The First Tee of St. Johns County Narrowly Edged by
The First Tee of Jacksonville in Annual First Tee Ryder Cup

Sunday, December 6, 2009, The First Tee of St. Johns County squared off in its annual The First Tee Ryder Cup against The First Tee of Jacksonville at Deerwood Country Club in Jacksonville, Florida.  The First Tee Ryder Cup is an annual 27 hole match that is designed to get players from The First Tee of Jacksonville and The First Tee of St. Johns County together for a friendly competition played in Ryder Cup format.

The event started out with four 9 hole Foursome Matches.  Foursomes, is an alternate shot format in which teammates take turns hitting shots until the ball is holed out.  In match 1, Sol Lee and Jacob Kline came out firing against Charles King and Blair Waters, winning the match 3 and 1.  However, Sol and Jacob secured the only point for The First Tee of St. Johns in the morning Foursomes

Entering the Fourball matches, The First Tee of St. Johns County trailed 3 to 1 and needed something to kick start the team before singles matches.  Fourball is a best ball format which players play their own ball and the best score for the team counts in their final score.  Brothers Gabriel and Abraham Bell were in a close match again Blair Waters and Aisha Peete, that was taken to the 9th and final hole.  However, Gabriel stuck his approach shot close on the Par 5 9th to secure the point for the St. Johns County Team.  Unfortunately once again, The First Tee of St. Johns County could only secure one point in the Fourball Matches and trailed The First Tee of Jacksonville 6 to 2 going into singles matches.

After a motivational speech form Coach Tom, The First Tee of St. Johns County needed 7 out of a total of 10 points to retain the cup for another year.  Tommy Kayworth led the contingent by beating Jacksonville’s Corey Price on the 9th hole of a great match securing the team’s first singles point.  Gabriel Bell added to the momentum beating Kelly Allen 5 and 3.  Abraham Bell battled in a back and forth match against Garrett Fussell securing a half a point with a draw on the 9th hole.  Jacob Kline, Spencer Schindler, Shelton Walker, and Matt King all contributed with points, however, The First Tee of St. Johns County came up .5 short of the mandatory 9 points to retain the cup losing to The First Tee of Jacksonville 9.5 to 8.5.

Jacob Kline and Gabriel Bell led The First Tee of St. Johns County securing 2 points each.  The First Tee of St. Johns County team consisted of: Gabriel Bell, Abraham Bell, Austin Kayworth, Jacob Kline, Matt King, Sol Lee, Matt Shea, Tommy Kayworth, Spencer Schlinder, and Shelton Walker.

Members of the First Tee of Jacksonville include: August Jonas, Kelly Allen, Kathleen Duperval, Roman Cenizal, Charles King, Garrett Fussell, Corey Price, Aisha Peete, Blair Waters, and Josh Marsh.

A special thank you goes out to Marsh Creek Country Club Men’s Golf Association for generously sponsoring the team’s uniforms for this year’s event.  Although we may have lost the cup, we definitely were the best looking team out there this year!!!  Thank you!