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Amos Martin Invitational tournament set for July 5-6 on Country Club's course
He's got to win it first. But for Craycraft, that's a real possibility. He holds the course record at 137, a mark he set exactly two decades ago, and last year was just one stroke shy of that score at 138. His first Amos Martin win came in 1984. As of late last week, about 80 golfers had already signed up for a spot in the tournament and that's about on par with 2007 signups. While participation had been a little off in recent years, W-WCC President Jim Baston says the early sign-ups are encouraging and he's expecting a full field.
Set to begin at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 5, and continue through Sunday afternoon, July 6, the tournament is organized to accommodate up to 110 golfers. As always, the weather could be a factor but indications are that it won't hamper play this year. And while the weather has been particularly dry this spring and summer, it hasn't affected the course adversely. Baston reports that the course is in good shape despite the lack of rain and everything "looks pretty good." The Washington-Wilkes course is still a classic. Designed in 1925 by Donald Ross, who also designed the Augusta Country Club course and had a hand in the design of Augusta National, it has remained basically the same for over 80 years. One of the characteristics of a Ross course, according to Jack Harvey a former tournament chairman, is the relatively small target greens, and these are like that. "This course can be scored on," he said, "but it can also eat your lunch." There have been other back-toback winners but never a three-ina row winner. Others who have won two-in-a-row include Mel Fleisher, Sammy Craig, Ed Moore, Mitch Marchman, Steve Chafin, Alex McMichael, and Bryan Barnett. Those double wins constitute a developing trend, especially in the last ten years. In that time, there have been four repeaters and though Craycraft hopes to extend and modify that trend, there are a number of talented golfers who are out to set up their own repeats. The last three doublers were all local, home-grown players and could still figure heavily as contenders this year. Others who meet the criteria include the 2005 champion, Tommy Wells, and last year's runner-up, Jim Baston. Craycraft's fourth win last year put him in a tie with Bobby Jones who has held that distinction since 1989. Jones first won in 1967 and then added titles in 1975, 1982, and 1989.
Craycraft set the course record of 137 (36 holes) in 1988 and now shares it with Bryan Barnett who matched it in 2001.
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