Daryl Freeman Captures 2007 Dogwood Open with Virtuoso Performance

24 June 2007 - Charlottesville, VA - On the backdrop of an overcast and calm morning, the Virginia PPA Tour contested its first major tournament of the 2007 season, the Dogwood Festival Open, on the picturesque but enigmatic course # 2 in Charlottesville, VA. PPA Hall of Fame legend Daryl Freeman took advantage of the benign conditions and humbled the overmatched field with a brilliant performance, adding further credence to his status as one of the greatest players in the sport's history. Freeman posted stellar rounds of 24, 25, 27, and 29 for a 72-hole total of 105 and a four-stroke, wire-to-wire victory. The win was the fourth of the 2007 PPA season for the pure-stroking Freeman. After a difficult start to the event, 2006 PPA National Champion Brad Lebo battled his way to 109 to capture runner-up honors. Ken Schooler added to his impressive history in the tournament by carding 110 to finish in third place. At 111, three-time past champion Vince Batten completed the tournament in fourth position. Two-time PPA Seniors National Champion Bill Baus made an inspired second-half charge to surge into fifth place at 117.

In the amateur division of competition, defending champion Conway Coffey canned rounds of 26, 32, 24, and 29 for a 72-hole total of 111 and a four-stroke triumph. The victory was Coffey's third of the 2007 season and gave him his third amateur division major title on the Virginia Tour. 1983 VA State APA Champion Mike Matthews carded a sizzling final-round 24 to charge into a second-place tie with 2006 PPA Women's National Champion Vanette Block at 115. 2007 Southern Open and Eastern Open APA Champion Dennis Biesma finished in fourth place at 117. At 119, 2006 VA Open APA Champion Barry Moore rounded out the amateur division's top five finishers.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the 2007 Dogwood Open (Charlottesville, VA - 24 June 2007)

Vince Batten Posts 83 to Cruise to  Victory in Charlottesville, VA

23 June 2007 - Charlottesville, VA - On a hot, sunny early-summer afternoon, the Virginia PPA Tour contested the first of two weekend events on the beautiful but challenging course # 2 layout in Charlottesville, VA.

The fickle and unpredictable Charlottesville carpets were no match for 2001 PPA World Match Play Champion Vince Batten, who fired rounds of 27, 31, and 25 for a 54-hole total of 83 and a three-stroke victory, his first of the 2007 PPA season. PPA Hall of Fame legend Daryl Freeman notched runner-up honors at 86. 2003 ProPutters.com Classic Champion Greg Newport made an inspired final-round run to finish in third place at 87. Second-round leader Rick Rybaczek struggled in the final round but held on to complete the tournament in fourth position at 89. Rounding out the event's top five finishers at 91 was 2006 PPA National Champion Brad Lebo.

In the amateur division of competition, 2007 Southern Open and Eastern Open APA Champion Dennis Biesma continued to tighten his 2007 stranglehold on the APA competition, carding rounds of 27, 32, and 27 for a 54-hole total of 86 and a six-stroke victory. The win was Biesma's twelfth of the 2007 season in the amateur division. 2006 Dogwood Open APA Champion Conway Coffey secured a distant second-place finish at 92. 2006 PPA Women's National Champion Vanette Block charged from out of the amateur pack in the final round to tie 2004 JPA National Champion John Petrie for third place at 95. At 96, 2006 Virginia Open APA Champion Barry Moore and Lynchburg's Bill Petrie shared fifth position.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the PPA Virginia State Tour Tournament in Charlottesville, VA (23 June 2007)

Bill Baus Wins Four-Man Playoff for Victory in Abingdon, MD

9 June 2007 - Abingdon, MD - On the eve of the PPA Eastern Open, the largest Virginia PPA Tour field of the 2007 season gathered to contest a 54-hole tournament on course # 1 at the beautiful Abingdon, MD Putt-Putt Fun Center facility. On an otherwise sunny and pleasant spring day, violent and swirling winds baffled the players and resulted in much higher field scoring than was anticipated. Two-time Senior PPA National Champion Bill Baus mastered the challenging conditions, firing rounds of 27, 26, and 24 for a 54-hole total of 77 to tie the triumvirate of PPA Hall of Fame legend Daryl Freeman, 1994 SC State Champion Rick Baird, and 2001 PPA National Champion Greg Ward at the end of regulation play.

