2002 Highlights - Valero Golf Club

	Winner		Runner-Up
Player of the Year	M. Cook	132	N. Williamson	112
Points Champion	M. Cook	46.5	M. Williamson	43.0
Scoring Champion	M. Osada	67.60	S. Cusrer	71.14
Pyramid Tournament	R. Yarbrough		M. Cook
Winners Tournament	M. Cook	68	N. Williamson	69
Valero Cup Tournament	M. Hurst	71	S. Cook, D. Pearce	74
Club Championship	D. Richey	43 pts	R. Yarbrough	41 pts
Low Gross Club Champion	M. Cook	83	N. Williamson	84
Barbara Juris Award	S. Cook
Most Improved Handicap	M. Osada	31.6-24.9	S. Custer	28.8-26.2
Most Improved Player	S. Custer		M. Osada

Most Tournament Wins	M. Cook	3
	N. Williamson	3
Most Eagles	none
Most Birdies	M. Cook	11
Most Long Drives	M. Hurst	4
Most Closest to the Pin	M. DeHart	2
	R. Morgan	2
	D. Riley	2
	N. Williamson	2

Number of Tournaments	12
Avg. # of players per tournament	23
# different players winning first place	18
# different players winning second place	16
# of players eligible for the Winners Tournament	23

Valero Golf Club Records set or tied	Previous Record or Runner-UP
Lowest Career Scoring Average for the Year
67.60 – M. Osada, 2002 (post hdcp. slope method)	67.83 – D. Riley, 2000
Most Winners Tournament Wins
3 – M. Cook, 1974, 1997, 2002	3 – D. Pearce, 1972, 1999, 2001
	3 – C. Reyes, 1978, 1979, 1983
Most Valero Cup Tournament Wins
2 – M. Hurst, 2001, 2002	2 – R. Turner, 1985, 1986
	2 – D. Riley, 1993, 1995
	2 – N. Williamson, 1997, 1998
Course Record – Low Gross Score
7 over par, 79, N. Williamson, Bethel Island, 2002	7 over par, 79, M. Cook, Bethel Island, 1998

Notes:

First Time Winner – Rick Simonson (2), Michael Katz

Achieved 600 Tour. Points, Mike Cook – 632.0

Achieved 350 Tour. Points, Dave Pearce – 355.5

Achieved 300 Tour. Points, Denzil Storbeck – 316.5

Achieved 250 Tour. Points – John Ortiz – 253.0

Achieved 200 Tour. Points, Sandie Cook – 225.0

Achieved 200 Tour. Points, Nemon Williamson – 204.0

Achieved 100 Tour. Points, Rob Yarbrough – 114.0

Achieved 100 Tour. Points, Bob Simonson – 114.5

Achieved 100 Tour. Points, Ed Vegas – 101.5

Achieved 50 Tour. Points, Sheldon Custer – 56.5

2002 Highlights

The 32 nd Valero Golf Club season started out on a soggy March 23rd, in fact it rained so hard just prior to play that the offical tournament had to be cancelled. 17 of the 23 players who had signed up to play showed up anyway and with the weather half way decent the decision was made to play the 17th annual Tom Stead memorial scramble tournament. The team of Floyd Duggins, Dave Pearce, Darwin Richey and Jim Spurgeon won the tournament. The team of Bob and Jim Aton, Dave Bryant and John Ortiz finished second. Taking third place was the Larry Campbell, Mike and Sandie Cook and Marv Smith team. Nemon Williamson, Rick Carr, Ken Dorsey, John Hill and Sheldon Custer did not play a scramble format and played individually. No one hit the CP green on the tough seventh hole, John Ortiz won the other CP. Nemon Williamson and Ken Dorsey won the LD’s. We did have some Tom Stead weather as two large thunder showers came through during play. The fairways did have some standing water but were firm and playable. Only two greens #’s 14 & 15 had standing water on them. Our tournament deposit was carried over to next year so the tournament results were declared offical. Thanks to all of you that played and contributed and also those who didn’t play but stll contributed their money. We raised $150.00 for the American Heart Association in “Tom’s” name. Total to date $4421.00.

