Club champion a team player

Doug Stewart doubled his golfing pleasure last week.

Stewart, from New Brunswick, Canada, first played a key role in Cove Cay Country Club's strong finish in the monthly match of the Pinellas Men's Interclub Association. His 10-man team finished third, earning eight points that vaulted it into first place in the standings with three matches to go.

Crescent Oaks, the host club, won the match and Dunedin was second.

Following that match, Stewart won the club stroke-play title with rounds of 75, 72 and 76 for a 223 total, 11 ahead of defending champion Bryan Belair.

"It's always nice to win anything," said the 49-year-old Stewart, a 4 handicap player who runs a motel and cottages at Fundy National Park in New Brunswick. "Winning the club title again on top of our success at the Interclub is especially gratifying.

"It's challenging from the back tees at Cove Cay, narrow with lots of water. My rounds were steady -- nothing high or low."

Stewart jumped out to a commanding 10-stroke lead in the first round of the club championship when Belair opened with 85. Stewart's 2-over 72 in the second round lengthened the lead.

Bill Armstrong, the director of golf at Cove Cay, said he wasn't surprised Stewart won.

"(He) played well under windy conditions the final day," Armstrong said. "He's a good putter and can really hit the ball long.

"He's one of only three players here who I know of who can clear the water on the 369-yard eighth hole. That requires a carry of over 295 yards."

Howard Holmes, the 2001 club champion, finished third (236), just ahead of Brad Shmeiser (241).

The women's club championship at Cove Cay wraps up this week. Mary Bober is the defending champion.

MORE INTERCLUB: Stewart was paired with Cove Cay member Charles Huhn and the duo shot a better-ball round of 63, tying John Maples and Joe Tobias of Seminole Lake and Bill Grady and Ken Holloway of Dunedin Country Club.

The best two-man score (61) was posted by Ed Armstrong and Mark Wilkins of Countryside.

The Vinoy's Randy Mosley, who consistently finishes among the top pros, prevailed over the 12 pros in the field with a 2-under 70 at Crescent Oaks.

Belleair assistant Jim Slattery took second with 72, followed by the 75s of Steve Purviance of the host club and Cove Cay's Clark Depue.

Going into the April17 match at Belleview Biltmore, Cove Cay has a one-point lead over Lansbrook, followed by the Vinoy, Crescent Oaks and Dunedin.

FLORIDA STATE GOLF: Lee Habjan of Seminole teamed with Sarasota's Larry Flynn to capture a winter series net four-ball match at Wentworth.

Carl Miller and John Darr, both from Gainesville, won the gross division with 133.

Jack Gleason and David Niles of Wentworth teamed for 141 to finish second in Flight 40-54.

WEST COAST WOMEN: The Bayou's Mary Critchfield brought her top game to last week's association match at St. Petersburg Country Club. Her 5-over 77 on the 5,374-yard layout earned her a share of first place in Flight AA with Judy Schmitt of River Wilderness.

Whereas some players' games go south after an errant shot, Critchfield maintained her cool after her tee shot on the par-4 ninth hit the cart path and went out of bounds. She teed it up a second time, reached the green in two and two-putted to salvage a double bogey.

Critchfield is the dual women's club champion at the Bayou Club, winning the stroke- and match-play titles there in 2002.

Three other Pinellas women captured flight titles in the match at St. Petersburg Country Club:

Dean LaFerriere of Cypress Run won Flight A with 79;

Mary Ehlers of Belleair prevailed in Flight B with 80; and

East Lake Woodland's Dorothy Paul captured the D Flight with 87.

In Flight C, the Vinoy's Cathy Moss finished second, posting 86.

ROTARY CLUB OF SEMINOLE: Brothers Bob and Doug Tennant teamed with Michael Nelson and Gary Turrell to win the Rotary Club of Seminole's annual fund-raiser at the Tides Golf Club.

In a scramble format, the winning team posted a 19-under 53.

Still, that only gave the group a one-stroke lead over the team of Randy Lloyd, Steve Back, John Beld and Larry Proehl.

The third-place team was 17-under and included Jim and Bill Sines, Dick Pucaro and John Lisenbee.

SEMINOLE LAKE: For the seventh time, Heri Hernandez captured the annual men's club championship. He had rounds of 70, 67 and 71 for an 8-under 201, 21 strokes ahead of runner-up Bud Williams.

Don Keegan won the senior title for the second time with a 54-hole total of 233.

In the women's division, Northside Christian freshman Danielle Jackson successfully defended her title against 20 competitors, posting rounds of 80, 77 and 79 for a 236 total. She won by 22 strokes.

Jackson, a two-time member of the Times all-county first team, is coached by her father, David, the Times 2002 Girls Coach of the Year.

Nancy Barton won (268) the women's senior title.

COLLEGE GOLF: Clearwater High graduate Jenny Gleason led the University of North Carolina-Greensboro women's team in scoring, this time at the Bradford Creek Intercollegiate tournament in Greenville, N.C.

A senior with a goal of playing on the LPGA Tour, Gleason crafted rounds of 76 and 2-under 70 for a 146, best among the Spartans.

Gleason, who graduates in May with a degree in finance, insurance and real estate, plans to enter the LPGA Qualifying Tournament in August after she competes in the Women's U.S. Amateur. Last year, she missed qualifying for the U.S. Amateur by a single stroke.

"I ranked as high as 35th in the NCAA last year with a 73.3 average and fifth in putting," said Gleason, home on spring break and practicing at East Lake Woodlands. "My short game has improved and I'm now working on my swing plane. I may as well try for the LPGA Tour."

Amanda Dick (Countryside High) finished in a tie for fourth (74-73-71-218), helping the University of Florida team win the SunTrust Lady Gator Invitational in Gainesville among a field of 16 teams.

Kyle Christman (Seminole High) tied for 10th (70-77-147) for runner-up Winthrop in the 18-school Winthrop Waterford Invitational in Rock Hill, S.C.

CGA: The County Golf Association, not limited to Pinellas, is hosting a barbecue and golf skills contests for its members April6 between 4 and 6p.m. at Mangrove Bay.

Reservations may be made at the March27 match at Seminole Lake or the April3 match at Fox Hollow.

The Web site for the CGA is www.countygolf.com.

In a recent CGA match at Seminole Lake, Steve Marcus won with a 3-over 75, edging John Lisenbee and Mark Thomas, both with 77.

Joe Kim took the Net Division with 67 based on his handicap of 12.

Ron Lebedz led the seniors with 73.

COMING UP: The eighth annual Innisbrook Easter Junior Classic is April18-20 on the Island course. It's a Sagarin/Golfweek ranked tournament. Entries have been received from 10 states and England and Canada. The age divisions are boys 14-18, boys 13-and-under, and girls 18-and-under. For an entry form or information, call 942-3737.

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