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10th Annual United States Golf Teachers Cup®
HARMAN
CAPTURES FIFTH
US GOLF TEACHERS CUP |
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No,
he’s not on the same level as Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, or Tiger
Woods. But Mark Harman does have something in common with these
great golf champions.
He often finds a
way to win when he has a chance.
Harman captured
his fourth United States Golf Teachers Cup championship in five
years, and his fifth overall, in a three-hole playoff over
Thomas Wartelle at The Quarry Golf Club in San Antonio in
October. To date, no one else has won more than one national
championship, leading USGTF president Geoff Bryant to conclude
that Harman’s mark may never be broken .
With sunny skies,
temperatures around 80° and gentle breezes, weather conditions
were nothing short of perfect at The Quarry for the 10th annual
US Cup. A record field of 120 participants teed it up for a
record purse of $25,000 in four divisions.
Establishing a
theme that would have them linked throughout the tournament,
Harman and Wartelle both opened with 1-under par rounds of 70
that put them one shot ahead of Perry Rende and 19-year-old Adam
Sperry. Ron Longoria was another stroke back at 72, along with
William Zachary, who played out of the Super Senior division.
Defending champion Dave Belling, who struck the ball superbly
but struggled with his putter, lurked three shots back with a
73, as did Trinidad's Christopher Richards and Jerry Moore, also
a Super Senior.
Round two saw
some back-and-forth for the lead. Sperry fired a front nine 33
to take the lead at -2, but three consecutive bogeys to open the
back nine sealed his fate. Jason Parker, playing several groups
ahead of the leaders, then tied Harman for the lead at -1, but
started giving shots back on the final holes and fell out of
contention.
Knowing he
probably needed an eagle on the par-5 18th hole, Belling went
for the green in two, but three shots later his par left him at
+2 for the tournament. There was further drama on the final hole
as Wartelle had a 12- foot birdie putt to win the championship,
but his ball slid by the hole and he and Harman finished
regulation play tied at even-par 142.
Instead of sudden
death, a three hole playoff was instituted by tournament
director Cole Golden. Starting on the 16th hole, Harman made par
while Wartelle bogeyed. It was an error from which Wartelle did
not recover, and two holes later Harman had his fifth USGTF
national championship.
Wartelle’s
runner-up finish was his highest since he finished tied for
second in the 2000 US Cup. While an accomplished player in his
own right, work obligations curtailed his ability to focus on
his game in previous years. He found some time in 2005 to
practice and play, and should be a force in this championship
for years to come.
Ron Platz, after
a several-year absence from USGTF competition, won the Senior
Division with 74-76 – 150, besting Jeff Bates and John McGaugh
by two strokes.
Jerry
Moore, while falling just short of winning the overall
championship, successfully repeated as Super Senior champion
with scores of 73-73 – 148. Joe Bernat and William Zachary tied
for second at 148.In the women’s division, perennial
contender Anna Yu finally broke through and won her first title
with scores of 75-76 – 151. Deanna Freeman took second with
83-78 – 161.
A GRADUAL ASCENT.
It might surprise
most people to know that Harman’s prowess on the golf course
happened relatively late in life. Starting the game at age 12 in
Indiana, he played high school and college golf, but never saw
much success. In four years of collegiate play at NAIA-level
Franklin College, Harman never once averaged under 80.
After graduation,
he went to work as a computer programmer and collector for
Chase/Clark Credit Company in Michigan. Golf was never far from
his mind, and he played whenever he could. Realizing he wanted a
career that he truly enjoyed, Harman quit to become a golf
professional. His first job was teaching beginners with The
Florida Golf School.
“I had a lot of
good mentors there,” said Harman. “When I started teaching more
advanced players, I was never out of my element because the
other teachers were so helpful.”
By this time his
golf game continued to improve, albeit slowly. Whereas in
college competition he only occasionally broke 80, he could now
shoot pretty consistently in the upper 70’s. Still, that didn’t
foreshadow any future success.
“Mechanically my
swing was improving, but mentally I was horrible,” related
Harman. “Frankly, I choked a lot. When I met Gregg Steinberg, he
completely changed my mental game.” Dr. Steinberg today is the
USGTF’s sport psychology consultant, and is becoming very
prominent from a national standpoint. But, back then, he was a
graduate student still finding his way.
In 1995, at
the age of 33 and at the urging of Steinberg, Harman decided the
only way he was going to improve as a competitor was to play in
more competitions. By the end of the year he was consistently
finishing in the money on the Emerald Coast Golf Tour, a
mini-tour located in the Florida Panhandle. Since then, he’s
played fairly well in most competitions he’s entered.
FINDING A WAY TO GET IT
DONE.
Harman isn’t the
longest hitter or the best iron player the USGTF has. His
average drive is only around 250 (very short by today’s
standards for a scratch player), and he often struggles to reach
double digits in greens in regulation. T h e re may be those
whose short games are better. But Harman’s mini-tour days gave
him some great insight how good players shoot good scores .
“The main
thing I noticed is that the good players seemed to make the one
shot necessary to make a par,” he said. “All you need is a good
approach, chip, or putt. You don’t need all three, and you don’t
need to be perfect. It’s more about hanging in there than
anything.”
MORE HARMAN VICTORIES NOT
A GIVEN.
At the closing
banquet, Harman told his fellow participants that this might be
the last time they saw him up on the dais as the US Cup
champion.
“I was serious
when I said I may never win again,” he stated. “The competition
is not only getting better, but deeper. I think we had more
people in contention on the back nine than ever before.”
“Being familiar
with the personal work ethics of both Mark Harman and Thomas
Wartelle, it was not surprising to me that these two individuals
reached the playoff,” said USGTF president Bryant.
He also looks
forward to the US Cup’s future, where he sees not only the
competition, but the event itself, continuing to grow.
“The United
States Golf Teachers Cup has evolved into the nation’s premier
annual event for golf teaching professionals,” Bryant continued.
“To play and compete against your peers from around the country
is a very unique experience. Those who play are very fortunate,
indeed, to experience this special event.”
TOP SCORES FROM THE 10TH
ANNUAL UNITED STATES GOLF TEACHERS CUP
The Quarry Golf Club, San Antonio, TX
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