July 22, 2009

DUBLIN, OH — Jason Ridgeway enjoys few moments more than the walk down 18th fairway of a century-old remake links course, especially with an 8-stroke lead in the Dublin City Championship.

Ridgeway coasted to his 3rd straight title with an even par 36 on the back nine to close with a 4-under 68. He slammed the door shut with 5 birdies on the front nine Sunday. Ridgeway shot 70-68=138 in the 36-hole event.

"It's easy to grin, when your ship comes in and you have the stock market beat," said Ridgeway. "But the man that's worth while is the man who can smile when his shorts are too tight in the seat."

The Dublin City Championship opened its doors in 2008 for golfers residing in the city of Columbus and surrounding area.

"I am surprised with the 68," said Matt Pritchard. "For someone who consistantly shoots in the low 70's and has aspirations for the 'tour', he should have sealed the deal on Day 1 with a 66."

Pritchard added, "The Golf Club of Dublin is a wide course and one that he could play with his eyes closed. I would hope he begins to make a name for himself outside his home course."

Ridgeway finished the tournament with 5 bogeys, 11 birdies, and 20 pars.

"This might be a premonition to what his game is going to become since he got married," said Pritchard. "There was talk that his game would suffer since the nuptuals. He has a baby coming this week, which will add even more pressure for 2010.

I have was always been sceptical about whether or not he would still keep up his game and be allowed to play. This is a step in the right direction. He might have won the Dublin City Championship for 3 straight years, but he still remains the most talented player in Spackler history without a Golden Jacket."

The back-to-back-to-back Dublin City Championship victory is one better than Padraig Harrington's back-to-back British Open victories.

Jason Ridgeway surged on Sunday with 92 points. The monster round moved him upward into 17th position in the 2009 Virtual Tournament.

In other news, Dave Osborne, Greg Long, Greg Garrett, and Hudson McVay played 57 holes over the weekend in Binghamton, NY. The guys played the highly ranked The Links at Hiawatha Landing, Conklin Players Club, and PGA Tour course En-joie Golf Course.

There were numerous good times with a few highlights. Greg Garrett hit another 365-yard drive at Conklin Players Club's 18th hole on Sunday. Dave Osborne birdied the 9th, 10th, and 15th holes on Sunday at Conklin Players Club. Greg Long carded a mulligan-free birdie at the 18th hole on Saturday at En-joie Golf Course. He immediately screamed up at the skyboxes, "Eat your heart out Fred Funk!". During the same Saturday afternoon round, Hudson McVay lipped out a hole-in-one at the 4th hole. He tapped in for birdie.

Kyle and Jon Marti played both The Links at Hiawatha Landing and Conklin Players Club. Jon Marti shocked the world with an impressive 20-foot eagle opportunity at the very difficult 18th hole at The Links at Hiawatha Landing.

Barry Cederquist and Mike Trojanowski played Conklin Players Club on Sunday. Barry carded back-to-back birdies at the 12th and 13th holes to score 85 points. The point total was a 4-year career high by 10 points. The stellar round propelled Cederquist into 5th position in the 2009 Virtual Tournament with 67.7 points per round.