Out-of-towners claim BancorpSouth championship|[5/22/06]
Published 12:00 am Monday, May 22, 2006
A pair of visitors conquered the unforgiving terrain of the Vicksburg Country Club on Sunday, snagging the BancorpSouth Spring Scramble championship.
Eric Smith of Natchez and Randy Martin of Meadville shot a 62 on Sunday to capture a three-stroke victory in the two-man event. The team of Jamie Creel and Greg Clement tied Kacy Presley and Ben Brooks for second with a two-day total 128.
“We love this course,” Smith said. “It’s like no other course around here with the down-hill lies and side-hill lies. We just wanted to play some different golf.”
Smith and Martin play golf together at the Middlefork Country Club in Franklin County and they said they had played tournaments in Vicksburg before.
“We definitely hit the ball better today,” Smith said. “The wind wasn’t as big a factor today as it was yesterday.”
They shot out to a 63 on a windy first day Saturday and were one-stroke off the lead. Eddie Buckner and Bucky Buckner were tied with Brooks and Presley atop the leaderboard with 62s on Saturday. The Buckners shot a 2-over 72 on Sunday. Presley and Brooks said two holes killed them.
On the fourth hole, the pair missed short par putts and ended up with a bogey, then on No. 17, the pair scored a double-bogey.
Presley was forced to shoot from deep in the woods on 17, then had one of those shots bounced around on the cart path leading to the double bogey.
The two birdied No. 18 to earn a tie for second place.
“With the exception of those two holes, we both played really solid,” said Presley, whose legs were cut up from his trip into the woods on 17. “It took us five minutes just to get an angle on 17.”
Creel and Clement played strong golf, shooting a 62 for the round. A bogey on 18 cost the pair sole possession of second place.
“It feels pretty good,” Martin said. “It makes you feel like you can compete.”
Defending champions Kevin East and Jake Dornbusch shot a 63 on Sunday and finished third, four strokes behind the winners.
“We didn’t make any putts today,” East said. “We hit 14 greens and only made two putts.”