Dry on the Bayou - Bayou Classic at Lake Charles

Golf Channel Am Tour Staff, Lake Charles, LA (April 6, 2014)  The Golf Channel Am Tour, hosted its first Major Championship in Louisiana, just a few hours east of the Houston area.

The player's battle with the weather forecast may have been the tougher than the courses.  60%-80% chance of rain on Saturday, with 100% chance of rain and thunderstorms on Sunday gave way to no rain for the event where 12 Champions were crowned and 37 National Championship invitations were extended.

Players attending the event raised $1,200 for David Feherty's Troops First Foundation through the 50/50 raffle.




RESULTS:

Championship Flight:  Spring Branch, TX resident, Mark Miller, put up a pair of 73's with the help of five birdies and one eagle on the weekend. It was Miller's third win on the points season, third Major Championship and seventh victory on tour.  First year player Greg Polledri of Southlake, TX jumped from a first round, third place position for the runner up finish.   Final National Championship qualification went to first time tour player Randy Bailey of West Monroe, LA, three strokes back of Polledri to round out the top three.

Senior Championship Flight:  Louisiana native, Lynn Cormier now residing in Missouri City, TX took the championship in wire to wire fashion, starting the final round with a one stroke advantage and expanding on that lead with a +1 final round.  Cormier's win, marked his third Major Championship and fifteenth win on tour.  Lake Charles, LA local Neill Osborne finished three strokes back for the second place honors with Sapulpa, OK member Curt Howard stamping his ticket to the Nationals for the fifth consecutive year on tour in the third spot.

Palmer Flight:  After a long hard winter between Chicago and Milwaukee, Ken Lang of McHenry, IL shook off the first round rust to shoot a +1 on the final day for his first Major Championship and third win on tour.  Lang, won his last time out in October, before the cold set in, and finished three strokes clear of second place,  Hill Country Tour player, Ron Finnerty of San Antonio, TX.  Finnerty, led going into the final round, struggled on the front nine, but played to +2 on the back to secure the runner up finish.  Three strokes back  Keith Childress of  Diana, TX rounded out the top three in his best finish at six Major Championship events.

Senior Palmer Flight:  Al Smith of Midland, TX took eight strokes off his first day round for his first Major Championship and seventh win on tour.  Three strokes back in second, Dallas Tour player, Mark Taylor of Lewisville, TX carded his best finish on tour at a Major, with a trio of Houston Tour members knotted up in the third place finish. Walter Menuet of Houston, TX, Vidor, TX player Robert Corbello and Todd McLane of Orange, TX finished four strokes off second place sharing the third place honors and final National Championship invitations.   

Hogan Flight:  Orange, TX resident Rick Keszeg birdied his first hole of the event to take a lead and never looked back.  Keszeg carded the low round of the flight on Saturday, combined that with the final round low score to record his fourth win on tour and second of the points season.  Dallas Tour member, Brack Blackwood of Granbury, TX played the Sunday round one stroke back to finish in the runner up spot.  Hill Country player, Derrick Matthews of Killeen, TX carded his best Major Championship finish since the 2012 Emerald Coast Amateur at Sandestin event, rounding out the top three.

Senior Hogan Flight:  Orange, TX players continue to make their mark, with three of the four players accepting National Championship invitations from that town just to the west of Lake Charles.  New Orleans native, Ron Redkey now living in Orange played his first eleven holes in +1 with the help of an eagle on the par 5 - 1st hole at Gray Plantation, and took control to win his first event on tour.  Glynn Aldredge of Orange, TX finished by himself in second with fellow Orange, TX member Ernie Dyer and Spring, TX player Chris Neelley sharing the third place honors.

Sarazen Flight:  Competing in his twelfth event and second Major Championship of the points season, William Dawsey of Tampa, FL picked up his seventh win on tour and third of the year.  Eagle on the final day at the par 5 - 15th at Gray Plantation was plenty for Dawsey to hold out a four stroke advantage over second place finisher Jeremy Fox of Midland, TX.  Fox, a first year player on tour marked his best finish with a three stroke lead over Joe Baugh of New Orleans, LA.

Senior Sarazen Flight:  Houston Tour players,  Mark Maddox of Atascocita, TX , Jim Craig of Felipe, TX and Dallas Tour member Rick Allaire of Dallas started the final round all square.  After contingencies were made for a playoff in the event of a rain shortened event, Oklahoma Tour member,  Stan Wilson slipped ahead of the trio for a one stroke victory. In the end, the three first round leaders were not able to change the order of finish and all shared the second place spot.  It was Wilson's eighth and third Major Championship on tour.

Jones Flight:  Carlos Cruz of San Antonio, TX is on a roll.  In 2013, his third year on tour, Cruz was promoted to the Jones Flight after winning the July 2013 Texas Masters at Barton Creek. Since then he has won four of his last six events, backing up his win at the Pinehurst Amateur Championship  for his third major.  Cruz carded four birdies on the weekend to finish six strokes ahead of runner up,  Woody Casasent  of Katy, TX.  Casasent, in his second year on tour, was just outside the top podium spot at the March Texas Open at Horseshoe Bay for his sixth runner up finish on the year.  Rounding out the final National Championship qualification spot, Patrick Richardson of The Woodlands, TX finished third.

Senior Jones Flight:  Sealy, TX player, Mark Boles won his first event on tour at the 2012 Texas Masters at Barton Creek Major Championship, since that time, he has won a local event and held the runner up spot at three majors until his third win this weekend.  Boles, was a single stroke out of the lead after Saturday's first round, tied the low final round on Sunday and took home the championship, his third win on tour.  Danny Souheaver of Beverly Hills, FL, the leader after the first round, fell one shot short of the win, with Houston, TX resident, Rick Halprin claiming the third place honors.

Snead Flight:  Javier Quintero of Houston, TX came from three strokes off the pace for his first Major Championship.  Quintero took home his seventh win on tour seven strokes clear of Baton Rouge, LA player James Moak.  Hill Country Tour member Mark Colwell of Selma, TX, the winner his last time out at the Texas Open at Horseshoe Bay, rounded out the top three.

Senior Snead Flight:   Somerville, TX resident Myron Brown and Minnesota traveler, Pete Rojas of Champlain, MN went to the final round all square.  Brown would overcome an ugly hole on the par 4 - 9th, his second of the day to finish with a one stroke lead for his third win on tour and his second of the points season.  Rojas would finish tied in the runner up spot with Brookshire, TX player Marcy Glidden, Glidden's fourth runner up finish and second in a major this season.