Winning Return
SLIPPERY ROCK — Having the weekend free, Jeremy Enslen decided to drop in on the Butler Eagle County Amateur, a golf event he hadn't played in years.
He gave himself quite a reunion.
The 1999 Butler High School graduate shot a 3-under-par 67 Sunday at Oakview Golf Club, topping the field of 137 golfers in winning the 24th annual tourney.
Enslen, 37, moved to Uniontown in 2007. He still works in Butler for the family's landscaping business.
“I used to play that tournament every year until I moved out of the area,” Enslen said. “I think I finished as high as second one time.
“This was the first time I've played Oakview in 10 or 12 years.”
Enslen played the morning round and bested that group of golfers by five strokes. Ted Marron, Brent Rodgers and Bob Yuhas all shot 72 in the morning. Yuhas wound up winning the seniors division for the second time in three years.
John Hook, a member at Oakview, played during the afternoon and shot an even-par 70 to finish second.
“I started on hole No. 4, a par-three — and I hate starting on a par-three,” Enslen said. “I hit a bad shot and wound up taking a bogie there.
“I finished strong, though, getting birdies on two of my last three holes.”
Enslen, a member of Uniontown Country Club, made six birdies on the day — No.s 1, 3, 9, 12, 13 and 17 — and had only three bogies.
“It was a pretty consistent round,” he said. “I was happy with it. When I left the course, I didn't know I had that kind of lead.”
Hook was the only one who threatened it the rest of the day.
“I left a lot of shots out there today,” Hook said. “I feel like I could have won this.
“I was unaware of the leading score until maybe halfway through my round. I knew I had to finish strong to get in there and that didn't happen.”
Hook began on the No. 3 hole. He had two birdies and no bogies on the back nine and was 1-under with two holes to play. He bogeyed No. 1, however, which took him out of the running for the championship.
Enslen finished fifth in the PIAA Tournament as a member of the Butler golf team his senior year. He went on to play at Butler County Community College.
The Eagle Amateur marked Enslen's second tourney win this summer. He won the Monongahela Valley Amateur in Morgantown, W. Va., in June.“A lot of good golfers under-performed out there today,” Hook said of the Eagle Amateur. “That's how it can go in a one-day tournament like this. There's a lot of pressure.“When you know you're chasing a certain score, that can change the way you play or approach a hole, too.”In the women's division, Jane Wymer dethroned two-time defending Eagle Amateur champion Paige Scott in a one-hole playoff. Both shot an 80 through 18 holes.Wymer won the women's division for the third time. She is a multiple Butler Country Club women's champion who won the Eagle Amateur in 2012 at Oakview and 2015 at Cranberry Highlands.“I love playoffs,” Wymer said. “I've been in a bunch of them and they are so much fun.“Paige is a good, young player. She is a tough competitor.”Scott is entering her freshman year at Butler High School.Ken Fair won the first flight, shooting a 74 and defeating DJ Ealy in a one-hole playoff. A third golfer, Ryan Kerr, carded a 74 in the first flight, but played in the morning round and did not come back.Dennis Tilko shot a 77 to win the second flight. Art Rauschenberger shot an 85 in winning the third flight, defeating Ron Vodenichar in a one-hole playoff.Committee member Rob Voltz said he was happy with the 137-golfer turnout.“The championship flight is always strong in this event and we've been getting good turnouts consistently for this tournament,” Voltz said. “Where our numbers can grow are in the second and third flights, and women's division.“Most golfers with higher handicaps don't play tournaments, but this is a good one. We could have as many as 180 or 200 golfers in this event if more of them would decide to play.”The 25th annual Butler Eagle County Amateur will be played Aug. 11, 2019, at Hiland Golf Course.
