The Invitational Shootout

Two-Person Scramble Charity Golf Event

Welder and Wits Win 2005 Invitational Shootout

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After three previous second place finishes, the team of Aaron Wits and Joel Welder finally achieved their ultimate goal by winning the 2005 Invitational Shootout at Maple Meadows presented by The Pit Rib House. Wits and Welder overcame a brief, but severe weather delay and the largest field in the history of the tournament for a one stroke victory over Dan O’Connor and Paul Newman.

“Winning The Shootout has always been a dream for us” said Joel Welder. “I can’t believe that we’ve finally accomplished what we set out to do five years ago. It’s almost like this is all a dream”

“We’re proud to have Aaron and Joel as our 2005 champions and we’re confident that they will represent our tournament well over the course of the coming year.” said tournament organizer Michael Howley. “We raised a great deal of money for The Helping Hand and we had a great tournament with two deserving champions.”

Hill and Lis Win 2004 Invitational Shootout

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The largest field in Tournament History, in addition to glorious summer weather, combined to make the 2004 edition of the Invitational Shootout one of the most memorable. With a record five teams finishing under par, it took a playoff to decide the Shootout Champions for 2004.

On the second hole in sudden death, Joe Hill sank a 25-foot putt for the victory, earning his first wool jacket and partner Walter Lis his second. Hill & Lis defeated the team of Knight & Kroening after both teams finished 18 holes of regulation play at 2-under 68.

Hill’s success in the playoff came after a crushing overtime defeat in 2003 to the team of Donley & Shinkle. “After such a long wait, I was completely focused on erasing last year from mind and nailing that putt in the playoff” said Hill. “I did not want to spend twelve months second-guessing myself like I did last year.”

“We couldn’t be happier with turnout, the competition, the course and the weather” said tournament organizer Mike Howley. “We also raised a tremendous amount for The Helping Hand Rehabilition Center, which is a terrific accomplishment.”

Shinkle Makes History By Winning 2003 Invitational Shootout

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Ray Shinkle re-wrote the record books once again by winning the 2003 Invitational Shootout with Bryan Donley. With the victory, Shinkle becomes the only person to win back-to-back Shootout championships with a different partner. Ray won the 2002 Invitational Shootout with partner Jeff Fernstrom.

“I’m really pleased with our performance today, especially under the intense pressure that we faced all day” said Shinkle. “To beat Joe Hill in a playoff is like staring down a rattle snake at feeding time. I’ll bet he’ll come back next year with even more intensity than he had this year.”

“What’s even more fulfilling is the fact that I won again with a new partner ” continued Shinkle. “A lot of guys thought Jeff Ferstrom did most of the work last year, so to come back with a new, more-mediocre player and still get the job done feels really good.”

Fernstrom and Shinkle Win 2002 Invitational Shootout

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The largest field in the history of the Invitational Shootout were no match for the team of Ray Shinkle and Jeff Fernstrom on Saturday, June 8th at Maple Meadows Country Club. The duo set an Invitational Shootout scoring record of 65 and ran away from the competition to capture the 2002 Championship.

“I kept telling my partner Jeff that we’ve got to stay aggresive all day ” said Shootout champion Ray Shinkle, “with these scoring conditions and this large of a field, someone is going to go low.”

Neither Shinkle nor Fernstrom expected to lap the field of 56 golfers by four strokes. Said Fernstrom, “Ray was very adamant in making sure we continued to push for birdies throughout our round. We were the only team to birdie the first hole and we never stopped after that.”

The 2002 Senior Division champions were Victor Tocwish and Al Paszyna. Said Tocwish, while choking back tears, “Sometimes Al gets a little nervous in the big tournaments, but today he was terrific. He nailed knock-down 5-iron to a fade pin on the 17th hole that pretty much won us the tournament… for that I will always be grateful.”

Tocwish and Paszyna outlasted the Michigan-based team of Ken Sprague and Ray Azzolin by two strokes. “Illinois golf is a little different than it is in Michigan” said Ken Sprague. “But the element of competition stays the same, and I’m sure my partner Ray would say the same thing.”