By Con Marshall
Tom Simons of Chadron, his sons Scott and Brett, along with Matt Watson of Chadron, won the Championship Flight at the Chadron State College Golf Classic this past weekend at Ridgeview Country Club in Chadron.
It’s the first win in three years for the Simons, but the 9th in the last 11 times they’ve competed together as a team.
The Simons-led foursome shot a 57 on Saturday and a 60 on Sunday for a 117 total. Two teams tied for second place just one stroke back.Â
One of them was the 2-time defending champion quartet of Chadron residents Trevor Berry, Jacksyn Behrends and Tyler Westlake, and Dom Yates of Lander, Wyo.
This year’s other runner-up was comprised of four women who were the leaders of the Chadron State golf team the past few years: Chadron native Alpine Hickstein along with Brooke Kramer, Kinsey Smith, and Jordan Grasis. Earlier in the week, Grasis had been named 1st-Team All-RMAC. Â Â
The First Flight was won by Dr Dan Johnson of Chadron, his sons Pete and Jens, and son-in-law Aaron Bertels of Rapid City. They had rounds of 63 and 64 for a 127 total, one stroke ahead of Rob Stack of Chadron, his son Jayden, daughter Kiya, and her husband Blake Miller.
Altogether, 34 teams of four-persons each took part The event was interrupted in the early afternoon both Saturday and Sunday by heavy, but brief, downpours. Everybody headed for cover, but the clouds soon rolled back both days and play continued.
The Classic, which celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, is designed to help raise funds for Chadron State athletic scholarships.