September 14, 2008
Bill
Manske of Algona won the Senior Match Play Championship on Saturday at
Fort Dodge CC. Manske defeated Stephen Larson of Urbandale in the
final match 1 up. The Senior Match Play, which is traditionally
held in the spring, had to be rescheduled due to the heavy rains and
flooding that plagued the state early in the year.
Manske was tied for the lead in the Iowa Senior Player of the Year point race with Jim Curell of Boone heading into the match play and the two battled head-to-head for the second time this year in the Semifinals. Curell, who managed a 3&1 victory over Manske in the IGA Match Play in June, this time fell 1 up when Manske made an 8-footer on the 18th hole.
Larson earned his trip to the finals with a 1 up victory over 2009 Iowa Senior Amateur Champion Joel Yunek of Mason City in the semis.
The victory was the fifth senior title for Manske this summer. He also won the senior divisions of the Iowa Masters, Lake Creek Amateur, Northwest Amateur and Herman Sani Invitational. He now holds a slight lead over Curell in the POTY race with only the senior division of the Iowa Mid-Amateur left to play.
View the Senior Match Play Bracket