Schultz leads area Open contingent

DIVOTS --

July 11, 2009|By TIM KOELBLE

The 88th annual edition of the Maryland Open Championship takes place Monday through Wednesday at Hillendale Golf Club in Phoenix, Md., conducted by the Maryland State Golf Association.

Five local golfers -- Dirk Schultz, Greg Henry and Ken Lampard of Beaver Creek and Jim Schouller and Brian Boggs of Fountain Head -- will take aim at the top spot on the 6,839-yard, par-72 layout.

Hillendale will host the Open for the first time since 1999, when Schultz began a run of three straight years finishing in second place.

Coming off a 40th-place finish in the recent PGA Professional National Championship, Schultz tees off on Monday at 2 p.m. Schultz was the only golfer from the Mid-Atlantic region to make the cut at the PNC.

"I played as good as I could in New Mexico," said Schultz. "I didn't putt that well in the early rounds."

Henry tees off at 8:30 a.m. and Lampard fires away at 12:30. Schouller will then take his first shot at 1:30.

"The Open is a strong field," said Schultz. "The par 5s (at Hillendale) and the course suits my game."

Chip Sullivan, who has won the Open four times, is the defending champion, winning last year's tournament at Fountain Head Country Club.

Defending a title

After the Open, Schultz and Lampard will prepare to defend their 2008 title in the MSGA Pro-Amateur.

The two will team up July 20 in the 53rd edition, slated for Piney Branch Golf Club. The pair will tee off at 11:06 a.m.

Other twosomes in the field include pro Jim Schouller/amateur Paul Mellott and pro Brian Boggs/amateur Ric Behan of Fountain Head Country Club.

Seniors at Fountain Head

Fountain Head plays host to a statewide event on July 20-22 hosting the Middle Atlantic Golf Association Senior Amateur.

The tournament, which will feature a field of 100 entrants, will have a senior champion and a super senior champ in the age 65-and-over category.

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