In the end, the lightning-fast, roller-coaster greens at Paradise Valley Country Club took their toll on those competing in the PING/Southwest Section PGA Championship.
Even the eventual champion, Tucson’s Jay Synkelma, admitted he “just kind of hung on’’ for his three-stroke victory over Scott Frisch and Ralph West.
“It just feels good to win again, to prove to myself that I still can,’’ said the 43-year-old instructor at the Hilton El Conquistador, who also won this event in 2001.
Synkelma, who went into Wednesday’s final round with a one-shot lead, broke loose from the pack with birdies at the 12 th, 14 th and 16 th holes, finishing with a 1-under-par 69 that left him at 7-under 203. The victory was worth $5,000.
Asked what got him to the winner’s circle, Synkelma never hesitated. “The best part of my game has been my putter over the last couple of years.’’
He needed it, as any putt from above the cup became treacherous. And reading the relatively small greens was no easy task, either.
“(The putts) were so fast, especially downhill. Those were superfast,’’ acknowledged Synkelma, who actually made his big move on Tuesday when he fired a tournament-best 64.
West, the pro at Desert Mirage in Glendale, made his best finish in this event with a 67, while Frisch shot 68. Synkelma’s closest pursuer, however, was Scottsdale’s Scott Watkins, who ended up fourth, his closing 70 leaving Watkins four strokes behind the winner.
“Jay was struggling a little on the front (nine), and I had a lot of good opportunities but didn’t make the putts,’’ Watkins explained. “Then I double bogeyed the 11 th hole and bogeyed the 12 th, and he made par-birdie there, which was a four-shot swing.’’
From that point, Synkelma led by four strokes before a meaningless bogey at the 17 th defined the final margin.
Even the SWPGA’s hottest player at the moment, Scottsdale’s Don Yrene, came away perplexed by Paradise Valley CC’s slick putting surfaces after tying for ninth place.
“The putting was very tough, and I just didn’t hit it very well,’’ conceded Yrene, who came into this event as the heavy favorite after finishing as the low club pro at the recent PGA Championship. “I finally got it going a little bit today (68).’’
Among the other notables, Rio Verde’s Jane Noble, only the third female to ever play in the section championship, ended up with a 75 and a 10-over total to tie for 33 rd place. Noble, the first female to ever make the cut in this event, played the course from 88 percent of its 6,502-yard total, as required by the PGA.
Tournament chairman Scott Reid said he was a little bit surprised by the higher numbers “because, obviously, the course wasn’t long.’’
“But these greens are a real challenge, they’re small and very fast,’’ Reid noted. “And, I guess, they’re hard to read, too.’’
For Synkelma, it was a much different ending than the first time he captured the title in a tournament that took over two months to complete.
“Yeah, that was 9/11, when we started the tournament in Tucson (on a Monday at the Gallery) and ended up here (at Grayhawk in Scottsdale for the final two rounds),’’ Synkelma recalled. “I remember it came right down to the last hole with Donnie Yrene, when I needed to make a par. . . . But it’s never easy.’’
Besides the cash, Synkelma earned a spot in the 2007 FBR Open, a tournament he hasn’t played in since 2002. “I forgot all about that,’’ Synkelma said with a shrug, a testament to just how difficult a ride it was at Paradise Valley CC.
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