Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2011 - 38

(score card
)
Swedberg's Second 68 Seals Minnesota
Golf Champions Victory
By Mike Fermoyle
Photos by Mark Brettingen & W.P. Ryan
By the 14th hole on Sunday, May 8, at Minneapolis Golf Club,
Brett Swedberg, the former state high school champion from
Alexandria, had the tournament pretty well locked up.
He shot his second straight 4-under-par 68 and fi nished
the weekend at 206, which earned him his second Minnesota
Professional Major championship. His fi rst came at the
2009 State Open.
Swedberg, a former Division II All-American at St. Cloud
State, said afterward that one of the key holes for him on
Sunday was the 347-yard ninth. He was worried about hitting
his drive into the bunker 20 yards short of the green, so
he laid up with a three-wood. Except that he blocked it 30
yards right of the fairway.
" That was a horrible shot, " he says, laughing a little. " But
I was able to hit a wedge (the 58-degree again) onto the
green from there. I had to hit it straight up into the air to
get it over the trees, but I did, and made another 10-footer
for birdie. "
By the time the fi nal group got to the 500-yard, par-5
12th, it wasn't just raining. It was pouring. But by then,
Swedberg had things under control.
" Considering the conditions, I played really well, " he says.
Brett Swedberg
( TOP GOLFERS
MINNESOTA GOLF CHAMPIONS
Brett Swedberg (p) Alexandria CC 70-68-68-206-10 $2,000
Joe O'Brien (p)
Andy Paulson (p) University GC 70-71-70-211-5 $900
Donald Constable (a) Spring Hill GC 72-70-70-212-4 -
Don Berry (p)
Edinburgh USA 70-67-75-212-4 $800
Club Pros Benoit, Chiles & Berry Get Through
Open Qualifi er, Along with Blenkush
Club professionals grabbed three of the
four spots available May 17 in the Open
Qualifying at Minneapolis GC, and a
pair of teaching pros-Luke Benoit of
Rush Creek and Eric Chiles of Chaska
Town Course-set the pace.
Both shot 1-under-par 71s in similar
ways, making two birdies and one
bogey as each claimed a 50-percent
share of medalist honors.
Next came a mini-tour pro, Cory
Blenkush, the former Pine-toPalm
champ who has been playing
for money since graduating from
DePaul two years ago. He shot 72.
Earning the last spot was Don Berry,
the head professional at Edinburgh USA.
Luke Benoit
36
MINNESOTAGOLFER Summer 2011
www.mngolf.org
While Berry is an old pro at making the
sectional stage of Open qualifying (he
says it's his 17th or 18th time), for
Chiles, Benoit and Blenkush, this will
be their fi rst time at a sectional.
" I must have tried 18 or
20 times, " said the 39-yearold
Chiles, who taught at the
ESPN Golf Academy (under
Hank Haney) before coming
to Chaska Town Course to become
the Director of Instruction
there in 2009.
Unlike the other three
qualifi ers, Chiles picked
Cincinnati as the place
where he wanted to play
the sectional qualifi er. Benoit, Blenkush
and Berry will all try their luck in the sectional
at St. Charles CC in St. Charles,
Ill., near Chicago.
Minneapolis GC 69-71-70-210-6 $1,200
Eric Chiles
Cory Blenkush
( TOP GOLFERS
U.S. OPEN LOCAL QUALIFYING
Luke Benoit
Eric Chiles
Cory Blenkush
Don Berry
71
71
72
73
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Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2011

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