In the ensuing 18-hole playoff, Baus posted 26 to defeat Freeman by a stroke and Baird and Ward by two strokes. The win was Baus' first of the 2007 PPA season. 2000 Dogwood Open Champion Rusty Taylor completed the tournament in fifth position at 78. In a five-way tie for sixth place at 79, the unassuming quintet of 2006 PPA National Champion Brad Lebo, 1999 PPA Eastern Open Champion Charlie Greenwalt, five-time Texas State Champion Jeff Smith, 2005 PPA National Champion Jay Klapper, and 1997 PPA National Champion Randy Reeves rounded out the event's top ten finishers.

In the amateur division, 2007 APA Southern Open Champion Dennis Biesma continued his 2007 domination of the amateur division by recording his tenth victory of the season. Biesma charged from behind to erase a three-stroke 36-hole deficit to tour dandy James Walker and notch a one-stroke win. Biesma posted rounds of 24, 30, and 25 for a 54-hole total of 79. Walker captured amateur division runner-up honors at 80. Reigning VA APA State Champion Chuck Dibbs and 2006 PPA Women's National Champion Vanette Block shared third place at 82. At 87, 2006 VA Open APA Champion Barry Moore finished in fifth position.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the PPA Virginia State Tour Tournament in Abingdon, MD (9 June 2007)

John Bambling Posts Three Stroke Victory in Abingdon, MD

13 May 2007 - Abingdon, MD - Following heavy overnight rain, the Virginia PPA Tour held the second of two weekend 54-hole tournaments on course # 1 at the picturesque Abingdon, MD Putt-Putt Fun Center amidst violent, perplexing winds. The challenging course conditions were no match for the putting prowess of 2004 PPA National Player of the Year John Bambling, however, as he crafted brilliant rounds of 25, 25, and 24 for a 54-hole total of 74 and a three-stroke victory. The win was the first of the 2007 PPA season for Bambling. 2000 Dogwood Open Champion Rusty Taylor captured runner-up honors at 77. 2001 PPA World Match Play Champion Vince Batten fired 79 to finish in third place. At 80, two-time PPA Seniors National Champion Bill Baus completed the event in fourth position, with 2004 PPA National Doubles Champion Rick Rybaczek rounding out the tournament's top five finishers at 82.

In the amateur division, 1999 VA APA State Champion Malcolm Shumaker survived a closely-contested battle with rounds of 30, 25, and 29 for a 54-hole total of 84 and a one-stroke victory over tour fashion savant James Walker and Monroeville, PA local player Gerald Vick, who tied for second position at 85. Defending champion Conway Coffey finished in fourth place at 86. Another Monroeville, PA local player, Bill Combs, rebounded strongly from a difficult start to the tournament to complete the event in fifth position at 87.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the PPA Virginia State Tour Tournament in Abingdon, MD (13 May 2007)

Brad Lebo Closes with Rounds of 22 and 22 for Victory in Abingdon, MD

12 May 2007 - Abingdon, MD - With the focus of many players already turned towards the looming PPA Southern Open in High Point, NC, a small but competitive field gathered in near-ideal playing conditions to contest the first of two weekend 54-hole Virginia PPA Tour events on course # 1 at the beautiful Abingdon, MD Putt-Putt Fun Center. The facility will host the 2007 PPA Eastern Open on June 10, 2006 PPA National Champion and defending champion Brad Lebo overcame a potentially disastrous start to the event to fire rounds of 29, 22, and 22 for a 54-hole total of 73 and a one-stroke victory, his third of the 2007 PPA season. 2001 PPA World Match Play Champion Vince Batten notched runner-up honors at 74. Northern Putting Tour standout John Bambling made a late charge to finish in third place at 76. At 80, 2004 PPA National Doubles Champion Rick Rybaczek completed the event in fourth position. Playing in his first PPA event in nearly a year, PPA Hall of Fame member Buddy Taylor carded an 80 to round out the tournament's top five finishers.