The best-ball tournament at Tilden G.C. on April 6th was finished in the dark. A combination of a late starting time of 1pm and slow play in front of us, the tournament was called complete after 16 holes were finished by the field. The course was in fair condition but the greens having been aerated were extremely slow and bumpy. The Bob and Rick Simonson team won the first flight with a net 56. ( Rick’s first tournament win ) The Ken Dorsey, Rod Robinson team took second place with a 58. The Mike Cook, Neal Stachowicz team was third. The second flight was won by the Sheldon Custer, Dan Riley team and the Kevin Peck, Rob Yarbrough team with 58’s. The Custer, Riley team won the tie breaker for Winners Tournament eligibility. Finishing second was the team of Steve Blotzer and John Ortiz with a 59, in third was last years winning team of Dave Pearce and Jim Spurgeon. Dan Riley and Rod Robinson won the CP’s with Kevin Peck and Rob Yarbrough taking the LD’s. Rob Yarbrough took the points lead to start off the year. Dan Riley took the scoring average lead. Rob Yarbrough had two birdies for net eagles. Steve Blotzer and Dave Pearce also had birdies for net eagles. The temperature was in the sixties with bright sunshine to start with but it became very chilly after the sun went down on the back nine. The first three teams did complete 18 holes but their scores were only counted thru 16 holes to match the rest of the field. The Tournament was sponsored by Debbie and Sonny Menzel who provided the prizes for the winners which including wine and candy for everybody that played.

Our historic first weekday tournament ever was held at Diablo Creek G.C. on a very cool and windy Friday, April 26th. We started play at 1 pm ( moved up from 2 pm ). In the first flight Mike Katz won his first Valero tournament with a net 68. Finishing second was home course favorite John Ortiz, Mike Cook took third place. Rick Simonson with a net 63 ran away with the second flight for his second win in a row and his first individual tournament win. Finishing second was Sheldon Custer with the trio of Sandie Cook, Mike Narodzonek and Rob Yarbrough tying for third place. Rollin Podwys and Bob Simonson won the CP’s, Mike Katz and Nemon Williamson took the LD’s. Ken Dorsey had two birdies and tied Steve Blotzer and Rob Yarbrough for the birdies lead. Rick Simonson took over the points lead from Rob Yarbrough, Mike Katz took over the scoring lead from Dan Riley. In first round Pyramid play it was Rob Yarbrough over last years defending champion Matt Hurst. Karl Fails played in his first tournament after establishing a handicap. The field made nine birdies, four coming on the short par 3 seventeenth hole. Rob Yarbrough was presented a plaque, a card and gifts in appreciation for his 9 years as the Golf Club’s Tournament Director. Dave Pearce was presented his Hall of Fame certificate.

Paradise Valley G.C. was again the site for our Club Championship on May 18th. We played on a cool day with a very very strong westerly wind blowing. Play was started on the front nine. We again used the modified stableford points system plus handicap to determine the Club Champion. For the second year in a row the Club Champion came out of the second flight. The Club Championship was determined on the 18th hole. Rob Yarbrough after making par into a strong wind on the 15th, 16th and 17th holes came to the last hole with 43 points but made a triple bogey and lost two points. Veteran Valero Club golfer Darwin Richey came to the 18th hole with 41 points and made a par giving him 43 points for his first major win. Darwin had previously finished second in the 1976 and 1980 Winners Tournaments and also tied for first place in the 1984 tournament but did not participate in the playoff. Finishing second in the second flight was Rob Yarbrough with 41 points, in third was Mike Osada with 39 points. For the second year in a row in the first flight, Mike Cook took first place with 38 points, this time tying with Dave Pearce who also had 38 points. Denzil Storbeck closely followed in second place with 37 points. Rick Simonson continuing his good play claimed third place with 36 points. Ed Vegas won the long drive on the 5th hole and also won the CP on the 12th hole. John Ortiz won the long drive on the 13th hole. Nemon Williamson won the CP on the 3rd hole. Rick Simonson maintained his tournament points lead. Mike Osada took over the scoring average lead. Mike Cook had three birdies and took over the birdies lead. To date in first round Pyramid play it was Dave Pearce over Sheldon Custer and Rollin Podwys over Steve Blotzer. Mike Cook and Denzil Storbeck were presented their Hall of Fame certificates.

