By Chris Chaney
Sports Editor
The 106th Annual Tony Blom Metropolitan Amateur Championship made its way out of Clermont County this year, but not without a handful of hangers-on in tow to Western Hills Country Club.
Stillmeadow Country Club hosted last year’s event, bringing 168 players to the county for a week’s worth of golf, eventually identifying University of Cincinnati senior golfer Jared Howard as its champion.
With the tournament moving from the east to the west side of Cincinnati last week, a number of locals made the trip to the other side of town including a trio of names that are familiar to the high school golf scene in Clermont County.
Reigning Southern Buckeye Conference Players of the Year Mitchell McElfresh of Bethel-Tate and Chris Mazzaro of New Richmond were two of the 15 competitors who call Clermont County golf courses home.
Jake Brinker, a sophomore at Northern Kentucky University and alumni of Amelia High School, was also in the field.
The Met is a marathon of a tournament asking the eventual winner to play 36 holes of stroke play and then navigate his way through six more rounds of match play. Following the first two days of stroke play split between Western Hills and Blue Ash Golf Course, the top 64 scorers advance to a bracketed match play format until a winner is crowned.
Of the 15 area representatives, Friendly Meadows Golf Course, just outside of Hamersville, led the way with four competitors, although none of the quartet were able to advance past the stroke play portion of the tournament.
Rick Harmon missed out by shot, posting rounds of 74 (3-over par at WHCC) and 82 (10-over par at BAGC). A seven-way playoff for six spots was held for golfers who shot a combined 12-over par across the two days.
McElfresh shot 15-over combined in his two stroke-play rounds, 81 (WHCC) and 77 (BAGC) to finish three strokes out of the playoff to advance.
Andy Kelley shot rounds of 83 (WHCC) and 82 (BAGC) to post 22-over and Ryan Canter fired 86 (WHCC) and 83 (BAGC) to shoot 26-over.
The Oasis Golf Club entered three competitors into the Met and had two advance to the match play portion of the event.
Colin Joseph, a Loveland High School alum and current Toledo Rocket, finished in a tie for 16th after 36 holes of stroke play after rounds of 74 (WHCC) and 75 (BAGC).
Joseph won his first round match against Tim Gardner of Miami View Golf Club, 5 and 4. He fell in the round of 32 to Robert Pickett of Sharon Woods Golf Course in 19 holes.
Also advancing out of stroke play and representing Oasis was Bob Spencer. Spencer shot stroke play rounds of 81 (BAGC) and 73 (WHCC) to tie for 49th. He would lose his first-round match to Jimmy Chia of Ivy Hills Country Club.
Jim Dicker, the third Oasis competitor, missed out on qualifying through to stroke play by shooting rounds of 78 (WHCC) and 85 (BAGC).
Stillmeadow Country Club also sent a trio of players to compete. Brinker, Mazzaro and Chris Dunne of McNicholas represented the Clermont County course, but none of the three were able to advance to the match play.
Brinker came the closest to the one-on-one competition by shooting rounds of 77 (BAGC) and 79 (WHCC) to miss the playoff by a stroke.
Dunne and Mazzaro didn’t come as close as Brinker with back-to-back rounds in the 80s dooming their chances.
Dunne shot rounds of 81 (BAGC) and 83 (WHCC) to finish at 21-over while Mazzaro’s 85 (BAGC) and 80 (WHCC) left him at 22-over par.
Elks Run Golf Club in Batavia sent a pair of representatives to the west side in Brian Sweeney and Bryan Andersen.
Sweeney’s stroke play rounds of 80 (BAGC) and 73 (WHCC) qualified him through in T42. He lost in the round of 64, 4 and 3, to Brad Wilder of Summit Hills Country Club.
Andersen missed out on a qualifying chance by four strokes, shooting rounds of 81 (WHCC) and 78 (BAGC) on Monday and Tuesday.
Lastly, Stonelick Hills Golf Club sent a two players, Phil Sheldon and Zach Schmidt, to compete.
While neither were able to qualify for match play, Sheldon was just three strokes shy. He shot a pair of 79s to leave him at 15-over par.
Schmidt shot a 77 at Western Hills backed up by an 87 at Blue Ash to post 21-over and miss the playoff for qualification by nine shots.
La Salle High School outgoing senior Daniel Wetterich, playing out of Clovernook Country Club, ended up winning the event on Saturday, June 27 with a 2 and 1 victory over Chris Rossi of Weatherwax Golf Course.
The 100th Annual Women’s Metropolitan Amateur Championship teed off on Monday at Cincinnati Country Club.
Milford High School outgoing senior and reigning Eastern Cincinnati Conference Player of the Year Megan Creager was scheduled to participate.
Complete scores and brackets for both the men’s and women’s Mets, as well as other area tournaments, are available on the Greater Cincinnati Golf Association website at gcga.org.