Published Sunday, August 03, 2008

Bartkowicz finishes tied for 5th in Georgia Open

The Times-Herald

Troy Bartkowicz rallied nicely on Sunday evening at Barnsley Gardens, shooting a final round 70 to clinch a top-five finish in the 55th edition of the Georgia Open.

The former Northgate High star turned in rounds of 70-70-73-70 at the difficult Adairsville course. He started his final round slowly with an early double and a subsequent bogey. But the birdie machine charged back with five birdies against no bogeys over his last 10 holes.

Bartkowicz was proud of the way he fought back. "I'm extremely pleased with my comeback. The front side was a struggle. I made a couple of poor shots and I missed some easy putts," said the Cannongate I standout.

His double came at No.4 when he was long and left in the woods. But the rally begin at No.9 as Bartkowicz made birdie at the par 5. He would make consecutive birdies at No.11 and No.12.

Bartkowicz made a magnificent 50 footer that was dead uphill at No.11 and chipped to within four feet at No.12, setting up another par 5 birdie.

Tournament officials challenged the field to attempt to drive the par 4, sixteenth green. Bartkowicz came up short but chipped to within four feet, setting up another short birdie putt.

His final birdie came at No.17 when he cut a six-iron to within four feet of the stick. It was probably his best shot of the tournament. "It was definately the best shot of the day and perhaps the event. Plus it was the first time I hit that par 3 all week," noted Bartkowicz.

Orchard Hills head pro Wyatt Detmer also finished well, carding an indentical two-under 70. His round was highlighted by an eagle at No.4. Detmer pulled out a driver and five-wood to the par 5 and was on in two, no more than two feet from the flag.

The pin was located in the right back and seemed to call his name. The ball came to rest two feet past the stick. Detmer had previously hit within two feet at No.2, giving him an easy birdie look.

Detmer finished just outside the top 20. "The key for me was to be patient. I had to find the right tempo and remind myself to be patient," said the Orchard Hills professional.

Detmer nearly shot 69 but misfired on a six-foot left-to-right downhill attempt at the last. The golfer, who has been a dominant force on the Georgia PGA Senior Tour this year, was still satisfied with his round. "I had a great day and a tremendous week. Today was especially pleasing because I was six shots better than on Saturday," he said.

The humble competitor refused to brag on his play but it is worth noting that he finished second among all entrants who were 50 and over. Detmer will play today in a Georgia Senior event at Jekyll Island.

Bryant Odom of St. Simons won the Georgia Open with a 14 under total. He was five better than second place finisher Roberto Castro of Alpharetta.