Albany, N.Y. – The second NYSGA ‘Net Event’ of the week produced several close finishes among the five respective flights at the Town of Colonie Golf Club on Wednesday. The field of 62 participants battled through wet conditions for most of the day but still experienced an enjoyable and competitive event. Three of the five flights needed to be decided by the lowest net total over the last nine holes in order to declare a victor. A strong short-game was needed today to overcome difficult pin locations that stretched to the edges of some greens. Photos

Check out the full results from the NYSGA’s Town of Colonie State Day.

Clifton Park resident Tom Neiss came out on top in the men’s flight (0-12 course handicap). Neiss finished with a net total of 6-under-par 66 as did Gus Giuffre in the same flight. However, the tie-breaker goes to the lowest net total over the last nine holes which gave Neiss the edge with a 38 on the back nine to best Giuffre’s 39. Neiss rattled off seven pars and added two bogeys on the back nine to improve his front nine score of 40 by two strokes. Meanwhile, Giuffre started the back nine with a double bogey on the par-4 10^th hole. He responded with back-to-back birdies but picked up three costly bogeys in the final six holes to land him a 39 on the back.

The men’s flight of 13-17 course handicap saw three individuals fire 3-under-par 69; thereby enacting the tie-breaker which played in Bob Pecker’s favor. The Averill Park resident won his respective flight following a 4-over-par 40 on the back which beat out John Starr’s 7-over 43 (gross total) and Alan Sherline’s 6-over 42 (gross total). Starr narrowly missed repeat wins at the State Days following his victory in the men’s 18-over flight at Seven Oaks on Saturday but had a costly double-bogey on the 18^th hole. Sherline began his back nine with consecutive double-bogeys on the par-5 11^th and par-4 12^th. He reconciled his two doubles with a birdie on the par-3 17^th but bogeyed the 18^th hole for a total of 42 on the back. Pecker tallied a 9-over 45 after the first nine holes but registered a back nine that was five shots better, including birdies on the par-4 14^th and par-3 17^th.

The only decisive winner in the men’s division came in the 18-over course handicap flight. Vincent Somaio fired a net total of 2-under-par 70 to claim the win in his respective flight. Somaio’s one-stroke victory can be attributed to his birdie on the par-4 ninth hole which gave him momentum heading into the back nine where he carded a 7-over 43 gross total. Somaio improved his net total by four strokes between the par-4 7^th hole and par-4 12^th hole as he went from 3-over to 1-under.

The most anticipated finish of the day came in the women’s 0-17 flight. Kimberly Hines-Kaisik was the leader in the clubhouse after posting a net round of even-par. Hines-Kaisik played in the 9:20 a.m. group and owned a three-stroke lead amongst her flight who waited anxiously for the final group to finish on no. 18. When the final group approached the scoring table, it was Jeanette Pawlik, of Dolgeville, who turned in the winning scorecard of 1-under-par for her net total. Pawlik, who started two hours after Hines-Kaisik, registered a net total of even on the front and1-under on the back to win the women’s 0-17 flight.

The women’s 18-over flight played much like the men’s 0-12 and 13-17 flight in that a tie-breaker was needed to declare a winner. Katherine Kassabasian and Betsy Baker each finished with net totals of 1-under-par for the day but Kassabasian played the final nine holes six strokes better than Baker to win the flight. Albany resident Kassabasian hovered between 1-over and 1-under-par throughout the last eight holes for her net total, but made amends for her triple-bogey on the 16^th with a bogey-bogey finish for a gross total of 47 on the back nine.

Submitted by Kevin Solan

NYSGA Media Intern