4 October 2009 - Burlington, NC - The Southern Putting Tour gathered on course # 1 of the historic and immaculately-maintained Burlington, NC Putt-Putt Fun Center and held its final tournament of the season, the two-day, 144-hole 2009 Southern Putting Tour Championship. Sunny, pleasant, but windy weekend weather conditions produced a closely-contested battle amidst modest field scoring in which eight players finished within four strokes of the winning eight-round total. In the end, 1998 Bob Jackson Sportsmanship Award recipient Allen Wall defied and reversed the old adage that "nice guys finish last," as he fired rounds of 24, 26, 28, 31, 27, 22, 21, and 28 for a 144-hole total of 207 and a hard-fought, come-from-behind two-stroke victory, his first of the 2009 season.

Allen Wall

Action began with Wall posting an opening-round 24 to share the first-round lead with 2001 PPA National Champion Greg Ward, 2005 PPA National Champion Jay Klapper, and former Burlington resident Bob Haizlip. A gaggle of five more players lurked just a stroke off of the early lead at 25. With a second-round 24, 2003 PPA National Champion Robert Johnson maneuvered to the top of the 36-hole leaderboard, two strokes clear of the quartet of Wall, newly-crowned PPA National Champion Tony Varnadore, Klapper, and Haizlip. Varnadore shot a third-round 25 to leapfrog into the 54-hole lead at 75, two strokes ahead of Ward and Johnson. Carding a solid fourth-round 25, Ward grabbed a one-stroke lead at 101 at the completion of the first day of play. Reigning PPA Eastern Open Champion Greg Newport recorded a fourth-round 24 to move into sole possession of second place. Johnson and 2007 PPA Senior National Champion Frank Warren entered the tournament's final day tied for third position at 103.

On the second day of play, Newport opened with a fifth-round 25 to establish the 90-hole lead at 127. Ward and Johnson trailed Newport by one stroke, with Klapper just another stroke behind at 129. Newport continued his stellar play in the sixth round, carding 24 to extend his lead to five strokes at 151. Ward and Johnson hovered in a second-place tie at 156. At 157, Varnadore held fourth position.

The tide of the tournament reversed during the event's seventh round. While Newport struggled mightily to shoot a seventh-round 31, Wall followed a sixth-round 22 with a spectacular tournament-low seventh-round 21 to seize the 126-hole lead at 179. Remarkably, Wall was mired in a three-way tie for thirteenth place after five rounds and stood nine strokes off of the fifth-round lead. At the end of the seventh round, however, Wall had climbed into a three-stroke lead over Newport and Johnson, who were tied for second place at 182. By virtue of a seventh-round 24, 2008 GA State Champion Jeff Carr jumped into contention, in fourth place at 183.

Wall began the final round of the tournament strongly, firing 11 on the outward nine holes to all but ensure victory. Wall sputtered a bit on the final nine holes, registering an untimely bogey on the 15th hole. However, with none of the serious contenders making a major move, Wall coasted to a two-stroke win with an eighth-round 28 for a 144-hole total of 207. Varnadore shot a solid last-round 24 to leap into a share of runner-up honors with Carr at 209. 2006 PPA National Champion Brad Lebo posted a final-round 22 to pole-vault into a three-way, fourth-place tie at 210 with Ward and Newport.

Vanette Block

In the amateur division, 2006 PPA Women's National Champion Vanette Block earned her eleventh Southern Putting Tour amateur division triumph of the 2009 season in dramatic fashion. Trailing seventh-round leader Jimmy Comer by four strokes entering the final round, Block carded an eighth-round 21 to tie Comer at a 144-hole score of 216 and force an 18-hole playoff. Block aced six consecutive holes on the outward nine of the playoff and stepped to the 15th tee with honors and a three-stroke lead. After an untimely bogey by Block at the treacherous 15th hole, however, Comer aced to narrow his deficit to one stroke. After the High Point, NC duo matched aces on the 16th hole, Block made a critical ace on the 17th hole and ultimately defeated Comer by a playoff score of 27-29. First-day co-leader Lance Perdue completed the event in third place at 220. After a lackluster start to the tournament, 1997 PPA High Point Open Champion Rodney Ashley orchestrated a brilliant charge up the amateur leaderboard. Ashley played his final five rounds of the event at 50-under-par to soar into fourth place at 222. At 225, 1993 NC APA State Champion Keith Waters rounded out the top five amateur division finishers.

The Southern Putting Tour extends its collective thanks to Brian Patterson, Bobby Gilmore, and their staff for, as always, graciously welcoming the tour to their beautiful facility with their usual large dose of hospitality. The 2009 Southern Putting Tour schedule concluded with the completion of the 2009 Southern Putting Tour Championship. One professional division team and two amateur division teams will represent the Southern Putting Tour in the Clayton Cup and Hancock Cup competitions, respectively, on the weekend of October 10-11, 2009 on course # 2 at the Lynchburg, VA Putt-Putt Fun Center. Play in those events will commence at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 10 and at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, October 11.