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Fantastic Finish

Morgante, Gren Shoot 13-Under In Final Round To Win Tourney By One

From the left, Peter Morgante and Jon Gren Jr. are all smiles after shooting a 13-under par 57 in the final round of the 48th annual Italian-American Charity Golf Tournament on Saturday at Holiday Valley Resort. P-J photo by Jay Young

ELLICOTTVILLE — Anything can happen on the final day in any golf event, and that was certainly the mindset that teammates Jon Gren Jr. and Peter Morgante took into the third and final afternoon of the 48th annual Italian-American Charity Golf Tournament on the Double Black Diamond course at Holiday Valley Resort on Saturday.

The pair, which claimed its first victory at the I-A in 2015, entered the final round of the weekend in a six-shot hole, but was able to climb out of that deficit with a final-round 57 for a 190 total to take home the title. After firing a 62 on Day 1 to put themselves in good position on the leaderboard, Morgante and Gren stumbled in their middle round, shooting a 1-over-par 71 for a two-day total of 133.

“We were six shots back and we knew that,” said Gren. “We played great the first day and terrible Friday, but we knew we were going to go low today and we did. Pete had four birdies and I had one birdie, and we just kept going low the whole day. It was nice.”

Coming in a close second was the tandem of Jordan Bardo and Jordan Woleen, which carded a 60 on the final day to finish with a 191 after an opening round of 68 and a 63 on Friday. Bardo and Woleen were force to give back two strokes with a pair of bogies on two par-3s despite their strong round.

One factor helping Morgante and Gren finish the weekend strong was that the pair was not playing in the final grouping, and that meant a lot less pressure.

George Panebianco tees off on No. 17 during the final round of the Italian-American Charity Golf Classic on Saturday.

“The feeling of winning when you shoot 57 in the last round is absolutely amazing. It’s different than playing in the final group as it was our first time in 2015,” said Morgante.

While Saturday’s scoring opportunities allowed plenty of teams to come into the clubhouse with red numbers, Morgante and Gren were able to limit the potential damage from any missed shots.

“We made a nice par on 10 to start the back nine after shooting 29 on the front. We felt pretty good. (We) made a birdie on 11, made a nice par on 12, had a setback on 13. We knew we had to hit the run. (We) made a birdie on 14, made a birdie on 16, knew we had to make par-par on 17 and 18 to have a shot to come in. I played great. Jon played great. What a tournament, what a charity, what a golf course,” said Morgante. “The benefit is amazing. UPMC cancer treatment, how can you go wrong? It’s a great weekend for the families.”

Henry Mole and Tom Ames shot 195 to lead the First Flight, Dave Munella and Dave Currie fired a 192 to lead the Second Flight, Lucian DiNapoli and Brett Mucheck shot 198 to lead the Third Flight, Jim Todaro and Tom Yocum shot 196 to lead the Fourth Flight, Tom Brigiotta and John Anderson shot 196 to lead the Fifth Flight, Paul Mole Jr. and David Lobb shot 210 to lead the Sixth Flight, and Casey Digirolamo and Randy Olson shot 212 to lead the Seventh Flight.

OVERALL CHAMPION

Henry Mole putts on No. 18. P-J photos by Jay Young

Pete Morgante-Jon Gren Jr. 190

OVERALL RUNNER-UP

Jordan Bardo-Jordan Woleen 191

7th Flight

Casey Digirolamo and Randy Olson 212, Greg Pietrocarlo and Hans Auer 212 , Dave Foti and Nick Madden 213.

6th Flight

Paul Mole Jr. and David Lobb 210, Sam Mason and Derek Dawson 212, Mike Caprino and Ken Eimiller 214.

5th Flight

Tom Brigiotta and John Anderson 196, Joe Ribaudo and Scott Crist 200, Sam Restivo and Billy Miley 205.

4th Flight

Jim Todaro and Tom Yocum 196, Anthony Tuccio and Dan Hocking 198, Rob Foti and Craig Lundgren 201.

3rd Flight

Lucian DiNapoli and Brett Mucheck 198, John Foti and Dan Cotter 199, Sam Peppy and Charlie Moss 200.

2nd Flight

Dave Munella and Dave Currie 192, Tim D’Angelo and Jeff Keppel 196, Jack Munella Jr. and Jake Curry 197.

1st Flight

Henry Mole and Tom Ames 195, George Panebianco and John O’Mara 197, Joe Vitello and Kevin Thorpe 197.

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