Slate is set for special 90th anniversary of Men’s Amateur

Slate is set for ‘special’ 90th anniversary of Men’s Amateur

In the aftermath of last year’s 89th annual SWNY-NWPA Men’s Golf Amateur, Kyle Henzel was already mulling potential plans for the round-number anniversary that would follow.

Perhaps his tournament committee would go big — a two-day qualifier, a father-son event or a celebratory scramble. Or perhaps, in the interest of not fixing what isn’t broken, Henzel and company would make no major changes at all.

In the end, they essentially opted for the latter.

That’s not to say, however, that they’re dismissing this milestone occasion.

It’s just the few special wrinkles the committee has added for the 90th Men’s Amateur, set for Aug. 5-9 at Olean’s Bartlett Country Club, will largely fall within the typical routine — beginning with Tuesday’s Shootout of Former Champions and ending with Sunday’s 36-hole championship final.

MOST NOTABLY, the committee will honor 91-year-old Mike Shane, the tournament’s oldest living champion, at the Shootout. Shane claimed two Men’s Am titles, the first in 1959, when he earned a thrilling 1-up victory over Jim Davis on the 37th hole. In addition to Tuesday’s event, which Shane is expected to attend, Henzel’s group will also recognize Shane in one other way …

“What do you give a 91-year-old man, right?” Henzel asked. “He has everything. So what we did is put his 1959 championship picture on the cover of this year’s tournament program.”

Then, there’s the Shootout itself.

Historically, it’s used a seven-hole steeplechase format in which most golfers are knocked out after the first 2-3 holes. This year, though, every entrant will play holes 1-5, with the top five scores advancing and the rest of the field eliminated. The final five will then play a shootout over holes 15-18, completing the Bartlett “loop” and determining a winner.

“It was Danny Reiley’s idea,” Henzel noted. “As he said, a lot of people drive a long way and then get kicked out after two holes; it’s maybe not worth it. I thought it was a good idea, and why not try to do that in the 90th year — play nine holes. And if it catches on, we’ll keep doing it.

“But that’s the only real change for this year.”

BUT THOSE aren’t the only interesting tidbits heading into early August.

Every participant will receive a gift; previously, the committee had given out everything from measuring tapes to lighters for major anniversaries. This year, Henzel said, “I didn’t want to do hats or anything like that. So we got a nice … I don’t want to say it’s a booze flask, but it’s a crystal flask with a nice engraving.”

There’s also the field to consider … one addition in particular.

Following a two-year absence, Chris Blocher, who owns a record 10 Men’s Amateur titles — the most recent coming in 2021 — will play in this year’s tournament, adding its own layer of intrigue to the festivities.

Not playing, however, is Eric McHone, who’s qualified for the last 25 Championship Flights, but will miss this year’s event after recently having knee replacement surgery. Which brought Henzel to his next point.

For years, his generation (now 50-65 years old) produced one of the tournament’s strongest turnouts. But those players have begun to “fall by the wayside,” he said, due to age, injuries or other commitments. And while the younger generation boasts plenty of talented golfers — “Corey Haas, the Timmy Halls, Marcus Aiellos and Scott Bradys” — there are fewer of them, locally, to fill that gap, Henzel asserted (though he hopes to see a rebound from that age group in future years).

As a result, he’s anticipating a field of around 110-120 for 2026, which would mean a slight dip from the 125-140 it’s enjoyed in recent years.

“Now, I could be totally surprised, and usually I’m wrong in trying to predict how many people are playing,” Henzel acknowledged. “But I can tell you this: we’re at about 60 people, which is pretty good, and that’s not counting Penn-York (the junior golf league whose top 15-16 finishers receive free entry).

“I’ve seen some new faces already signed up, so having it be around 75 with two weeks to go is pretty darn good.”

Additionally, the tournament also expects to see more St. Bonaventure-associated golfers, which could boost that final tally. While the Men’s Am has long attracted several current team members, Bona coach Patrick Damore has arranged for many alumni golfers to come out this year, “which I thought was pretty cool,” Henzel said.

Besides, this year’s event isn’t as much about numbers, or special plans, as it is a celebration of the fact that the Men’s Am, which staged its first event in 1934, has successfully reached its ninth decade and now donates to five different organizations.

“I’m extremely proud of that,” said Henzel, a fourth-generation tournament director. “To reach 90 years is amazing; the momentum we’ve had in the last 10 or so years has been amazing. It kind of goes in cycles, but we haven’t hit that low cycle in maybe 25-30 years. And I hope we don’t hit that low cycle, I hope we keep it going.

“It’s about the money we raise for Brady’s Cause, the Olean General Hospital, InTandem, Homecare & Hospice and now the St. Bonaventure golf team. To give back to the community, to have the community involved, I’m very proud of that.”

The entry fee for the 90th SWNY-NWPA Men’s Amateur is $160, and entries must be received by Monday, Aug. 2 at 2 p.m. Individuals can register at swnynwpa.com.

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