SLIPPERY ROCK— Rob Voltz wants to turn his golf game around and he hopes to use the Butler Eagle Amateur Open as a catalyst for improvement.

The Butler resident and Knoch High golf coach is the defending champion, carding a 65 last year at Hiland Golf Course, and has signed up for this year's event.

The 14th annual Eagle Amateur Open takes place Aug. 10 at Oakview Golf Club. Since 1995, the defending champion has never repeated and there has been only one two-time champion.

Mark Young, who also is in this year's field, won the Eagle Amateur in 1995 and 2002.

"I'm not having a very good year,"Voltz said. "The two events I really wanted to do well in — the West Penn Amateur and West Penn Open — I missed the cut both times.

"Winning this again would go a long way toward improving my summer."

Voltz is unfamiliar with the Oakview course, however, having played there only once in the past three years.

Oakview's club champions of the past two years, Cameron Peterson in 2007 and Geoff Patterson in 2006, will be playing in this year's tournament. Oakview's 2008 club championship event is being played this weekend.

Peterson, a Grove City resident, will be a sophomore at Florida Southern University this fall and is leaving for school the day after the tournament.

"I'm playing better golf now than I have in the past year and a half,"Peterson said. "I've been able to minimize bad shots and my putting has been solid."

Peterson recently played in the U.S. Amateur qualifying tournament at Penn State, recording a 69.

While the field for the single-day, 18-hole format of the Eagle Amateur has proven to be wide open and unpredictable in past years, Peterson thinks it won't be this time around.

"Do I think it's wide open? Not if I'm playing,"he said, only half-jokingly. "I won't play anything if I'm not playing to win."

Former champions rejoining the field this year include Voltz, Mark Young, Chuck Young, Bill Black and Nate Bilski. Former champ Jim Hepler is expected to return as well.

Voltz said course familiarity could be an advantage to some golfers, but "the guy who's putting the best is most likely to win it."

Larry McFeely of Slippery Rock finished second to champions Bilski and Voltz the past two years. He finished four strokes behind Voltz and three behind Bilski.

Though he has played little this year, McFeely registered for the event.

"I haven't played as much because of work,"McFeely said. "I'll go out, give it a shot and see what happens."

McFeely said he plays with the same three golfers — Jim Simmons, Bobby McFeaters and Tim Papley — in the event every year.

Eagle Amateur committee member John Carpenter originally hoped for 180 golfers at this year's tournament. He's amended that number to 150.

"The condition of the economy and gas prices will hold us down somewhat," he said. "Traditionally, a lot of people sign up at the last minute."

A low-gross senior champion will be crowned this year as well. Golfers age 50 and older the day of the tournament qualify as seniors.

"We're still going to award the top three net scores with handicap,"Carpenter said. "But we have so many senior golfers in this event, we decided to have a low-gross senior champion along with the overall champion."

Tee times remain available for shotgun starts of 7:45 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. The four flights include championship (0-6 handicap), 7-12, 13-17 and 18-up handicap.

Entry fee is $70, $50 for Oakview members, and includes greens fees, Skins game by flights, and prizes.

Call Carpenter at 724-794-4040 for details.