2000 Match Play Championship

Match Play Championship Cancelled Due to Rain

John Cochran of Duluth will have to settle for the knowledge that he was the best golfer for the first two days of the 3rd Annual Match Play Championship being held at The Golf Club at Cuscowilla in Eatonton because there won't be a third or fourth day.

The championship was cancelled earlier today due to torrential rain that flooded the course. Without the possibility of playing today the championship couldn't be finished tomorrow so the decision was made to cancel the tournament without a champion.

The decision, no doubt, came as a disappointment for the 16 golfers who qualified yesterday for match play. The most disappointed would have to be Cochran who played consistently in shooting rounds of 70-70=140 to win medalist honors. He went into match play as the number one seed and was due to face Donny Phillips of Duluth who made it into match play after a two-hole playoff to determine the last two spots. Jay Pyne of Duluth grabbed the other spot and would have met the number two seed, Jeff Knox of Augusta who shot 70-71=141 in qualifying.

Knox was a semi-finalist at the Match Play last year. He also finished second at the 1998 State Amateur. Allen Peake of Macon and Jack Larkin, who were tied for the lead after the first round, finished tied again in third place. Peake would have faced Bob Young of Dunwoody while Larkin was due to meet Chuck Pinkard of Cumming.

This is the first time the championship has been cancelled in its short three year history. It's not the first time a GSGA championship has been cancelled due to inclement weather though. Both the Four-Ball Championship and Team Championship were cancelled in 1997. Last year's Public Links Championship was shortened to 18 holes as Brent Sizemore of Calhoun was crowned the champion for the second year in a row.

Stroke Play Results - Top 10

1 Cochran, John, Duluth 70 70 140
2 Knox, Jeff, Augusta 70 71 141
3 Peake, Allen, Macon 69 73 142
3 Larkin, Jack, Atlanta 69 73 142
5 Belk, Jeff, Marietta 70 73 143
6 Welsh, Stephen, Macon 73 72 145
7 Donahoo, Randy, Woodstock 73 73 146
7 Kearney, Jack, Peachtree City 72 74 146
7 Llewellyn, J.R., Lawrenceville 74 72 146
10 Norton, Ladell, Rome 71 76 147
10 Randolph, Scott, Eatonton 76 71 147
10 Barnett, Lynn, Cumming 76 71 147
10 Pinkard, Chuck, Cumming 75 72 147