brown shot rounds of 75-66 for a 3-under-par 141 total at PGA National’s Champion Course, home of the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

On the final day, Brown strung together four straight birdies to begin the back nine and eventually closed with a 6-under-par 30 on that side. His final-round 66 turned a four-stroke deficit into a three-shot victory.

The win “was big for me. It’s a big deal within our association, and it’s the biggest deal I play in,” Brown said. “All of our peers from our country and all over the world are there.

“Winning it all was kind of unexpected. I had won the seniors the year before and I wanted to repeat as senior champion. It got to the last nine holes, and I thought I might as well go for it. I ended up shooting a 30 on the back nine of the Honda Classic course. For me being a superintendent, it’s something I’ve dreamed of winning. And now I’m really looking forward to defending, and I have confidence knowing that I can do it.”

Last year’s victory resulted in Brown being named Golf Person of the Year by the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame. He’ll receive that award June 10 at Cherry Hills Country Club.

While the GCSAA national victory was the biggest of Brown’s career, he’s no stranger to other high-level tournaments. Last year, for example, he finished eighth in the CGA Senior Stroke Play and was the third low amateur in the HealthOne Colorado Senior Open.

Brown has been the head superintendent at Flatirons since 1983, and a GCSAA member for 30 years. He’s also worked at the Ranch Country Club, Boulder Country Club and in Steamboat Springs.

Through much of his first decade at Flatirons, Brown was more noted for his skill at rugby than as a golfer. He competed at a high level in rugby — including in several European countries — before ending his playing days in the 1990s, though he still does some coaching.

Brown took up golf in a more concerted way in the early 1980s at the prompting of his boss then at Boulder Country Club, Dan Coffin.

“He said if you want to be a superintendent you’ve got to play golf,” Brown recalled.

When he gave up competing at rugby, Brown lowered his golf handicap to below 5 by 1993. And since 2002, he’s finished in the top 10 three times in the open division of the GCSAA National Championship, including last year’s win. Nowadays, he plays to a 1.1 handicap.

If nothing else, Brown seems very passionate about playing golf. Several years ago, on a trip to New Zealand, he played six rounds of golf in a day — all walking — at six different courses. It was the longest day of the year in the southern hemisphere, and he started playing just before 5 a.m. and continued until 11 p.m.

“That’s almost a marathon distance (of walking),” he noted.

Of course, Brown knows a little bit about marathons. On Oct. 10, 2010 (10-10-10), he ran a marathon in Chicago at age 52.

All in all, the years since Brown turned 50 have been very memorable.