Bobby Schaeffer and Tyler Crawford caught fire on Sunday in the last six holes of the 59th annual SBCC Golf Classic at the Santa Barbara Golf Club.
The veteran amateur players shot 6-under par on holes 13-18, including a hole-in-one by Crawford at the 98-yard 13th hole and a 35-yard eagle putt by Schaeffer at the 18th, to force a playoff.
Schaeffer/Crawford shot 9-under 61 on Sunday to finish at 13-under 127 in the 36-hole, best-ball tournament. They tied Mark Pavletich/Stephen Hale (63-64) for first, then won on the first playoff hole at No. 1 as Schaeffer drained an 8-foot birdie putt with his unique straight-on putting style.
Schaeffer, 55, is a former UCSB player who lives in La Quinta and Pebble Beach. He’s the reigning Santa Barbara City Senior champion.
“Tyler is my dear friend and one of the best Mid-Ams in the country,” said Schaeffer. “We didn’t play our best early on but we hung in there. Then my partner made a hole-in-one on the 13th to get us going.”
Schaeffer, the 11th-place finisher in the Santa Barbara City Championship on May 27, used driver and 5-iron to reach the par-5, 482-yard 18th hole in two.
“I got it to the front of the green and obviously I was a little lucky to make it from the lower tier but it went in dead center and was a nice way to finish,” said Schaeffer of his eagle 3. “He birdied 17 and I birdied 16, so it was a nice ham-and-egg down the stretch.
“We weren’t thinking about winning. We were thinking about top-3 and how much we could get in credit at the pro shop.”
Schaeffer uses an unusual straight-on putting style with his hands about 18 inches apart and a putting stroke between his feet.
“My friends like to call it ‘Schaeff-on’,” said Schaeffer with a chuckle. “It’s face-on putting. I developed a putter than Bryson DeChambeau used on the PGA Tour for a short time. I’m very passionate about putting.”
In the playoff, Schaeffer hit driver and a gap wedge from 94 yards to get within eight feet of the par-4 first hole. “It was dead straight uphill and thank God it went in.”
Bob Becker chipped in for birdie on the 18th to complete a round of 66 and took third place with partner Matt Hertel at 129. First-round leaders, the brothers Scott and Brian Helton (61-68), tied for fourth at 130, along with Ryan Todey/Adam Carter (66-64) and Tom Volz/Paul Smith (63-67).
Former Bishop Diego High players Brandon Gama and John Gilles tied for seventh at 131 with ex-SBHS teammates Preston Gomersall and Isaac Stone.
Schaeffer/Crawford opened with a 66 on Saturday and were tied for eighth coming into Sunday, four strokes off the lead.
Crawford is a 45-year-old from Indio. In 2017, he won the Kelly Cup and Stocker Cup and in-between, he reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Mid-Amateur.
He made a hole-in-one at the short 13th hole with the pin just two steps off the front of the green. The tee shot requires a high-arching shot over the trees.
“I hit a stock sand wedge and I hit a really good shot,” said Crawford. “You want to hit it long and right and let it work off the slope. I was the only one who saw it go in, which was kind of fun.”
Schaeffer/Crawford were in the fifth-to-last foursome and weren’t all that confident when they posted their 13-under score.
“I almost left. We didn’t think we had much of a chance,” said Crawford. “We thought we might finish third.”
The winners three-putted No. 9 for par and bogeyed the par-3 10th.
“We thought that might be the end of our chances, then we made a nice birdie putt at 11,” said Schaeffer.
“This is a gem of a golf course, I’ve been saying that forever,” declared Schaeffer. “That’s why I’ve been coming here forever and the people here are fantastic. This golf course isn’t long but if you’re off your game, it will get you. But it also rewards great play.”
In the San Miguel Flight, Dan Vordale and Daniel Vordale shot their second straight net 62 for a 124 that was seven shots better than Dan Dawson/Steve Klock. Gregory Hash/John Ulman fired a 61 and claimed the Santa Rosa Flight by a single stroke over John Kriger/William Phillips with a 36-hole total of 125.
Chris Dailey/Bryce Schimmel (63-63 for a net 126) held off four teams by a shot to take the Anacapa Flight.
59th Santa Barbara Golf Classic
Santa Cruz Flight (gross scores)
*Bobby Schaeffer / Tyler Crawford 66-61–127
Mark Pavletich / Stephen Hale 63-63–127
Bob Becker / Matt Hertel 63-66–129
Scott Helton / Brian Helton 62-68–130
Ryan Todey / Adam Carter 66-64–130
Tom Volz / Paul Smith 63-67–130
Brandon Gama / John Gilles 64-67–131
Preston Gomersall / Isaac Stone 64-67–131
Ben Tumbel / Mikha Benedictus 66-66–132
Jordan Scott / Ben Scribner 66-66–132
Grady Smith / Nick Engelhardt 63-70–133
Kelly Foy / Preston Foy 70-63–133
Tyler Ley / Scott Botsford 67-66–133
Gabby Minier / Maverick Pavletich 68-67–135
George Downing / David Siordia 68-67–135
Steve Lass / Jeff Wilson 69-66–135
Warren Leary / Keith Brown 68-68–136
Jamie Morton / Thayer White 68-70–138
Geoff Bain / Trey Evans 71-70–141
Joseph Eckert / Brandon Alverado 68-74–142
Bo Willis / Glenn Carter 71-72–143
Nathan Fox / Andrew Damron 71-72–143
Hunter Ingles / Jack Litzelfeiner 72-75–147
Thom Robertson / Michael Montgomery 74-73–147
* Won playoff on first extra hole