The next weekday tournament and the first ever on a Thursday took place at Franklin Canyon G.C. on June 6th starting at 2 pm. The Tournament was sponsored by Kevin Peck and Rob Yarbrough therefore it was the “Greater Peckbrough Open”. They provided generous gift certificates in each flight for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places and plaques for the first and second flight winners. Mike Cook won the first flight for his second tournament win in a row. Nemon Williamson finished in second place with Denzil Storbeck third. The second flight was won by Sandie Cook. Karl Fails and Sonny Menzel tied for second place with Debbie Menzel taking third. Mike Cook took over the points lead from Rick Simonson, Mike Osada maintained his scoring average lead. Karl Fails won his first tournament points. Rick Morgan won both closest to the pins. Mike Katz and Matt Hurst won the long drives. To date in first round Pyramid play it was Mike Cook over Rick Carr, Nemon Williamson over Dan Riley and Debbie Menzel over Kevin Peck This was the first tournament of the year that the wind was not a big factor, we played at the tail end of the first heatwave of the year. The greens were uncharacteristically slow for Franklin Canyon G.C.

Even though it was the first day of summer heavy winds and cool conditions prevailed at the Friday, June 21st tournament at Blue Rock Springs – East G.C. Nemon Williamson stayed warm enough to win the first flight. One stroke back was Kevin Peck taking second place, another stroke back was Ken Dorsey in third. Mike Narodzonek ran away with the second flight shooting a net 65. Rob Yarbrough took second place with Sandie Cook in third. Ken Dorsey and Dave Pearce won the CP’s, Kevin Peck and Ed Vegas won the LD’s. Mike Cook and Mike Osada maintained their points and scoring average leads. In first round Pyramid play it was John Ortiz over Larry Campbell and Ken Dorsey and Sandie Cook tying their match which will be replayed. In second round play it was Dave Pearce over Debbie Menzel. Putt of the day, Mike Cook lipped out a par putt on the 4th hole which ended up about 2 feet away and pin high. His next putt stopped just above the hole and as the foursome watched it made one move towards the hole and then stopped. About five seconds later it moved again and fell in the hole. Good things come to those who are patient. Putting was difficult as the greens were unusually slow, only 3 birdies for the entire field.

The first “Matt Hurst Shootout featuring Rick Carr” took place at Bethel Island G.C. on Saturday, July 20th. We played in the best weather conditions so far this year as the temperature was in the high eighties with a mild westerly wind. Taking advantage of the good weather were Neal Stachowicz and Nemon Williamson tying for first place in the first flight. Nemon shot a record tying gross 79 and won his second tournament in a row. Matt Hurst and Denzil Storbeck tied for second place with Mike Cook taking third. In the second flight it was Mike Osada in first place followed closely by Sheldon Custer in second and Debbie Menzel in third. Mike DeHart and Dan Riley won the CP’s, Matt Hurst and Sheldon Custer took the LD’s. Shot of the day, Mike Cook holed out a 72 foot chip shot for birdie 3 on the # 1 handicap fifth hole. In first round Pyramid play it was Ken Dorsey over Sandie Cook in their rematch. In second round play it was Mike Cook over Nemon Williamson. Mike Cook barely maintained his points lead while Mike Osada strengthened his scoring average lead. The field took advantage on the good playing conditions making 10 birdies. Matt and Rick gave out tee prizes for everyone and prizes for the winners including the now traditional purple jacket that each winner wore while having their pictures taken.