In the amateur division, 2006 Dogwood Open APA Champion Conway Coffey maintained the theme of the day, recovering brilliantly from an inauspicious beginning to the tournament to card rounds of 32, 25, and 26 for a 54-hole total of 83 and a two-stroke victory. The win was Coffey's second of the 2007 season. Coffey was the beneficiary of the final-round cataclysmic misfortunes of 2004 Dogwood Open APA Champion Dennis Biesma, who recorded a triple bogey on his penultimate hole of the tournament to fall into a second-place tie with 1999 VA APA State Champion Malcolm Shumaker at 85. Two-time VA Open APA Champion Amy Smith finished in fourth position at 86. At 90, 2006 VA Open APA Champion Barry Moore ended the tournament in fifth place.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the PPA Virginia State Tour Tournament in Abingdon, MD (12 May 2007)

Daryl Freeman Defeats Randal Smith in Playoff for Victory in Lynchburg, VA

22 April 2007 - Lynchburg, VA - Greeted by a second-consecutive day of pleasant temperatures and sunshine, the Virginia PPA Tour contested the second of two weekend 54-hole tournaments on course # 2 at PPA Tour Commissioner Joe Aboid's picturesque Lynchburg, VA Putt-Putt facility. With each contestant carding a 54-hole total of 79, PPA Hall of Fame legend Daryl Freeman and 1999 VA State Champion Randal Smith became the first players to post a three-round score below 80 in the two seasons of competition on the newly-designed course # 2 layout. Freeman prevailed over Smith in an 18-hole playoff by a score of 28-33 and in the process captured his second victory of the 2007 PPA season. For the second time in two days, 2001 PPA World Match Play Champion Vince Battenn lost by one stroke, as he fired 80 to complete the event in third place. Sharing fourth position at 81, defending champion Rick Rybaczek and 2004 PPA World Match Play Champion Darrell Anderson rounded out the top five finishers in the tightly-contested tournament.

In the amateur division, 2004 Dogwood Open APA Champion Dennis Biesma continued his 2007 domination of the amateur ranks, carding a 54-hole score of 82 and recording his sixth victory in ten amateur starts this season. Three-time defending champion and overwhelming pre-tournament favorite Conway Coffey fell a stroke short of four-peating on Lynchburg's course # 2, firing 83 to notch runner-up honors. Tour fancy James Walker rebounded heroically from a dismal performance in the previous day's tournament by posting 88 to finish in third place. 2004 JPA National Champion John Petrie completed the event in fourth position at 90. At 91, 1999 VA State APA Champion Malcolm Shumaker and Nickel Silver 49er-wielding local player Wade Driskill tied for fifth place.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the PPA Virginia State Tour Tournament in Lynchburg, VA (22 April 2007)

Rick Rybaczek Fires 82 for
Victory in Lynchburg, VA

21 April 2007 - Lynchburg, VA - On a sunny and pleasant spring day, PPA Tour Commissioner and course owner Joe Aboid welcomed the Virginia PPA Tour to a weekend of tour events on the beautifully-maintained but very challenging course # 2 in Lynchburg, VA. In the first of two weekend 54-hole tournaments, 2004 PPA National Doubles Champion Rick Rybaczek skillfully managed his game through the maze of potential trouble on the course # 2 layout, posting steady rounds of 29, 27, and 26 for a 54-hole total of 82 and a one-stroke victory. The win was the first of the young 2007 PPA season for Rybaczek. 2006 PPA National Champion and three-time defending champion Brad Lebo fell a stroke short of notching a four-peat, firing 83 and sharing runner-up honors with 2001 PPA World Match Play Champion Vince Batten. 2004 APA National Champion Ricky Schults and the recently-surging Tom O'Brien tied for fourth position at 87.

In the amateur division of action, two-time defending champion and prohibitive pre-tournament favorite Conway Coffey lived up to the lofty expectations placed upon him, recording roller coaster rounds of 30, 22, and 29 for a 54-hole total of 81 and a six-stroke victory, his first of the 2007 season. 1999 VA APA State Champion Malcolm Shumaker finished a distant second at 87. Five-time 2007 amateur winner Dennis Biesma completed the event in third place at 90. At 91, 2004 JPA National Champion John Petrie and 2006 Virginia Open APA Champion Barry Moore tied for fifth position.

Scores and story provided by Brad Lebo, Rick Rybaczek and AmPutters.com.

Click here for the complete scores from the PPA Virginia State Tour Tournament in Lynchburg, VA (21 April 2007)