Dayton Country Club to host Caddie Classic

Thirty years ago a group of men who had earned college scholarships provided by the Western Golf Association started an alumni tournament to benefit the Evans Scholarship Foundation.

That event eventually was merged with one sponsored by the Queen City Par Club to form what is now known as the annual Caddie Classic. Over the years, thanks to the generosity of corporations and individual participants, it has raised $2.3 million.

The 30th annual Caddie Classic will be held July 10 at Dayton Country Club. The men and women participating in morning or afternoon rounds will walk the course with honor caddies from Dayton and Cincinnati.

The event concludes with a dinner during which a scholarship for use in Ohio is dedicated to someone. The scholarship this year is named after John and Gerry Desch, parents of four boys who earned Evans scholarships while caddying at DCC — Chris, Matt, Dave and Joe Desch — and another son, Mike, who has been an Evans contributor. Chris died in a 2006 plane crash.

The Desch boys, who live in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Wilmington, Delaware and Cincinnati, continue to support the Evans program.

“Caddying was a great job as a kid and none of us would realize the incredible impact it would have on our lives 30 years later,” Joe Desch wrote recently. “DCC was a great nurturing environment with all kinds of wonderful people and characters.

“Jimmy Gilbert (a longtime DCC pro) hired each one of us after a couple of years of caddying and we all worked in his shop. There was a Desch in the bag room at Dayton Country Club from 1972-1987.”

Jandel, Weaver

on Symetra Tour

Two women who list the Miami Valley as their home base are playing the Symetra Tour this year.

Emma Jandel, a 29-year-old Ohio State University graduate from Oakwood, is in her eighth season as a touring professional and Lindsey Weaver, whose parents live in Minster, is a Symetra Tour rookie.

Jandel, who played on the LPGA Tour in 2014, has been struggling. In 13 starts she has made four cuts with earnings of $7,410. Her best finish was a tie for eighth June 2 in Albany, N.Y.

Weaver graduated from high school in Scottsdale, Arizona and played college golf at Notre Dame and the University of Arizona. She has had four top-10 finishes and is 15th on the money list with $23,625 in earnings..

The top 10 money winners at the end of the season earn a promotion to the LPGA.

Weaver made a big splash in her Symetra debut at Winter Haven, Florida in March, finishing fourth. She has had four top-10 finishes.

Amateur Sipe

wins pro event

Austin Sipe, who played on the golf teams at Centerville High School and Wright State University, teed it up in the Southern Ohio PGA event at Springfield Country Club last Monday and won it with a four-under-par 68.

Club professionals David Bahr of Maketewah Country Club in Cincinnati and Michael Auterson of Hickory Woods Golf Course in Loveland tied for second place with 70s.

The field of 75 included 60 professionals and 15 amateurs.

Chip shots

• Walnut Grove Country Club will host a U.S. Women’s Amateur qualifier Thursday. A field of 101 will vie for nine spots in the Women’s Am Aug. 7-13 at San Diego Country Club in Chula Vista, Calif.

• The deadline to enter the City Men’s Match Play Championship July 13-16 at Community Golf Course is next Sunday.

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