Summer came on with a vengence for the August 9th tournament at Cypress Lakes G.C., the temperature over 100 degrees together with a 2pm starting time made for some very hot play. The hottest golfers were in the second flight with Sandie Cook, Sheldon Custer and John Ortiz tying in first place with net 67’s. Bob Boyer finished in second place and won his first tournament points after shooting a gross 39 including 3 birdies on the tough back nine. Mike Narodzonek took third place. In the first flight it was Dave Pearce first, Mike Cook second and Nemon Williamson third all separated by one stroke. Mike Katz and Rick Carr won the LD’s. Mike DeHart and Mike Cook won the CP’s. Mike Cook shot a 38 on the front nine and maintained his points lead for the year. Mike Osada who didn’t play maintained his scoring average lead. Shot of the day; Denzil Storbeck holed out a long bunker shot on the par three 3rd hole for a birdie 2. The greens were in excellent shape as the field made 13 birdies. Bob Boyer qualified for the Winners Tournament to bring the total to 21 for the year so far. John Ortiz with his win moved to within 11.5 tournament points needed to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The conditions were tough for the “Boyd Cook Memorial Classic” held at Kennedy G.C. on Thursday, August 29th with a 2 pm start time. The temperature was in the low seventies with a very strong westerly wind blowing. Unaffected by the conditions was Mike Osada who shot a net 64 and won the second flight going away. Sheldon Custer took second place with a net 68, Sandie Cook finished in third place. Nemon Williamson won the first flight after shooting a gross 39 on the back nine, also winning a long drive and a closest to the pin. Mike Cook finished in second place and won the other long drive. Mike DeHart and Dave Pearce tied for third place. Rob Yarbrough won the other closest to the pin. Nemon Williamson took over the tournament points lead by 1/2 point over Mike Cook. Mike Osada again strengthened his scoring average lead for the year. No new players qualified for the Winners Tournament. There were no birdies for the entire field of 20 players. We had net scores in the 80’s, 90’s and 100’s. Mike and Sandie Cook sponsored the tournament and provided each player with a much needed sleeve of golf balls before they teed off. They also provided the gift certificates for first, second and third place winners in each flight. Boyd Cook was posthumously presented his certificate into the Hall of Fame, his son Brian Cook accepted on his behalf.

Delta View G.C. on Saturday, September 14th was the last chance to qualify for the Winners Tournament. Debbie Menzel won the second flight as she had previously done in 2000 and qualified. Sandie Cook finished second one stroke back with Rick Simonson taking third. Matt Hurst won the first flight, also won both the long drives and had two birdies for 11 tournament points. Ken Dorsey finished in a tie for second with Neal Stachowicz and became the last of 23 players to qualify for the Winners Tournament. Mike Cook after shooting a gross 39 on the front nine held on for third place. Rick Simonson and Sonny Menzel won the closest to the pins. Rick Carr had two birdies. Mike Osada did not play but kept his scoring average lead for the year. Mike Cook regained the points lead for the year by two points over Nemon Williamson. The conditions were good, temperature in the low eighties and a fairly mild wind for Delta View. The back nine greens were severe with some pins in impossible positions, you could putt uphill, see the ball stop and then watch the ball come back to you, very unfair. In second round Pyramid play it was Ken Dorsey over Rollin Podwys and Rob Yarbrough over John Ortiz.

The 32nd annual Winners Tournament was played for the second year in a row at Rancho Solano G.C. on September 29th. The temperature was in the low seventies with a moderate wind which picked up on the back nine. Nineteen of the twenty three eligible players played plus five ineligible for a total of twenty four. Mike Cook after shooting a gross 79 (38+41) captured his third Winners Tournament.( ties a record ) Finishing second with an idential gross score (38+41) was Nemon Williamson. Mike Katz and Mike Osada tied for third place. Nemon Williamson and Brian Skinner won the long drives. Sandie Cook won the closest to the pin on the eight hole for the second year in a row. Mike Narodzonek won the CP on the 15th hole. Mike Osada won the Scoring Average Championship at 67.60. ( a new post hdcp. slope scoring record ) Mike Cook won the Points Championship and was also the birdie leader for the year with 11.

The 16th Valero Cup tournament was played for the first time at Chardonnay – Vineyards G.C. on October 12th. The temperature was in the mid eighties with very little wind blowing. Last years defending champion Matt Hurst won again for his second Cup win ( ties a record ) and his third major title. Sandie Cook and Dave Pearce tied for second place with Rick Simonson taking third. Other top eight players included; Mike Cook, Mike Osada, Sheldon Custer and Nemon Williamson.

