Hitting the Links
Matt Jenkins
Heading into the final nine holes of Olde Salem Greens' club championship, Bill French figured his chances of capturing a second title in five years had just about disappeared.
French, who trailed good friend and defending champ Wayne Janian by three shots, had only two things in mind for the final nine holes — stay focused and stay out of trouble.
French managed to do both, and he stormed back for an impressive three-shot win. That's right, he picked up six shots in just nine holes to win his first title since 2005.
"The only thing that came to mind was staying focused and avoiding mistakes," French said. "Sometimes that works, and sometimes it doesn't."
French made two birdies in the final nine and stayed out of trouble. By the time he birdied the 17th, his lead had swelled to three shots.
"I felt comfortable on the last hole when I hit a wedge to six feet and I was up three shots," French, who finished with a 36-hole total of 147 (74-73), laughed. "After I birdied the 17th I figured that all I had to do was make bogey on the last hole. I felt pretty good on the last tee."
Nineteen-year-old Beau Theriault finished second with a 150.
The final group included French, Janian, Theriault and past champ Tony Blood.
"Playing with those guys, as good as they are, I was saying to myself, 'They aren't going to give it away,'" French, a lifelong Salem resident, said. "Theriault is a player. He hasn't won a (Salem) championship yet, but he certainly will in the future."
Ironically, French had played less golf than usual leading into this tournament due to work commitments. He still manages to get out for nine holes on Friday afternoon, then plays 18 on both Saturday and Sunday.
Although French plays a lot of golf at The Meadow at Peabody, he speaks highly of the friendly yet competitive nature of golf at Olde Salem Greens.
"Everybody who plays is friends, but everybody is trying to beat the brains out of the other guys. When it's over everybody is friends again," French said. "For one year I have bragging rights. I had it once before and then promptly went out and lost them (the next year)."
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Olde Salem Greens also had an A Flight tournament, which was won by John Galaris. Galaris shot a 76 in the 18-hole event to defeat John Treadwell, who fired a 79.
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Former Peabody resident Matt O'Brien has experienced some golfing success in while living in Decatur, Georgia.
O'Brien, St. John's Prep Class of 1961, captured the prestigious Georgia Super-Senior Championship (age 65 and over) in April.
O'Brien grew up in West Peabody and worked on his golf game at Lynnfield Centre (now Reedy Meadow Golf Course) and Sagamore in Lynnfield. Upon graduating from St. John's Prep, O'Brien went on to captain the golf team at Boston College.
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Wenham Country Club had an outstanding showing at the Women's Golf Association of Massachusetts Class B and C Championships recently. Judy Corson won the C Division with an 86 at Juniper Hill Golf Course, while Susan Bachman took fourth in the B Division with an 85. Both Corson and Bachman play out of Wenham Country Club.
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Far Corner Golf Club still has openings for its Friday night Couples Foursome Scramble, which will be played tonight. So far the club has 44 players signed up and is aiming for 60. The $99 cost covers greens fees, cart, prizes and cookout. There is a 5 p.m. shotgun start.
Interested golfers should call the club to reserve a spot.
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Peabody's George Pittman aced the 153-yar, par-3 12th hole at The Meadow at Peabody this week. Pittman used a 4-iron for the memorable shot. Pittman's playing partners were Bob Corriveau, Charles Dick and Jim McHugh.
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Hitting the Links, a column on North Shore golf, runs each Friday during the summer in The Salem News. Contact staff writer Matt Jenkins at 978-338-2648 or by e-mail at mjenkins@salemnews.com.
