Jerry Pinotti Wins "Carl Miller Open" in a Playoff over Dave Nutini

21 May 2005 - Columbus, IN - Kentuckian Jerry Pinotti held off a field of 15 professional putters Saturday afternoon with a 31 under par 77 to snag his first win of 2005. Pinotti led from wire to wire, but a mediocre final round 29 had him unsure of whether he would hold on and get the win. After round one, Pinotti's 24 was good enough for top score, one shot ahead of Charlie Greenwalt and Jeff Garrison. Round two saw Pinotti again shoot 24 and remain in the lead at 48, but now it was John Ventura, coming off a fine 23 of his own sitting in second place, three shots back.

Round three became of battle of attrition as Pinotti could only muster a 7 under par 29, but lucky for him, Ventura struggled as well with a 29 of his own. The tournament wasn't over however, as Dave Nutini, who had been 4 shots back entering the final round, managed an 11 under par 25 to pull even with Pinotti and force an 18-hole playoff.

Nutini looked to be in control of the playoff as he held a 2 shot lead going into the back 9, but a bogey on hole 10, followed by a Pinotti ace knotted things up once more. Nutini struggled to recover and Pinotti went on to win the playoff and claim the tournament. Jeff Garrison finished up in 3rd place, Kevin Lacey wound up 4th, while John Ventura, Danny Holcomb and Tim Greenert each tied for 5th.

In the match play portion of Saturdays event, Dave Nutini and Jerry Pinotti would meet again to decide who the winner would be. Nutini would prevail this time, picking up his first match play win of the 2005 season. Nutini advanced to the finals with wins over Tom Russell, Jim Payne and Danny Holcomb. Pinotti advanced to the finals with wins over Charlie Greenwalt and Mark Hasty.

Zach Smith Charges from Behind to Win the Amateur Title

21 May 2005 - Columbus, IN - Indianapolis, Indiana's Zach Smith needed a lot of things to go right down the stretch before he could win his first tournament of the 2005 season Saturday in Columbus, Indiana, and they did. Josh Garrison got things started with an 11 under par 25 that had him the leader in the clubhouse, one shot ahead of Smith. Round two was much of the same, as Garrison again came out strong with another nice round of 10 under par to stretch his lead over Smith to 3 shots, when Smith could only muster a 28 of his own.

Round three proved to be a different story, as Smith took matters into his own hands shooting a 12 under par 24 that was just enough to catch Garrison, who had finished with a 27 this time through. The score now stood at 78-78, and each player was preparing to go extra holes to decide the winner.

The playoff went back and forth, and again Smith needed to make something happen if he was going to pick up the win. Going into the 18th and final playoff hole, Garrison held a slim 1 stroke lead, which meant Smith needed to ace or it was over. Smith did ace, and the 18-hole playoff turned into a sudden death match between the two. Smith took the honors, stepped up to hole 1, and missed. Garrison then took his turn, an ace for the win, but he too missed. On to hole 2, this time Smith made the ace, putting the pressure back on Garrison. Garrison lined up the putt, but just missed it leaving Zach Smith one tired winner.

Lost in all the hoopla, was Hamilton, Ohio's Tony Rehr who had shot a fine tourney of his own, coming in 3rd with a 28 under par 80, John Watkins and Kyle Poole each came home tied for 4th.

In the match play portion of Saturdays event, John Watkins made his way through the field and beat Scott McCutchen in the final match to pick up his first match play title of the 2005 season. Watkins advanced to the finals with wins over Anthony Russell, Kyle Poole and Sam Raizor. McCutchen advanced to the finals with wins over Karen Raizor, Josh Garrison and Dave Hager.

Scores provided by Robb Titchell and tournament recap provided by Nate Nichols and Shawn Gilliland.