Due to scheduling conflicts the Pyramid Tournament was not completed in 2002. In semi-final play it was Mike Cook over Dave Pearce in November, 2002. Rob Yarbrough won his semi-final match over Ken Dorsey in April, 2003. Mike and Rob played the Pyramid finals at Cypress Lakes G.C. in May, 2003 with Rob winning his first Pyramid Tournament.

Rob Yarbrough will have his name engraved on the “Tom Stead Trophy” as the winner of the 26th Pyramid Tournament, ( $60.00 ). Finishing second was Mike Cook ( $28.00 ). Low net money went to Ken Dorsey ( $20.00 ), Debbie Menzel ( $16.00 ), Ken Dorsey ( $14.00 ), John Ortiz ( $12.00 ) and Sandie Cook ( $10.00 ).

By winning the Points Championship for the year, finishing fifth in tournament Scoring Average and runner-up in the Pyramid Tournament, Mike Cook was the Valero Golf Club’s “Player of the Year” for 2002.

The 8th annual Revenge at Kennedy Scramble Tournament was played on a beautiful fall day on October 26th with the temperature in the high sixties. Shooting a 12 under par score of 60 the team of Rick Carr, John Hill and Rob Yarbrough won the tournament. Finishing in a tie for second was the team of Larry Campbell, Mike and Sandie Cook, Marv Smith and the team of Mike DeHart, Neal Stachowicz and Nemon Williamson. Taking third place was the Karl Fails, Sue Gustofson, Mike Katz and Bob Simonson team. Closest to the Pins went to Mike DeHart, Sonny Menzel, John Hill and Debbie Menzel. It was a good way to end the golf year, everyone had fun, and all the teams shot good scores.

2002 was the first year for the Valero Golf League, nine hole team play starting at 4:30 pm every Thursday afternoon at Kennedy G.C. in Napa. The League was started by Neal Stachowicz and ran from April through October with four teams of four to six players competing against each other in a combination of medal and match play. Each week two players from one team would play two players from another team according to a regular schedule. Every four weeks was position week requiring four players from each team to play, the first place team against the second place team, the third against the fourth. At the end of the regular season the first place team ( the Rovers ) received a bye, the second place team ( the Seadlings ) and third place team ( the Hackers Unlimited ) played off on Sept. 5th to determine who would play the top team. The Hackers Unlimited won. The Championship match this year held on Sept. 12th ended in a tie requiring a tie breaker to determine the first Valero Golf League Championship Team. The first place Rovers Team won, the team members were Mike and Sandie Cook, Mike DeHart, Karl Fails, Ken Marden and team captain Dave Pearce. The second place team was the Hackers Unlimited consisting of team captain Sheldon Custer, Willie Grinslade, Debbie and Sonny Menzel and Rob Yarbrough. The third place team was the Seadlings consisting of Tony Alilin, Mike Katz, Dan Kilkenny, Paul Masta, Al Middleton and team captain Neal Stachowicz. Finishing in last place after waiting too long to make their championship run was Team Albatross which included Bob Boyer, Rick Carr, John Hill, Captain Matt Hurst and Glen Overman. Year long individual honors went to Mike Cook, low gross of 40, Mike DeHart and Neal Stachowicz, low net of 32 and Sheldon Custer who was the most improved player. In post season tournament play; in the two club tournament it was Dan Kilkenny with a net 33, in the two person best-ball it was Mike DeHart – Ken Marden with a net 31, in the two person worst ball it was Neal Stachowicz – Dan Kilkenny with a net 44, in the three club tournament it was Mike DeHart with a net 37 and in the point tournament it was Debbie Menzel winning with 18 points.

This golf year comes to a close, with weekday tournament play, players sponsoring tournaments and the addition of the new Valero Golf League it made for a very unique year. Our thanks go out to Debbie Menzel for doing an outstanding job as our Tournament Director in her first year. We’re looking foward to next year with more weekday tournaments planned and more player sponsored tournaments.

Mike Cook