George Kavanagh of Oak Hill Country Club, left, is presented with the 2016 RDGA Senior Championship trophy by RDGA Executive Director Tim Vangellow at Mendon Golf Club on August 25. The victory was Kavanagh’s second RDGA major title, having also won the 1978 RDGA Junior Championship.
It took 38 years, but once again, Oak Hill Country Club’s George Kavanagh is an RDGA Championship winner.
In the second round of the 2016 RDGA Senior Championship at Mendon Golf Club on August 25, Kavanagh added a 1-over-par 72 to his first round of 77, finishing with a 7-over-par 149 total for the Championship. Kavanagh’s total was two shots better than John August of Irondequoit Country Club – the first round leader – who posted a score of 77 in Round 2 to finish at 9-over 151 for the Championship.
By posting the low 36-hole score between the Senior (55-59) and Super Senior (60-64) divisions, Kavanagh won the overall Senior Championship title – his first major RDGA Championship title since winning the RDGA Junior Championship when he was 17.
“I won the Junior District Championship in 1978, so it’s been a long time since my last Championship,” said Kavanagh. “That one was pretty special – my father was there at the 18th hole, which was the first tournament he’d ever been to.”
Ironically, playing in this year’s RDGA Senior Championship almost wasn’t an option for Kavanagh.
“I actually wasn’t going to play, because I was on a business trip last week,” he noted. “But, it turned out to be a one day trip instead of two, so I signed up for this at the last minute.”
Kavanagh had a couple of shaky moments on the back nine in the final round – bogeying holes 11 and 14 – but kept his composure with a string of pars down the final stretch.
“It was a tough start – I bogied the first two holes but then I birdied Nos. 5, 6 and 7, so I had a pretty good turn there, for a 34 on the front,” he said of his round. “I couldn’t tell where I stood (on the leaderboard), but I had a pretty good caddie – my son, George. We had a great day together.”
Kavanagh’s final-round 72 was the low round of the Championship on a tough Mendon Golf Club layout that many players found difficult to score upon.
“It was a great event – we beat the weather, which was nice,” he added. “I just really enjoyed it.”
In addition to the overall Senior Championship at Mendon Golf Club on Wednesday and Thursday, August 24 and 25, the 2016 RDGA Senior Championships included competition in each of the four age flights in the Championship: Senior (also won by Kavanagh); Super Senior, Masters (ages 65 to 69), and Legends (ages 70-plus). Golfers in the Masters Flight played from the White Tees (6,200 yards); golfers in the Legends Flight played from the Gold Tees (5,707 yards).
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Winning the 2016 Super Senior (60-64) Championship title was John August from Irondequoit Country Club.
August shot 74-77 for a 9-over-par 151 total for the Championship. His opening round of 74 gave August the overall lead overnight going into the second round.
In the final round, George Kavanagh (who was in the Senior division, for ages 55-59) shot 72 to finish 2 shots ahead of August for the overall title.
In the Super Senior Competition, August finished just one shot ahead of three-time RDGA Senior Championship winner Robert Zeman of Sodus Bay Heights, who posted a 74 in the final round to finish runner-up. Finishing in a tie for third place in the Super Senior competition were two Locust Hill members – Steve Puccia and Robert Condello, who had a final round 73.
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 John August, left accepts the RDGA Super Senior Championship trophy from RDGA Executive Director Tim Vangellow.
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 RDGA Executive Director Tim Vangellow, right, presents the RDGA
Masters Championship trophy to Bill Shearer, left.
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Winning the 2016 Masters (65-69) Championship title was Bill Shearer of Genesee Valley Golf Course.
Shearer had rounds of 79-75 for the Championship, narrowly beating out Dale Dirk – who was playing on his home course – for the Masters title by one shot, finishing with a 12-over-par 154 total.
Dirk finished one shot back at 155 as the runner-up, followed by past RDGA District Champion and RDGA Senior Championship winner Ken Andrychuk of Clifton Springs.
The 2016 RDGA Masters Championship is the first RDGA title for Shearer.
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Winning the 2016 Legends (70-plus) Championship title – for a third time – was Gary DiFlorio of Eagle Vale Golf Club.
DiFlorio posted scores of 73-76 from the Gold Tees to finish with a 7-over-par 149 total to finish four shots ahead of defending RDGA Legends Champion Jim Cook of Stafford.
The win marked DiFlorio’s third RDGA Legends Championship title, having also won in 2011 and 2014.
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 Gary DiFlorio, right, accepts the RDGA Legends Championship trophy
from RDGA Executive Director Tim Vangellow.
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Many thanks to the Mendon Golf Club members and staff for their hospitality in hosting this RDGA major championship.
First round leader John August of Irondequoit Country Club tees off No. 1 during the final round of the 2016 RDGA Senior Championship at Mendon Golf Club as Chuck Ryan, right, watches. August eventually finished runner-up overall and was also the Super Senior Division (ages 60-64) Champion.
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